Payplan or CCCS??

iwillbefree_3

Hi,

Very nervous new poster here!!

I have approx £21k in unsecured debt & am going to contact CCCS or Payplan this week for help. I have around £300 p/m to pay towards my debt- does this sound like an acceptable figure??

Also does anyone have any preference over which company to use? Do creditors prefer one over the other?

Also does anyone have a list of what creditors see as resonable costs for thingsprescriptions/contact lenses/clothes/food etc, so include in my income & expenses report?

Sorry for all the questions & thanks for your help x

jobbingmusician

Well done for posting!

I'm not an expert, but my impression is that CCCS and PP are much of a muchness - but I'm sure someone else will be along in a minute to give you a first-hand account.

I think that the things in Martin's list are usually seen as reasonable - it always surprises me that there are so many things in a statement of accounts, as when I economise I tend to go over the top and stop living (which is obviously silly). £300 a month does sound plenty - have you left yourself room to breathe?

Now, what people on here will recommend is that you post a statement of affairs - you can see lots of examples on this board. Also if you post one people will give you good FRIENDLY advice about areas you can cut back so that you have more to spend on things you actually enjoy, and to pay back so you feel you are moving faster towards being debt free.

Welcome to the board!

davek1

Hi iwillbefree.

I have just signed up with PayPlan and found them to be very helpful and reassuring. they are non-judgemental and talk you through everything. i am sure CCCS are much the same but can only speak from my personal experience and would highly recommend PayPlan.

please post your SOA on here as you will find a lot of help and make sure your creditors know what is going on and that you are dealing with PayPlan or CCCS. It takes about 4 weeks to get everything set up depending on your creditors and the riute they advise you to take

Good luck

Dave

davels

My only experience is with PayPlan. They are extremely helpful. Depending on your case officer, they can be unresponsive or responsive. Currently I have a fantastic rep who replies to my emails within a few hours usually.

We must remember that these places are providing us with a free service - FREE - nothing in this world as free as us debt-laden fools have come to learn... but really, CCCS & PayPlan are free!

PayPlan give you a nice web interface to manage & keep track of your details, I believe CCCS have recently implemented a similar solution.

Best of luck

davels

Oh... and don't be nervous about posting here... we're a friendly bunch of animals.

Entrepreneur_en_faillite

my only experience is with cccs. They were truy marvellous and very undrstading- good luck!

Papillon

Hi there, first time poster on here and just wondered - are payplan & CCCS the same as an IVA?

(sorry if that's a stupid question but I don't know much about this kind of thing - which I suppose is why I'm here)!

Thanks

Papillon

Entrepreneur_en_faillite

Papillon wrote:

Hi there, first time poster on here and just wondered - are payplan & CCCS the same as an IVA?

(sorry if that's a stupid question but I don't know much about this kind of thing - which I suppose is why I'm here)!

Thanks

Papillon

Hi Papillon and welcome to MSE

payplan and CCCS are free credit advice bureaux who are there to help with sorting out credit problems.

hope this helps!

Entrepreneur_en_faillite

They can give you advice on IVA's bankruptcy etc etc but do not actually arrange the IVA or bankruptcy themselves

hun_2

An IVA is considered a less drastic measure to bankruptcy, basically an agreement is made whereby you pay an amount to settle your debts that is less than you actually owe - about a third I think. You pay this amount over a time period of a few years after which time the remaining debt is written off. Sounds good but they can cost £6k (individual) or £9k (couple) so are only really worth it if you owe £20k plus. It's legally binding so the creditors can't chase you etc as long as you stick to it.

btw, I work in this field and have been using the site for tips for a while... 1st post though! hope this helps a bit.

ffs

Don't forget that the main purpose of an IVA is to allow people to continue working in a profession from which they would be barred if they were to be made bankrupt.