One step forward....ten steps back....

wannabedebtfree_2

I am close to losing the plot here......I ache all over, my head hurts and I've been in tears on and off all afternoon.......I know its stress cos I was fine at work......

The story......

Last week I phoned Nationwide and Barclays (Littlewoods card) about reducing my interest as its causing my debt to just roll on and on, Nationwide offered me 'an arrangement to pay' at 0% for 6 months but as this would affect my credit rating and would stay on my record for 6 months I told them not to do anything........the chap at Barclays said if I could clear my card they could offer me a LOB at 6.9% with no transfer fee........brilliant I thought.........shift the balance onto my Nationwide and my partners card........then shift it back at 6.9% rather than the 24.9% I am currently paying :eek:.........so after work I feel pretty good, sign onto my online banking to do the transfer to my Nationwide CC.......and it says "Sorry we are unable to do this transaction please phone 0845....." so I ring the number to be told they have blocked my account because I said I was struggling to pay (what I actually said was that the massive amount of interest I am paying means my payments each month are halved I pay £205, they take £102 in interest the balance is £6800).........I explained that they are screwing me over as I could reduce my monthly interest payments by over £40 but they just said "We will review it in six months"

I am gutted...........at the rates I am paying I CANNOT continue it is leaving us with NO room for emergencies, my kids came back from school one needing £11 for a school trip and the other needing £30 for some GCSE PE stuff and I just feel like crying, I don't have a spare £41 so will have to cut the food back to £30-40 for the 4 of us for a few weeks, I told Nationwide that maybe my best course of action would be a DMP as every time I make an effort to pay my debts off as quickly a barrier is thrown in my way......I KNOW I am resposible for the debt which is why I have continued to pay, NEVER missed a payment, but because I am up to the hilt with my borrowing I have been refused for a loan even though it would cost me over £150 per month less than I am currently (consistently) paying off the CC's......

I needed to rant..........I need to cry...............I need a solution..........my debt just isn't going down..........I have cut up my credit cards.......done a tight budget up till xmas...........what more can I do???

cashless_wonder

Not sure what to advise so - BUMP . . . Let's get you some help

QueenBeruthiel

When you feel up to it, OP, perhaps you could post your SOA.

In the meantime..... hugs...

:grouphug:

GeorgeUK

Something else to bear in mind WBDF is that you can only have about 3 credit checks in a 6 month period before your credit score is affected. Don't try to get any more credit until you have only one search in the last 6 months.

If you don't have a Virgin or MBNA card, this is the one i would go for - the 0% is for 16 months and the minimum payment is only 1% which may help.

In the mean time, is it possible to go interest only ony your mortgage?
Have you checked your house is in the correct tax band?
Have you reclaimed any charges or PPI?

Take your electricity and gas meter readings. Contact the companies and make sure that the monthly payments are not excessive. If your accounts are in credit, you can ask for the money to be sent back to you rather than sitting in their account.

Edit: I would also write a letter of complaint to the bank stating that they put incorrect information on your file and request confirmation that this has been removed. It is against the Data Protection Act to hold incorrect data and they can easily check the phone records to see exactly what was said.

determinedtodothis

I'd complain to the bank, i'd sign up to all the survey and review sites you can, see if you can up your income a little

debtfreenewbie

You have some options open to you. Try and do a SOA for your own benefit then people can advise you on ways to cut down.
If you are concerned about your credit rating and dont want it to slip then a dmp will not be best for you.
It is heartbreaking suddenly realising what position you are in but you are NOT alone.
Sit down quietly and sort through it all then do a soa,it may not be as bad as you think....

sarahs999

Calm down, have a cup of tea, fill this in: http://www.makesenseofcards.com/soacalc.html

THen think. Isn't it better to have some breathing space, even if it does affect your credit rating? Your credit rating can be mended. You don't want any more credit anyway at the moment so try to get things prioritise din your head. The key is to work out a monthy budget that you can stick to that will help you get out of debt.