what can i do?

ratty

hi i was wondering if anyone has any advice for me

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basically i had a loan at the age of 18 from my bank for £5,000 and a credit card which i ran up to the limit, which they kept increasing till i got to £3,000 then i cut it up.

anyway i ask the bank to consolidate my loan and credit card because i was having difficulty paying them back so they did and on my request increased the loan amount to £20,000.

i have had difficulty paying this back and up until 3 years ago was ignoring the requests for payments, notices of default etc. i have payed almost £8,000off so far but due to the fact that they have lowered my monthly repayments in the last 3 years i still owe just under £20,000. my monthly repayments are not even paying off the interest so the amount just keeps on increasing.

i am a self employed childminder and work is not consistant and at the time of taking out the £20,000 loan i was 21 UNEMPLOYED AND ON BENEFITS AND A SINCLE MUM WITH A CHILD AT SCHOOL who needed uniforms etc.

my mum thinks the bank were in the wrong to give me the loan, she thinks that the knew they were on to a winner as i did not have a hope in hell of paying it back. what do you think?

they do not have records of me tacking the loan out as it was 5 years ago and apparently (according to my bank manager) they only keep records for 3 years.

they have also changed the system for getting loans since then so that people have to prove their income etc, so things like this do not happen.

i am suffering from depression and have been self harming and also took an overdose because i just can't see a way out of this.

i have been to the cab and the lady i saw was so unhelpful she just said to write to the bank and offer a full and final settlement threatening to go bankrupt if they did not accept. which i had already done prior to seeing her and they said no. i really don't want to go bankrupt as it would affect my boyfriend as well. and she had no other advice apart from get another job that earns more!! very helpful!!

does anyone have any advice, what can i do?

oh and the bank in mention has been on watchdog in the past for giving out loans to people who can't afford it!!

thanks in advance

jonesMUFCforever

Go to CAB.
Ask their opinion about whether bankruptcy is an option in your case.When they take you on they will deal with all your creditors although you will not get any more credit from anyone (including catalogues).
If you are referring to a bank which has a dark coloured four legged animal as its logo they hae a financial difficulty dept to help customers such as yourself and I am very suprised that they did not offer you this option.

Astaroth

So you had a £5k loan and a £3k amount on a credit card and you took out a loan for £20k to pay it off? Where did the additional £12k go?

I think to be honest it is now time to deal with your own bad judgement of borrowing £20k when you werent with a perminant job and regular income. The CAB will be able to assist you with information on if declaring yourself bankrupt is the best option or not.

My experience of the CAB, without wanting to sound harsh, is that they are much more helpful/ respectful to people that come in saying they have made mistakes and now have too much debt than people who do not accept responsibility for their own actions and are still trying to get out of it.

Catch_A_Fire

ratty wrote:

my mum thinks the bank were in the wrong to give me the loan, she thinks that the knew they were on to a winner as i did not have a hope in hell of paying it back. what do you think?

Sorry, your mum's wrong. Banks write off millions of pounds in bad debt every month. It also costs them a lot of money in wages and systems to manage customers who fall behind.

Besides CAB there is also CCCS http://www.cccs.co.uk/ who are (like CAB) a registered charity partly funded by the banking industry. They will provide free advice if you'd rather not return to CAB.

Mercuryrising

The only thing about the CCCS from my experience is that they will try a very hard sale of their DMP (Debt Management Plan) not give free impartial advice.

However, others disagree - and a DMP is a way of good way of managing your finances without going insolvent. You also won't have access to credit - which will probably be a good thing. And finally, if circumstances go up or down they can amend what you pay accordingly.

ratty

hi thanks for the replys

i understand i was in the wrong taking the loan and i wish i could turn back time - but as you know thats not poss!! we all do stupid things at times and don't forget i was only 21 so not exactly mature. not trying to make excusses tho.

i am doing my best to pay back the loan and have sought help from the bank re a repayment plan but as i stated, the amount i pay back is less than the interest charged each month.

i will try the other company suggested.

thanks again

Mercuryrising

Well good luck with what you do. I read the bit about you self harming etc... at the end of the day it's only money and if you haven't got it you can't pay it. Don't worry yourself unduly about it.

Take care.