Hi advice sought please? PLEASE????

sassi

Hi,

I am unsure if i am posting this on the correct board, so apologies if not. I am in such a muddle i really do not know where to begin.

I am a 26 year old mum of 3. My boyfriend and i have many debts- 3 credit cards- halifax capital one and barclaycard. All cards are over the limit and spiralling out of control. Halifax will not put me on a repayment plan as i did not manage to stick to one last year, and they say they can only set up one plan EVER, as i did not keep to the original one.

I was also banking with halifax until they decided to take my minimum payment from that account. I then had two failed direct debits, and my account went overdrawn by around £120 (i had no overdraft set up).

I had no way of paying it off right away, but i worked out that i could do so in a month and a halfs time. I phoned every number i had several times begging for more time and explaining my situation, yet they just said another £60ish in charges would be applied if i was still overdrawn in 2 weeks. So they put the charges on, then have now closed my account.

I now have no bank account at all. I tried applying for one with abbey - just a basic one, but was rejected. Will i NEVER be able to have another account.

I still owe the money to halifax i suppose, i have heard nothing from them, and dare not contact them.

we also have to pay out h.p payments for the car that we got from yes car credit last year and will be paying for until the year dot.

Please could someone advise me on what to do as i have sent in my budgets to all my cards etc yet they say the minimum they will accept is £100 or £70 per month...which i simply cannot do. what will happen ifd i do pay less than they say?

Sorry to have rambled somewhat, it is pouring out right from my heart. I just feel like crying. Its my sons 2nd birthday on Sunday, and i wanted to get him his 1st tricycle, but thats just impossible. I feel so low.

Thank you so much for listening, i'm sure i sound very silly, i just need it to all go away, but it never will.

Beanietdc

I am not the right person to advise you but someone will be along soon with their pearls of wisdom - that's one thing you can rely on!

Just wanted to send a hug and remember that if your little boy doesn't get a tricycle for his 2nd birthday he won't remember. As long as his Mummy is there with a smile on her face and a ready cuddle then he will be happy.

:grouphug:

xonlymex_2

hiya, i wish i could help you but im in exactly the same position as yourself at the moment and i am also going out of my mind with worry but im hoping i can help you in regards to opening a bank account. I went into an alliance and leicester branch and they gave me a current account straight away with no questions asked. You can also apply on the net at http://www.alliance-leicester.co.uk i hope this helps you and i wish you all the best :j

lynzpower

Sassi, Welcome to Deft free wannabe.

My hearts breaking for you here, sending you a massive hug sounds like you need it.

Deep breath.

You MAY be able to open a bog standard post office account. Which you can draw cash in and out of but wont have a switch card or anything. Have you tried to open a Natwest step account, they are often recommended for people whos credit ratings are a bit shot.

First things first have you ever done a budget? We call it an SOA. If you read southern scousers First time posters, and have a good read. There is everything you need to know about SOAs, and if you can sit down and do that we can see if theres any way we can help to get things onto an even keel.

Lots of hugs
Lynz
x

Beanietdc

Hooray! Lynz has turned up - all is well with the world now!

She will get you sorted! :T :j :dance:

chevalier

First of all well done for asking for help. It is a great step forward.

If you can stand it the best way we can help is for your to sit down and prepare a Statement Of Affairs (SOA). This should have all of your income - wages, tax credits etc. Then the next bit should be your monthly expenditure on things like
mortgage/rent
water/gas/electric
mobile phone/land line/ internet connection
groceries
house and contents insurance
car tax and insurance
tv licence/sky package

then finally who each card or loan is from how much is owed on each and what the APR is.

In this way we may be able to see areas where you can cut back, and thus have more money to throw at the other debts. I know it sounds daunting, but you will be amazed at the things you can save money on!:D

It must be very tough having 3 children in this situation. However your 2 year old will remember a stressed out and tearful mum more than he would a tricycle. But you may wish to look at https://www.freecycle.org . They are the umbrella organisation for a number of community groups, where members offer stuff for free to other members. My local group regularly has toys etc on their, and I gave my pushchair to a nice couple to reuse.

Now you have taken this first step. It will get better.

Once you have prepared and posted the SOA, you will have a better idea of where you stand. This will also mean you have your paperwork in order. So that on Monday you could call the CAB and ask for an appointment with one of their debt advisors. Often they will write letters to your creditors on your behalf. These may, at the very least, get the interest frozen on your debts, which will at least stop things from getting any worse.

Good luck and keep on posting

LookingAhead

Glad you mentioned freecycle chevalier....I was just about to do the same!
:T

CLAPTON

well done for seeking advice.

you need to post the full financial picture before people can really say whats best for you.

post a Statement of Accounts (SoA) as discribed here
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=25222

in addition to whats said there also give some details like family (OH, children), house owner or rented, if owner value of house and size of mortgage and anything else that will help people to understand your situation.

sassi

Hi again a very BIG THANK YOU
to all of you who replied to me so quickly. I will try to get my head around it all and will post a SOA tomorrow...its going to be hard admitting how silly i have been...provident personal credit (doorstep) to name just one of my blushes.

Is the step up account any good? what does it offer? is it just basic? i do NOT want a switch card or anything, i just would like SOLO or something but i doubt i'd get it.

My partner does have an account as we never opened a joint one. It is a very basic LLoyds tsb one without even link on the card..I need one soon as my family always send cheques for the childrens b.days and put them in my name. The cards have been arriving, yet i cannot cash them for him. They will only be for small amounts but he should still have the money.

I have done it again haven't i! i am sorry for the long posts. please bear with me?

Thanks again

post tomorrow

Sarah - thanks for the hugs, i need them :embarasse

southernscouser

Hey sassi, this is your thread so post as much or as little as you like!

When you have posted your SOA I guarantee that you will be feeling more positive within an hour of doing so!

We will help you find light at the end of the tunnel!

In case you haven't seen it have a look at this thread!

tesuhoha

Youre saying that you owe the bank money but sorry that is not the case. They owe you money. I think you ought to be able to claim back those bank charges. If you go onto the consumer action group forum it is all explained on there how you can go about it.