Debt Impossible To Repay

wuzzypoo

Hi All,

I'm posting just to see if anyone else has been through this situation and what they did as this is really really getting to me.

I got myself into a lot of debt, and after 2 years of being with a debt management company who I had to pay, I found this site and found out about Payplan, so moved my debts to them. My creditors are happy with what I'm paying, well saying that they no longer hassle me with phone calls and letters. As I said everything is going well until October this year when I received the first ever statement from one particular creditor which said I still owed them over 10k!! The original loan was taken out in 1998 and was for 7k and I have paid over 9k back to date through both the original payments and the ones through Payplan. I have never received a statement from them before, so I was shocked when I noticed they are still charging the PPI monthly which I was told at the time I took out the loan I HAD to have as I was a single person, I though this would be cancelled when I defaulted on the loan, and as mentioned I have never received a statement from them even though I have requested them several times over the years. I have taken this sites advice and tried to claim back the PPI and have just received the second rejection letter back very very quickly from them. They are telling me I have to take it up with their insurance brokers, but it was them who made me take out the cover, so I'm going to send my letter to the FO today. I know it might be a long shot as this is so old, but I am telling the truth when I say they said I had to have the insurance & have ignored my requests for statements over the years.

Anyway, back to the original question, even if i claim this PPi back, this still leaves me with nearly 8k still owing, they refuse to stop the interest so even though I'm paying what I can, this debt is never going to go down so is impossible to pay off. All of my other debts are going down, but this one is increasing all of the time so it's never ending and so I'm never going to be free of this. I am paying what I can, I really am skint making these payments but would rather be skint to clear my debts, but no matter what I do I can't pay this off. I have spoken to Payplan about this but they have said there is nothing they can do and all I can do is just keep paying. I thought things were going well and i would soon be free of all of this but since I found out about this I just feel sick, I'm not sleeping and this is all I can think about.

Has anyone else had this type of situation and what did you do?

Thanks

stressedgirl_2

I'm bumping this for you as I can tell you are stressed and totally miserable about this, understandably so!! I can only offer moral support I'm afraid, but there may be someone out there who can offer practical advice. I have read posts on here before about creditors who insist on charging interest thus meaning the debt grows bigger and bigger. Payplan advised these people that once their DMP was finished ie all the other creditors paid off, they then asked the tricksy creditor to drop the interest charged over the plan's period and Payplan said that the creditor would often did this. However, no creditor is obliged to stop charging interest its totally at their discretion so you can't count on this.

Who is this creditor? Why don't you google their managing director's name and write to him/her (recorded deliviery) highlighting your position - you are trying to pay your debts off, your other creditors are content with your proposal, you are going through a recognised debt organisation, yet his/her organisation is not allowing you to repay your debt to them. Have a look at their website and what they say about helping customers with difficulties and quote this against them if you can.

As regards the PPI payments - that doesn't sound right, I would have assumed that was cancelled once you started a DMP. But I'm hoping someone else will advise you on this.

Meanwhile, try not to stress too much as you need to stay strong and healthy. I know its easy to say, but try to concentrate on the fact that at least your other debts are coming down and hopefully your circumstances will improve in the future so you will be in a better position to tackle this nasty debt. Good luck and keep posting xx

computershack

Look on the Reclaiming PPI board and put in a claim. You were obviously missold it. The payout for 12 years of PPI payments should go a long way to clearing up some of that debt.

wuzzypoo

Hi Stressed Girl,

Thank you for your post, I am stressing about this at the mo, sounds silly as like I said I thought I had it sorted and would be out of debt and able to sort my life out properly very soon, but after that letter my heart sank and the dispair of the never ending debt has moved in. I was thinking of writing to the OFT to see if they could do anything about the interest. I know the courts have just thrown out this sort of thing, but I might have a chance with the argument of no statements received and the huge amounts of interest they have charged me over the years.

Hi Computershack,
thank you also for your reply. I am just about to send a letter to the Fin Omb as I have received 2 very quick responses from this company to tell me that this has nothing to do with them and I would have to see their brokers? But it was one of their staff who sold me this policy so it's them I am writing to the fin omb about.

Thanks again for your encouragement and help, I'll keep posting to let you know if anything happens, I can ask can't I, I've nothing else to loose.

fermi

Give someone other than PayPlan a call. They are obviously not much help.

National Debtline, CCCS etc...

See: Non-profit Debt Counsellors' List

Maybe something like a time order to freeze interest/charges may be possible?

http://www.nationaldebtline.co.uk/england_wales/factsheet.php?page=06_time_orders

Or something other than a DMP?

How much total debt do you have?

stressedgirl_2

Hi wuzzypoo I came back to see how you are doing, I totally understand the horrible shock you had just when you thought you were finally making headway with your debts. It must have been awful! just keep chipping away at your other debts as that is still so worth it, you've just been unlucky with this one creditor.

Definately put in a claim against this creditor for PPI charges to be refunded. I def think it should be them and not their brokers you go after but you could pm this question to one of the CCCS counsellors on here and see if they can advise more. Certainly the ombudsman should be able to advise but his reply could take some time.

Meanwhile please do write to the head honcho and describe the state of affairs you are in now with interest being added and also ask him about the PPI issue - you have nothing to lose if you are polite and emphasise you are trying to repay what you owe. I think you should tell us who this horrible creditor is as well - it may be of use to others as you won't be the only one in this position, I'm sure someone said Lloyds wouldn't stop interest on their debt recently.

Also, if it will take you for ever to clear this debt is there a chance it could be passed to debt collectors in due course, as most creditors won't countanance a DMP that is going to a horrendous number of years? Debt collectors might be easier to deal with if this happens as they will negotiate.

Let us know how you go............

Night night x

wuzzypoo

Hi All,

Thank you again for your replies. As advised I phoned the National Debt line today to see what they could offer. They said that Payplan are a reputable debt management company and they are sure they have done what they could for me, but I do still feel like they have just left my account for years and just made the payments to my creditors. I haven't really heard from Payplan for quite a few years, even after writing to them to ask how my account was going and what my creditors were saying but never go any responses so I said this to yet another person wo was looking after my account, this must be the 6th or 7th person since I joined, but he is very good, and I must admit, I am now over run with letters and emails from them, so can't seem to get a happy balance with them.

Anyway, the NDL said for me to write to the FSA re the PPI and only said to contact the loan company to ask to freeze the interest, which I have done but recently to no avail, so I have mentioned this in the letter to the FSA and have included the statement which they sent to me recently to prove just how much PPI and interest I have paid, and I did say I had paid over 9K through payplan, well I looked properly at the statement and added up everything I have paid and I have paid £12217 :eek: and that was just up to start of Oct 09, so add anoth couple of hundered quid on that, so I've paid well over the money I borrowed plus a heck of a lot of interest as well.

Like I said I do know it was me who got into this, but as someone who is trying to pay things back, and I haven't missed a payment since starting with the first DMP so this is 10 years now, and those who just ignore their debts and some how get away without paying them back (I do know folk who have done this) it's so demoralising when you are told that you still owe so much. Payplan have said that it will be at least 5-6 years before they will try to negotiate with my creditors again, so you can imagine how much I will have paid them by then.

It's not just paying this money back, as I do want to pay what I owe, but it's being under the cosh for 10 years now not being able to do anything. My house is dropping to bits but I can't have anything done to it as I pay all of my money to pay my debts. As I said I don't mind paying what I owe, but I do begrudge paying and paying some company money forever.

I am sorry for banging on as I know many folk on this site are in a similar or even worse situtaion, and this is why this site is so fantastic! I cannot say how much this site has helped me as there are so many folk who are willing to help and offer advice even though they are going through bad times as well, and I think they are all fantastic. This site really has changed how I live my life from how I shop, look for insurance, just about everything, and I can't thank folk enough for that. Also, like Stressed Girl above, even though she has offered advice, she did say that she was emailing just for support, which is yet another example of how fantastic folk are on here.

Ok, I'll get off my soap box now! I have wrote to the FSA so I will post again to let you know how things go, and I will also take Stressed Girls advice and look up the top honcho of Paragon (the nasty loan company I am talking about) and if the FSA can't help me, I will get onto him/her.

Just to answer a few more of your questions. The company is Paragon, and I owed about £12000 when I first got to grips with my debts. I have been paying with a DMP for 10 years now. Most of the others have froze interest and the totals are going down, but as I said it's the Paragon one which is causing me the sleepless nights and causing me to go back into my depression ways (which have lifted a bit in last few years, but now I can feel myself slipping back there).

Thanks again all.

Best Regards

Wuzz

kingfisherblue

Wuzzypoo, I found this link to another forum regarding paragon. i thought you might find it interesting

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/payment-protection-insurance-ppi/131222-paragon-missold-ppi-loan.html

wuzzypoo

Hi,

Thank you so much Kingfisherblue, I am going to look into this site now (after typing this)

I have received a letter back from Fin Omb today to say that because I took the loan out before 2005 they cannot help, and they couldn't offer and advice of who could help me, does anyone else know where I could go? This is now Fin Omb & FSA who can't help me, does anyone know if one of those reclaiming companies is a good idea, or would this just aggrovate Paragon and cause them to bang the interest back up to the ridiculous amounts as before, as I know this can happen when you wind some companies up?

I am really getting so depressed about this now, and have just got a letter at work today threatening redundancy!!! What a wonderful day, NOT!!!

Thanks

Wuzz

consultant31

I'm truly sorry I can't help, but wanted to post in order to bump your question and offer some moral support.

Please keep your chin up - it's only money and certainly not worth putting your health at risk. Go get a cuppa and chill out for a while. Someone will come along with good advice I'm sure....as you said yourself, there are some amazingly knowledgable and clever people on these boards.