Debt Management Plan

stupidskintbint

Thanks Aguilk - I'll have a look at that right now.

Gonzo127 - I'm ashamed of my SOA, totally ashamed. I know you don't know me and I don't know you and that people on here don't judge, but I could cry when I look at the state I'm in. That plus my husband isn't fully aware of the situ and I know that when the DMP paperwork comes through he will be and I've got that hurdle to jump.

I think my husband has a sneaking suspicion, I don't hide the statements when they come in, he knows where they are filed, but he doesn't ask so I don't tell him.

I have a young son and I'm ashamed for him too even though he's only 4 and has no idea! I need to retrain myself now so I can teach him for his future. Eek - feel like crying now, apologies!!! )))

gonzo127

oh sweety :grouphug: you really shouldn’t be ashamed, quite the opposite you should being feeling proud about the fact you are starting to deal with your debts!

however i do feel you should talk to your husband BEFORE the DMP paperwork comes through, the amount of stress that will be taken from your shoulders once it is out in the open will make things so much easier for you and if you can both get on the same page by the time things ar ein place he will not have as much to get to grips with

yes he might be surprised initially and might have a stamp around etc saying you should have brought it to his attention first but he will calm down and once he has you can work at everything as a family and it can bring you closer together as a family

stupidskintbint

Thanks gonzo - I know you're right about speaking to my husband. Yet another thing that scares me! He does know it will take a long time to pay off our debts so I'm sure he'll like the part about being debt free in 5 years. We had actually previously discussed IVA's, this is why I know he's kind of aware of our situation, he just doesn't know the total.

I'm going to talk to him tonight. I've taken all of your advice, it looks like I can take out a current account with Nationwide, that's who my mortgage is with, and we don't have any other credit with them. It was interesting on wikipedia to see how many of my debts are actually with the same company, and now so many of them have merged!! I want to tell him the plan before I actually do it. I did look at thinkbank but it looks like they charge £12.50pm - it's all about saving money for me now!!

Thank you so so so much for your help and support. You are undoubtedly making this much easier for me.

gonzo127

well i wish you all the best with talking to him, it is usually the case that it is much worse thinking about talking about it than actually talking about it

glad we have been able to help you so far, and keep us up to date with things if you can, its always great to read about how well people are doing and how they have managed to turn things around from what they thought was a hopeless position into a possitive

stupidskintbint

Sorry for all the questions, I've been looking into this all day!

I've been reading some of the posts in the ask a CCCS counsellor forum. I just wondered what sort of experience people have had with their creditors when they start the dmp. I hadn't appreciated starting a dmp via CCCS wouldn't stop creditors from passing your details to dca's or issuing court action. I was prepared for the bad credit rating but not that.

Thanks again - will let you know how it goes tonight.

gonzo127

well although i am not personally on a managed DMP (i have pretty much caught my debt before it became too unmanageable myself and have managed to curb my spending habits (if not my wife’s) before i got in too much of a mess) but the thing you have to remember a DMP is a voluntary agreement,

this being said the majority of creditors will accept a DMP as they show that you are actively working to paying them back, even more so if you go through one of the debt charities as it shows willing on your behalf to get professional advice.

Now some companies will hold out and play a bit of ‘hard ball’ to try and get you to pay more than you can afford, however the old saying “you cant get blood out of a stone” does eventually sink in.

The other advantage of getting a DMP with a debt charity is that if a company does decide to pass on your details to a DCA you can get help from the charity and do all your dealing with said DCA with and through the debt charity

All you have to remember is that NO DCA has the power to seize any asset (unless it is a hire purchase or a loan against a ‘set’ asset) and if they do contact you all you have to do is request that all correspondence is done in writing (there is a template letter on this site for this) so that you have a full record of everything said to you and by you

quick edit, and if it does get to court action, a Judge WILL NOT order you to pay any more than you can afford and DCA knows this, therefore the majority of the time this is just a scare tactic to make you panic and pay more than you can afford, and also remember if they do ever contact you, we are always here to offer advise, and no matter what else you do remember these three things
NEVER EVER GIVE THEM YOUR BANK DETAILS
NEVER EVER MAKE A DESIGNION ON THE SPOT - ALWAYS THINK IT OVER AND GET ADVIC
AND NEVER EVER SIGN ANYTHING WITH YOUR PROPER SIGNATURE!

pure_dead_dopey

Hi SSBint, i just wanted to say welcome and you have done the right thing. We just started our DMP on 1st Feb and are in the very early stages. It hasn't been horrible, no one has been rude or nasty but it is frustating. I want to get on and get it paid but some of our creditors are slow and don't appear to have very good systems to keep tracks of things (they always manage to add the interest on normally) So you have to get it sorted, speak to the other half, I presume he helped spend the pile??? Our debt free day is 9yrs 7months away but at least now I know we will get it paid whereas before I was just struggling all of the time to make minimums. and the debt was rising because of the horrendous interest rates. CCCS are wonderful and the guys on these threads are solid gold and know the answer to everything and when you don't need an answer, just a boost, they are there for that as well.

Welshdebtor

Being on a DMP does not stop the letters totally, though they will reduce. DCA's will still make the occasional threat, though will not follow through.
Being on a DMP, whether through a charity or self managed, you are payng as much as you can afford. Ignore the threats, and remember your rights.
Finally remember being in debt is not a crime.