Struggling with debt? Ask a debt advisor a question

DFWANNABE_3

Hi everybody,

Things have not gone according to plan since the last time I was on here. shortly after I posted last, my employer ran into serious financial difficulty and gave me choice between being laid off and taking a pay cut. I opted to take a pay cut which meant that I struggled with my debts. One of my current accounts was with HSBC, I was overdrawn on it (over my limit) this was closed down and passed to Metropolitan Debt Collection Service.

I came to an arrangement with them to pay on a monthly, I made a couple of payments and then couldnt meet my end of the agreement and totally stopped making any payments and ignored everything. Now, I have not heard from them since, no phone call nor any letters. The current account (the account may have been a student account, not sure) has not even been listed on the experian or equifax credit report, it's like the account never existed! I had this account for 6 years. Do HSBC report to another credit agency?

Can HSBC / Debt collectors register a default in my name without sending me a notice? Can they file a default even though the account does not appear on the reports?

Will the debt collectors be in touch? It's been 7-8 months since my last payment, I think the outstanding balance is c£1.5k

I am not in a position to start making payments but will this affect my credit report? The nature of my job is such that I need a clean credit history!

I am sorry I have so many questions and the above may not be very clear. I am hardly able to cope and make ends meet, living on £800 in London. The stress has just been unbearable.

I hope someone can please help me.

UPDATE:

I have had a look at callcredit and defaults have been registered. However, it says account status - satisfied, I am not sure what this means. This is an extract from Call Credit:

• Provider: HSBC BANK
• Account Type: Current Account
• Account Number: **********4443
• Account Status: Satisfied
• Date Updated: 30/04/2011
• Account Start Date: 17/01/2004
• Account End Date: 30/04/2011
• Account Opening Balance: £0
• Repayment Frequency: Monthly
• Default Date: 21/10/2010
• Default Satisfied Date: 30/04/2011

Status History is DDDDDDD1111(tick)
Under the last D the account balance history is listed as 0 in the previous months its not 0 and I have not made any payments!

Does this mean that it is with other debt collectors who will be take away all my stuff? Please help me!

I have other accounts, which account status as settled. On call credit, is there a difference between settled and satisfied? Can they still apply for a CCJ or worse make me bankrupt?

I really don't understand any of this, can someone please help me? Please.

System

MrGreen44 wrote: »

Will take a look at website, and of course read up debt advice on moneysavingexpert.

Thank you

Kev

Hi Kev and thanks for your original post.

I hope you found a resolution on the website, if not please get back in touch.

Kind regards
Mat

System

geordie28 wrote: »

Hi

I was wondering if i could have some advice. my sister for the past 8-9 years has had serious debt trouble. i do not know the true extent of her debt so can only give an idea of what i know. when she was 18 she was getting credit cards and loans just to spend and she was going way ott. i think she had managed to accrue something like £16k in just over a year. she wasnt paying her bills either loans, credit cards or mobile phone bills. she has literally stuck her head in the sand. there were daily calls to my parents house which gradually ceased. for a while despite taking no action the mess seemed to go away. about 8 months ago she took out a wonga loan of £150 and i have discovered that she paid initially £30 back and and has paid nothing since. she says they havent been in touch and she cant find out how much she owes. looking at their website they have 4400% apr so my guess is she has managed to get another £3-4k in debt. despite this she does nothing about it. she seems to let it all go but i dont know how she sleeps. she works 16 hrs a week, lives with our parents with her 2 year old child. any money she gets is spent in the pub. im not sure if she drinks to hide her misery or just doesnt care less. im thinking about taking her to CAB but not sure if they can help. any advice?

thanks

simon

Hi Simon and thanks for your post.

There are solutions for your sister but she would need to play an active part in facing up to these debt issues.

We do have an online advice tool Debt Remedy which would give her the correct solution and some help with putting an accurate income and expenditure budget together. This would be a good place to start.

It is better that she faces the issue now rather ignore the problem.

I hope this helps

Kind regards
Mat

System

England_For_Ever wrote: »

Hello there.

I was given a CCJ in 2004 (when I was out of the country looking for work) which should have expired by now. Does this mean they can come after me again or that the court 'protection' afforded by the judgement still apply until the balance is paid off? Will the loan to which the CCJ was attached become 'normal' after it has expired so that I can resolve with it myself without having to contact the court or will it remain in effect until the balance has been paid off even though the record has left my credit reference file?

Thanks in advance.

A.

Hi England For Ever and thanks for you post.

A CCJ has no specific time frame and is exempt from the limitations act so technically the CCJ could still be enforced.

The only way to release yourself from the CCJ is to pay the debt in full.

I think the best advice would be to contact the court and make an arrangement to pay the CCJ.

I hope this helps.

Kind regards

Mat

System

Wannabedebtfreelad wrote: »

Hi there,

just looking for some impartial advice, I currently owe about £10000 on credit cards and £6000 to a HSBC loan. I changed jobs last year and have until last week been on the equivalent of an apprentices wages meaning I have used all my savings to top up my bank account each month. I should now start to earn better money (qualified plumber now) but in the interim I have no savings left and money is extremely tight. We own our own house with a rather hefty mortgage from the heady days of self certification and the last resort is to sell the house to clear the debts. I hate the fact i pay so much interest on the two credit cards and have just realised that on my HSBC card I have been paying PPI for god knows how long, should I start a claim against them ? My wife will become a qualified social worker in a years time when we should both be bringing home a decent income but in the meantime how do I make ends meet ?
I have not missed any payments or got into any arrears but i need a manageable way of repaying this debt before I do start slipping into arrears.

Looking forward to some advice

Lad

Hi Wannabedebtfreelad and thanks for your post.

It’s good that you are looking at the situation before you go into arrears. It might be possible to resolve this without selling the property.

I think your best advice would be to contact us so that we can have a detailed look at your situation.

The first step is putting an accurate income and expenditure budget together. We can help you do this.

To contact us you can either use our online advice facility Debt Remedy, or ring our free Helpline to book a telephone appointment with a counsellor.

Debt Remedy will assist you in completing a financial statement which includes information on your household, employment, income, expenditure and debts. All this information is used as a basis to determine the options available to you to deal with your situation.

Once you’ve followed the process through and completed all the required information you will immediately be presented with an advice booklet, which will provide tailored advice for you based on your current circumstances. It will also provide advice on ways you may be able to improve your situation.

Alternatively if you would prefer to talk to a debt counsellor about your situation, you can book a telephone based appointment by calling our helpline free on 0800 138 1111. Lines are open Monday to Friday 08:00-20:00. If you do decide to call us, please have details ready regarding your income, expenditure and creditors, as this can help speed up the referral process. If you have all of the necessary information ready, it may be possible to refer you directly to a counsellor for immediate advice. Alternatively, we will arrange for an appointment to be booked at a time convenient for you.

I hope this helps.

Mat

System

Raquela wrote: »

I am planning to enter into the equivalent of a self-administered DMP; i.e. I will be making pro rata payments of whatever money is available for debt payment on a percentage basis.

I also plan to scrimp and save/second job (which is typing) extra sums above my budget each month which I would like to 'snowball' rather than pro rata across all creditors.

I can either pay these extra amounts as and when they are earned, or save them up in a specific savings account until they are a bigger lump sum.

I know technically I should treat all creditors equally, in which case I should divide the extra amounts out equally, but I'd like the psychological boost from snowballing, and in time, my monthly payment would be enough to meet what the old minimum payments would have been, if that makes sense.

I guess my question is, is it okay to snowball; i.e, what would the repercussions be. Or is it only okay when you have a lump sum to pay one whole debt off (perhaps you were given money with the express instruction to use it pay that specific debt), which will in turn increase the payment available to the other creditors as part of the monthly agreed payment?

There are four debts total, representing 5%, 8%, 11% and 76%. Monthly payment would be about 42% of the current minimum payments initially. Two accounts are defaulted, two are in arrears.

Hi Raquela and thanks for your post.

As you’re intending to the do the debt management plan yourself I would suggest you find the way that works best for you.

If you did a debt management plan with us we would look at including all of your monthly income as this is the fairest way. You are correct in saying that all creditors should be treated equally but I understand what you are saying about building a lump sum up.

Essentially you may find that once you start the arrangement with the creditors that some of them may continue to add interest and charges, this may influence how you use the lump sum funds or whether you decide to go down that route at all.

I hope this helps.

Kind regards
Mat

System

unsure84 wrote: »

Hi there,

I am unsure of what to do I have been running from my debts for nearly 3 years noone knows where I am etc which I truly regret I was 22 when I started the borrowing and didn’t think of the long term of it all.
When I last knew, I had around a total of £30k in debts spread across different creditors and I just couldn’t afford to pay so I stopped as it meant I had spare cash.
I have no idea who owns the debts now or what to do as I have managed around 3 years without hearing anything, I am not on the electoral role and I do not wish to obtain any further credit.
My loan was originally declined however I worked at the bank so it got overturned by my boss? could that stand up as wrongly assessed lending?
In a way I would like to start to pay back what I owe as after all I did borrow the money, I was unemployed for around 7 months which triggered the problems as no creditors could do anything which is why I decided to leave it.

I had a loan of £18000 a CC for £2500 an overdraft of £2500 and £1200 and a sofa for £3500 which my ex girlfriend kindly left with! on top of that I owe BT around £350, 2 parking tickets that were £40 each and a recent debt of £800 to a friend which I can pay back in the timescale given.
I doubt any of these will be with the original debtors and will probably be a greater sum owed and I don’t know whether to continue running from it?
Would bankruptcy be an option?

I earn £20,000 per annum and bonus which is no fixed amount and have rent for £695 council tax of £80 water £30 Electric £30. mobile phone x 4 = £140 (long story) food for myself is £100 per month plus travel at £30 per month my girlfriend is due to move in when she gets a job here as I’ve moved to a new city for work so when she comes it will allow for a little more spare cash however I don’t know what to do.

I would really appreciate some sound advice, I have heard bad things about an IVA option so was thinking bankruptcy however I am unsure if I would be accepted for this as I have not co-operated or contacted ANY debtors.

I look forward to hearing some advice and hopefully start to rebuild the bridges I have broken and put my worry to rest.
Warm Regards
Unsure84

Hi Unsure84.

I have answered the message you sent privately.

I hope this helps

Kind regards

Mat

System

DFWANNABE wrote: »

Hi everybody,

Things have not gone according to plan since the last time I was on here. shortly after I posted last, my employer ran into serious financial difficulty and gave me choice between being laid off and taking a pay cut. I opted to take a pay cut which meant that I struggled with my debts. One of my current accounts was with HSBC, I was overdrawn on it (over my limit) this was closed down and passed to Metropolitan Debt Collection Service.

I came to an arrangement with them to pay on a monthly, I made a couple of payments and then couldnt meet my end of the agreement and totally stopped making any payments and ignored everything. Now, I have not heard from them since, no phone call nor any letters. The current account (the account may have been a student account, not sure) has not even been listed on the experian or equifax credit report, it's like the account never existed! I had this account for 6 years. Do HSBC report to another credit agency?

Can HSBC / Debt collectors register a default in my name without sending me a notice? Can they file a default even though the account does not appear on the reports?

Will the debt collectors be in touch? It's been 7-8 months since my last payment, I think the outstanding balance is c£1.5k

I am not in a position to start making payments but will this affect my credit report? The nature of my job is such that I need a clean credit history!

I am sorry I have so many questions and the above may not be very clear. I am hardly able to cope and make ends meet, living on £800 in London. The stress has just been unbearable.

I hope someone can please help me.

UPDATE:

I have had a look at callcredit and defaults have been registered. However, it says account status - satisfied, I am not sure what this means. This is an extract from Call Credit:

• Provider: HSBC BANK
• Account Type: Current Account
• Account Number: **********4443
• Account Status: Satisfied
• Date Updated: 30/04/2011
• Account Start Date: 17/01/2004
• Account End Date: 30/04/2011
• Account Opening Balance: £0
• Repayment Frequency: Monthly
• Default Date: 21/10/2010
• Default Satisfied Date: 30/04/2011

Status History is DDDDDDD1111(tick)
Under the last D the account balance history is listed as 0 in the previous months its not 0 and I have not made any payments!

Does this mean that it is with other debt collectors who will be take away all my stuff? Please help me!

I have other accounts, which account status as settled. On call credit, is there a difference between settled and satisfied? Can they still apply for a CCJ or worse make me bankrupt?

I really don't understand any of this, can someone please help me? Please.

Hi DFWANNABE and thanks for your post.

It’s hard to give advice without knowing your full situation but we’re here to try and help.

Without going into too much detail only the courts can order goods to be taken and this is after a long court process and is used only as a last resort. At the moment your creditors are not taking any court action.

I’d recommend that you contact us so that we can look at your situation as a whole and set up a solution for you.

To get in touch with us you can either use use our online advice facility Debt Remedy, or ring our free Helpline to book a telephone appointment with a counsellor.

Debt Remedy will assist you in completing a financial statement which includes information on your household, employment, income, expenditure and debts. All this information is used as a basis to determine the options available to you to deal with your situation.

Once you’ve followed the process through and completed all the required information you will immediately be presented with an advice booklet, which will provide tailored advice for you based on your current circumstances. It will also provide advice on ways you may be able to improve your situation.

Alternatively if you would prefer to talk to a debt counsellor about your situation, you can book a telephone based appointment by calling our helpline free on 0800 138 1111. Lines are open Monday to Friday 08:00-20:00. If you do decide to call us, please have details ready regarding your income, expenditure and creditors, as this can help speed up the referral process. If you have all of the necessary information ready, it may be possible to refer you directly to a counsellor for immediate advice. Alternatively, we will arrange for an appointment to be booked at a time convenient for you.

Kind regards,
Mat

Raquela

Thanks Mat

Right, okay. In that case I will probably start a lump sum savings account and only target one debt when there is enough to pay the smallest off, rather than targeting one regularly. Then the other creditors would still benefit because their pro rata share will increase. We are talking a way off therefore, so I can always rethink later down the line. But pro-rata payments until then, thank you!

(BTW, I may still use the CCCS, I have done before, but left the plan because I was out of work for so long and missed more than three payments. I was told this would be okay to come back when I have a job.)

Melody1980

Hi there,

I need some help please! I was made redundant on Feb 15th and was on 26k and although I was paying a lot out for my debts, £360 a month, I could cope with that and my bills and rent etc etc. However, I have been struggling to find work and have fallen behind on all the payments as well as my household bills. My partner is paying the rent and bits of bills but I am getting in a pickle. I owe £1400 on a Bank of Scotland card which is a huge 21% and I pay £60 a month, a Barclaycard with £2500 on which I pay the minimum off per month which is £55 ish, an AA loan with about 2k left on which I pay £101, then I got my mum to take a loan out for me which has about 6k left on and I pay £142 a month on. Then I have a £1500 which I live in and am right up to. I have been failing to pay all these things and have had a brief conversation with them all saying I'm struggling and will pay what I can a month. I don't think I can live like this much longer, what can I do? I may have got a job today (fingers crossed) but it will only give me about 1k a month. I should be paying £290 a month for rent, then my council tax is £179 a month which I split with my boyfriend, prob £70 towards bills, then food etc. I need a car for work but cannot afford one since I lost my company car in my redundancy. Its all just a mess at the moment and I need some serious advice!