Struggling with debt? Ask a debt advisor a question

bluebottle71

Hi. We are currently trying to settle our debts through full and final offers.
The money is coming from a family member. I had a call from Barclays and they said they would accept the offer (about 44% of outstanding debt), but would not provide written confirmation (our original letter asked that they acknowledge no further pursuit of the debt by anyone, credit file noted as settled etc).

I have read that if a creditor cashes a cheque from a third party, then it is considered that they have accepted the debt is settled. Is this correct? What if they want payment via the third parties debit/credit card? Would this be considered the same?

We just want to know we have a legal leg to stand on if any of these debts ever resurfaced.

Any help greatly appreciated.

splodgebunny

Hi

Due to changes in personal circumstances and bad money management on my part, I find that I am about to hit a debt crisis, which I guess I have been ignoring until now.

I have run up quite a bit of credit card debt, and have a pre-existing personal loan. Also, I am about to be taken to court for non-payment of rent which I thought was being paid (with an ex-partner) but hasn't. I find that, despite being of previously excellent credit, I am now unable to get any, and have been avoiding those payday loans like the plague

My circumstances mean that I am currently still paying the mortgage on the marital home and also my own rent. I am interested in a debt management plan but am unsure how it will affect by current circumstances. I need to still pay the mortgage for now, although that will be sorted out and reduced as part of the divorce settlement

Any help you can give me would help me sleep a bit better at night.

System

bluebottle71 wrote: »

Hi. We are currently trying to settle our debts through full and final offers.
The money is coming from a family member. I had a call from Barclays and they said they would accept the offer (about 44% of outstanding debt), but would not provide written confirmation (our original letter asked that they acknowledge no further pursuit of the debt by anyone, credit file noted as settled etc).

I have read that if a creditor cashes a cheque from a third party, then it is considered that they have accepted the debt is settled. Is this correct? What if they want payment via the third parties debit/credit card? Would this be considered the same?

We just want to know we have a legal leg to stand on if any of these debts ever resurfaced.

Any help greatly appreciated.

Hi bluebottle71 and thanks for your post.

I wouldn’t advise going ahead and paying this amount until Barclays have given you written confirmation that this would be in full and final satisfaction.

I don’t think that a creditor cashing a third party cheque would constitute full and final settlement and I think there is a danger that you wouldn’t have any protection further down the line if the creditor decided to further chase the remaining sum.

I don’t know your full circumstances but have you considered a lump sum IVA as a possibility? With third party lump sums you can make an offer to all of your creditors that excludes all your own assets. A lump sum IVA is fully legally binding and could usually be completed very swiftly. It would also give all your creditors chance to vote together. All the hassle of doing a full and final settlement yourself is taken on by the IVA company and of course everything is legally binding on the creditors.

If you would like further advice please get in touch on our helpline 0800 138 1111.

I hope this helps.

Kind regards
Mat

bluebottle71

Hi splodgebunny (love the name by the way).

I am not a debt advisor, just someone who has been dealing with creditors for 10 years now. The CCCS advisors are excellent (we were with the CCCS initially, but do it ourselves now). They will help you sort this out.

What I know from my experience is:

Make sure you pay the essentials -Mortgage, rent, council tax etc.

Draw up a list of your total monthly income - include any taxable benefits.

Add up all of your monthly expenditure - Mortgage/Rent, council tax, paymenst to loans/credit cards/store cards/catalogues, insurance (car, house and pet), food, toiletries, travel costs, car (petrol, tax, maintenance), membership fees/subscription. You are allowed money for social activities, as long as it is not an unreasonable amount.

Once you have these two figures, you take your expenditure away from your income and what you have left is your disposable income - what you have spare to pay your debts. Chances are you may end up with a negative figure when you do this which shows you are spending more than you earn.

CCCS will help you draw up a budget that gives you some disposable income and if you want, they will negotiate with your creditors to try and reduce payments.

Whatever happens, don't be scared and DO NOT use payday loans. If you can't afford it today, you certainly can't afford twice the amount next week!

puzzles1dog

I need some help please. I have a default placed on my credit file on 31/10/2009. I recently received my SAR information and the termination notice for the Bank account was posted on 02/11/2009 giving me 14 days to settle the outstanding balance. I never did as this was my spouses account and i was unaware of the problems she was having.
My question is if i received the notice after the default was placed surley it was placed unlawfully?:(:(:(
Many thanks

StepChange_Pavan

splodgebunny wrote: »

Hi

Due to changes in personal circumstances and bad money management on my part, I find that I am about to hit a debt crisis, which I guess I have been ignoring until now.

I have run up quite a bit of credit card debt, and have a pre-existing personal loan. Also, I am about to be taken to court for non-payment of rent which I thought was being paid (with an ex-partner) but hasn't. I find that, despite being of previously excellent credit, I am now unable to get any, and have been avoiding those payday loans like the plague

My circumstances mean that I am currently still paying the mortgage on the marital home and also my own rent. I am interested in a debt management plan but am unsure how it will affect by current circumstances. I need to still pay the mortgage for now, although that will be sorted out and reduced as part of the divorce settlement

Any help you can give me would help me sleep a bit better at night.

Hi splodgebunny and thanks for your post.

It’s important that you put together a realistic budget that covers all your outgoings that you have at the moment. Obviously this will change once the divorce goes through, but for now it needs to be based on your current circumstances.

Once you know how much you have left over, this is what you can offer to your creditors. I’d recommend that you get in touch with us so that we can help you to put this together and explore all of the options that are available to you.

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.

I hope this helps.

Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

puzzles1dog wrote: »

I need some help please. I have a default placed on my credit file on 31/10/2009. I recently received my SAR information and the termination notice for the Bank account was posted on 02/11/2009 giving me 14 days to settle the outstanding balance. I never did as this was my spouses account and i was unaware of the problems she was having.
My question is if i received the notice after the default was placed surley it was placed unlawfully?:(:(:(
Many thanks

Hi puzzles1dog and thanks for your post.

If this is marked on your credit file, the account must be in joint names.

From what you’ve said, it sounds as though there is a 2 day discrepancy which could account for the time it took to send the default notice to you.

If you feel this is incorrect and would like the dates changing you would need to contact the creditor direct. This credit explained booklet gives you more information on how you can do this.

Kind regards,
Pavan

jonosh82

Hi

I am currently on a DMP with CCCS and am worried about what will happen as my finances change: I will shortly start having to pay for full time childcare which will have a significant impact on my total outgoings. I currently pay £350/month for the DMP, what would happen if this is no longer possible

thanks

mum2one

jonosh82 wrote: »

Hi

I am currently on a DMP with CCCS and am worried about what will happen as my finances change: I will shortly start having to pay for full time childcare which will have a significant impact on my total outgoings. I currently pay £350/month for the DMP, what would happen if this is no longer possible

thanks

Just a thought, would you be able to get more assistance from tax credits, I would suggest speaking to CCCS, as there do everything they can to sort it out for you.
xx

lisasensei

Hi there,
I'm about 17,000 in debt (excluding mortgage) after buying a house in November. I am currently on maternity leave and have missed a couple of direct debits recently and the bank charges are mounting up which is becoming a vicious circle. I can't seem to get straight and my baby's father is not helping. Chiltern Debt Mannagement have devised a plan for me which I can cancel at any time when things get easier which should be in October when I'm back to work and on full pay again. It sounds like a sensible short term option for me but their charges are high I think. The first two monthly payments of 130 don't go to any creditors at all apparently as they're absorbed into set up fees. This seems stupid if I'm only going to be on the plan for a few months. Has anyone else dealt with this company or have you any advice for short term debt consolidation/management?
Thanks