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StepChange_Pavan

km10 wrote: »

Between myself and my partner we have around £25,000 debts on Credit cards and a joint loan. Our child will be starting nursery soon and once we start paying nursery fees our outgoings will be more than our income. We are considering a Trust Deed (live in Scotland) but I want to know as much as I can about how this would affect us. I know that I would basically have no chance of getting credit for at least 6 years but would this also affect things like how much we would pay for car & home insurance and how difficult is it to build up a decent credit rating after the Trust Deed and further 3 year period is over?

Any help greatly appreciated.

Hi km10 and thanks for your post.

You’re right that this would affect your credit rating for the next six years. It shouldn’t affect how much your insurances cost however.

It would take you time to rebuild your credit rating, but I wouldn’t imagine that you’d be looking for a large amount of credit in the near future anyway. You might find this guide useful: http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/loans/credit-rating-credit-score

If you’d like some more detailed advice on your options you can get in touch with us.

Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

Westminster wrote: »

Help with changing default dates

I have been on a DMP since October 2006 for 13 creditors totalling around £70k - my situation has improved substantially since then and my payments now are much more than when I started out. I have around 40k left and have made progress with a few F&F and have offers of some more so I am now looking to the future.

I have very recently bitten the bullet and checked my credit file and had quite a surprise as several of my creditors took several years to get around to issuing formal defaults which means I will effectively be penalised for trying to act responsibly and arranging a DMP so these accounts will linger on my file long after I initially had financial difficulties.

The worst culprit by far is Cahoot with my current account - who continued for several years to apply interest & charges monthly to my account (despite accepting the DMP) but did not actually list a default until 20/12/2010 so it will be another 5 years before this account is removed from my file. What is worse - I had another account with them (a loan account) which they defaulted promptly on 17/02/2007 (and stopped interest & charges at the same time).

The creditor / default dates I have are as follows:
Barclays - 12/06/2006
Egg - 11/07/2006
HFC - 30/09/2006
BoS - 15/11/2006
Citibank - 29/12/2006
Cahoot - 17/02/2007
BoS / Cabot - 07/06/2007
Cabot - 06/10/2008
Co-Op - 15/04/2009
Cahoot - 20/12/2010

I have been checking the ICO guidelines and I am trying to draft a letter quoting the relevant points from this guidance to send to the tardy creditors. My thoughts were to try and initially get in writing the dates I originally broke the original contractual payments on those accounts with a view to later using that as leverage to pinpoint the ICO to show they should have defaulted me much earlier and are significantly disadvantaging me by not doing so.

For clarity - I have grown use to living without credit and have no need or desire to get any more. However, our first child is due next February and our current 2 bedroom house will not be big enough for very long. I have always kept up with my mortgage and would like to be able to move to something bigger in the future. Unfortunately I was with Northern Rock and am now with NRAM so re-mortgaging with my current lender is impossible so I will need to repair this credit file as much as possible.

Hello Westminster and thanks for your post.

There’s no guarantee that they will agree to remove it but it sounds as though you’re doing the right thing by contacting the ICO.

You could consider complaining to the creditor themselves in the first instance to see if there’s anything they will do.

You may also find this guide useful: http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/loans/credit-rating-credit-score

Kind regards,
Pavan

Vixtaa

Myself and my partner are in quite a bit of debt. The actual amount is unknown unfortunately. We do not know WHO a lot of it is with, but we do know that we owe.

I have been no good since I hit 18. I was offered loads of credit from various places, and a large overdraft from lloyds bank. And stupidly took everything I was offered. Over the next few years I just kept getting credit even though I knew I could not afford it, and ending up(obviously) not being able to make the repayments. A lot of debt collection companies were following me, but I just stck my head in the sand and binned every letter. I have since moved house and have not been caught up with yet, but I know it will happen.

My partner is pretty much the same, before we met he was taking out expensive contracts for mobile phones etc. while only working part time. In the old house we shared, we (and I do not know how) managed to run up a very large gas/electric bill of over 1000 in 3 months. This was the month just before we moved house, so yeah, this did not get paid either. We have had various TV/internet companies in over the years, many who have added close to £500 onto each account as we cancelled them before the contract was due to run out, as we simply could not afford to pay them.

I know that we are in this situation because of US, noone else. But I want to try and sort it out before all the debt collectors catch up with us at our new address(which will be soon as it is a council house, Im told its easier to be tracked)

The main problem is, while I can remember the names of a few companies I was in debt with, I do not remember anywhere near them all, nor how much I actually owe. Same for my partner.

We are also both currently out of work, so any repayment plan would be VERY low, as we have next to no spare money right now. I do have an interview for a job on monday, however this job is only around 20 hours a week and will actually have a NEGATIVE effect on what we currently have coming in, but I cant just sit around collecting benefits for the rest of my life. On the same note though, I do not understand how the DWP can justify people being worse off because they chose to work instead of lounge around doing nothing. The benefits system is very knacked up right now IMO...but thats besides the point

Anyway, what would be the best way to go about this? Should I just wait for the letters to start coming and then try to sort it out? I got my online credit report and apparently I have only 3 defaults on there all for quite low amounts too, which does NOT sound right to me at all...there should be over 10 at least. I'm lead to believe that after 5 years debt gets wiped also? If that actually is the case then quite a lot of mine will be written off, as I was 18 when I took most out, and am 24 now.

Or should I actively try to find out what I do still owe. Though how I would do this is unclear...

I would have thought all of my defaults would be shown on my credit report. Does this mean the ones I havent paid, dont even matter?

I am so confused right now, and have only pretty much been slapped back into reality after sorting out debt problems for someone else. I now realise that I also need to be sorting MY problems

MelodyG

Hello I hope someone can help me as i am now more then a little confused.

I currently have almost £12,000 in unsecured debt from credit cards, high interest loans, and catlougues. I pay on time every month albeit the minimum payment to most. I am paying £605 a month to my creditors. I have been trying to find consolidation loan to put all into one creditor and pay off over 5 years so that there is an end to it all. I accepted that the loan i got would be on the high interest but thought at least it would all be paid off in 5 years. Having doen some research it seems i can't do this. I have had a long conversion with Think Money and have done some research on the PayPlan website as many people have advised me the best to become debt free with much debt is a debt managmement programme. However it all seems a bit too good to be true. Surely my creditors will not agree to this programme as i am currently paying them on time and they are earning huge amounts of interest from me at the same time? What effect will all of this have on my credit report, which is already pretty poor? I have read i can still get default notices as these programmes are not legally binding? I dont have any default notices and dont really want one to be credit file for the next 6 years? Any advice would be gratefully received, as i just want to be able to see an end to high interest rates, large amounts of debt and to start rebuilding my credit file. I dont want to get myself in more trouble. HELP!!!

gobsy

Westminster wrote: »

Help with changing default dates
The worst culprit by far is Cahoot with my current account - who continued for several years to apply interest & charges monthly to my account

Hi westminsterl, have you tried giving them a call and explaining your situation, i had a similar problem with lloyds. i rang them expalined the situation and they credited the past 1.5yrs of interest they had charged me to my dmp...... tried the same with barclay and they have also frozen interest still waiting for this to be credited to my account tho so they may get a call from me in the morning lol

hope you get things sorted

ShellyBe

Hi

Being a newbie on the site, please forgive me if my query has already been answered elesewhere on another thread - I have tried trawling through, but have now gone cross-eyed so I thought I would just ask!:D

I have completed the debt remedy tool on the cccs website...nearly passed out with the total amout...( :eek:)and the recommendation is a DMP with DFD being in around 5 years...although it did say perhaps in 3 and a half year once the plan got going...

Completing it on the web was the first stage as I didnt feel able to actually talk to anyone at that point...but now that I have the figures, I think I would like to ring cccs just to talk through a few things and get them clear in my mind.

Firstly though, I would be grateful for any advice on the following:

I bank with the Halifax and have an O/D of £2450 which we are constantly using - as this is part of the debt (along with 2 credit cards also with them for me and DH and various others) would I need to see about opening a new bank account elsewhere? And if so, how do I go about paying back the O/D? I am so sorry if this seems like a stupid/simple question - my brain is mush at the moment trying to stay focussed on getting this mess sorted...:(

Also, we are just paying Interest only on a mortgage which has just over 12 years left to run...it was meant to be a short term solution (just over a year now) to help clear debts...but hasnt happened that way:o The balance outstanding on the mortgage is £115k...we would really have loved to remortgage and up the term (we still have a lot of working life ahead..!) but house prices tumbling means the amount we would need to borrow would outweigh the current value of the house....

...sooooo I am concerned that once the DMP is in place, and obviously our credit is severely affected, what do we do at the end of DMP to then work on clearing the mortgage? At that stage we we will only have 6 years and presumably huge difficulty in remortgaging..

Ideally I would like to at least be making overpayments on the mortgage to try to bring the capital down, but being on a DMP surely means all excess money goes on the unsecured debts?

Sorry again...head in such a muddle...

System

Vixtaa wrote: »

Myself and my partner are in quite a bit of debt. The actual amount is unknown unfortunately. We do not know WHO a lot of it is with, but we do know that we owe.

I have been no good since I hit 18. I was offered loads of credit from various places, and a large overdraft from lloyds bank. And stupidly took everything I was offered. Over the next few years I just kept getting credit even though I knew I could not afford it, and ending up(obviously) not being able to make the repayments. A lot of debt collection companies were following me, but I just stck my head in the sand and binned every letter. I have since moved house and have not been caught up with yet, but I know it will happen.

My partner is pretty much the same, before we met he was taking out expensive contracts for mobile phones etc. while only working part time. In the old house we shared, we (and I do not know how) managed to run up a very large gas/electric bill of over 1000 in 3 months. This was the month just before we moved house, so yeah, this did not get paid either. We have had various TV/internet companies in over the years, many who have added close to £500 onto each account as we cancelled them before the contract was due to run out, as we simply could not afford to pay them.

I know that we are in this situation because of US, noone else. But I want to try and sort it out before all the debt collectors catch up with us at our new address(which will be soon as it is a council house, Im told its easier to be tracked)

The main problem is, while I can remember the names of a few companies I was in debt with, I do not remember anywhere near them all, nor how much I actually owe. Same for my partner.

We are also both currently out of work, so any repayment plan would be VERY low, as we have next to no spare money right now. I do have an interview for a job on monday, however this job is only around 20 hours a week and will actually have a NEGATIVE effect on what we currently have coming in, but I cant just sit around collecting benefits for the rest of my life. On the same note though, I do not understand how the DWP can justify people being worse off because they chose to work instead of lounge around doing nothing. The benefits system is very knacked up right now IMO...but thats besides the point

Anyway, what would be the best way to go about this? Should I just wait for the letters to start coming and then try to sort it out? I got my online credit report and apparently I have only 3 defaults on there all for quite low amounts too, which does NOT sound right to me at all...there should be over 10 at least. I'm lead to believe that after 5 years debt gets wiped also? If that actually is the case then quite a lot of mine will be written off, as I was 18 when I took most out, and am 24 now.

Or should I actively try to find out what I do still owe. Though how I would do this is unclear...

I would have thought all of my defaults would be shown on my credit report. Does this mean the ones I havent paid, dont even matter?

I am so confused right now, and have only pretty much been slapped back into reality after sorting out debt problems for someone else. I now realise that I also need to be sorting MY problems

Hi Vixtaa and thanks for your post.

It sounds like you would benefit from some free and impartial advice.

As you have your credit report it should show all outstanding credit debts, arrears on gas and electricity and other utilities may not show on this.

In regards your debts been written off after six years, this is statute barred and the Creditors are unable to legally pursue you for the debt if, after six years;

• The creditor has not already obtained a county court judgment (CCJ)

• You or any one else owing the money (on a debt in joint names) have not made a payment

• You have not written to the creditor admitting you owe the debt

As you see from the above it would need to be six years from the date you made your last payment before the Limitations act applies.

I’d recommend that both you and your partner call us when you have had a good think about any other companies you owe money to; you might need to contact those companies directly with your old address for the outstanding balances.

We can then assist you in putting together an income and expenditure budget so we can see what the best option is for your situation.

Our free Helpline is on 0800 138 1111. We’re open Monday to Friday 8am - 8pm.

If you phone us 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.
Kind regards,
Mat

System

MelodyG wrote: »

Hello I hope someone can help me as i am now more then a little confused.

I currently have almost £12,000 in unsecured debt from credit cards, high interest loans, and catlougues. I pay on time every month albeit the minimum payment to most. I am paying £605 a month to my creditors. I have been trying to find consolidation loan to put all into one creditor and pay off over 5 years so that there is an end to it all. I accepted that the loan i got would be on the high interest but thought at least it would all be paid off in 5 years. Having doen some research it seems i can't do this. I have had a long conversion with Think Money and have done some research on the PayPlan website as many people have advised me the best to become debt free with much debt is a debt managmement programme. However it all seems a bit too good to be true. Surely my creditors will not agree to this programme as i am currently paying them on time and they are earning huge amounts of interest from me at the same time? What effect will all of this have on my credit report, which is already pretty poor? I have read i can still get default notices as these programmes are not legally binding? I dont have any default notices and dont really want one to be credit file for the next 6 years? Any advice would be gratefully received, as i just want to be able to see an end to high interest rates, large amounts of debt and to start rebuilding my credit file. I dont want to get myself in more trouble. HELP!!!

Hi MelodyG and thanks for your message.

It sounds like you would benefit from some free and impartial advice.

A debt management plan is an informal arrangement with your creditors, it is not legally binding and will more than likely have a negative effect on your credit rating. Neither we nor any other service can guarantee that your creditors will stop interest and charges on your accounts.

You creditors could also default you if they wished and this would have a negative impact on your credit rating.

If a debt management plan is the correct solution for your situation we do not charge any fees for the administration of these arrangements, so all of the money you pay in will go towards clearing your debt.

However, there could be other debt solutions available to you that you are not currently aware of, I think it would be worth contacting us to help assist you put together an accurate income and expenditure budget so that we can help find what the best solution is for you.

We wouldn’t normally recommend taking out further credit such as consolidation loans as this can often make the situation worse further down the line.

All debt solutions other than making contractual payments to your creditors will have an impact on your credit file.

The first thing to do is visit our online debt advice service Debt Remedy (http://www.cccs.co.uk/ref/drcu) to help you find a solution to your debt problem quickly.

Debt Remedy will assist you in completing a financial statement with information on your household, employment, income, expenditure and debts. From this the service will automatically determine your options.

To help you fill in the form, it’s best to gather together information about:
• Your income
• Your expenditure
• The creditors you owe money to

You’ll receive a downloadable advice booklet providing a tailored solution for you based on your current circumstances and advice on ways you may be able to improve your situation.

If you’re not confident with computers or would like to speak to an advisor then you’re welcome to ring our free Helpline on 0800 138 1111. We’re open Monday to Friday 8am - 8pm.

If you phone us 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.

Kind regards,

Mat

MelodyG

Mat

Thank you very much for that i will be sure to check the link out. I know its not going to be quick fix, i just want to start seeing some progress, and i think from what i have read a debt management plan is probably not for me, i just need to start getting myself organised and bit more determind at paying the credit off rather then just living with it!! Thank you again

Mooglet71

Hi
I am just about to start my DMP with CCCS. I have now received my pack and although most of it seems clear, I have a couple of queries.

- I am assuming that I should cancel all my direct debits to my creditors asap? I will be sending them the template letter tomorrow

- my salary is due to be paid into my account on Weds, it is too late for me to stop this but I have an overdraft that is part of my DMP, so what should I do (I do have a basic account already set up with another bank but not enough time to change things over)

- when CCCS contact my creditors, do they inform them what the new monthly payment will be to each creditor?

I know I could phone, but I find it difficult to phone during the day at work.

Thanks