Struggling with debt? Ask a debt advisor a question

grumblybum

Hi
I wondered if you can advise me as I am getting desperate. I have been trying to set up a debt remedy with cccs, but they won't do anything until I can get tax credit confirmation, but the tax credit people are dragging their feet as its a new claim and taken over a month so far with no payments or award notice. I can barely afford my essential bills. In the meantime contact from debtors is getting worse, so many calls a day. I have had to leave work due to my mental health, and it is now getting so bad I can't answer the phone or leave the house without panic attacks. I can't get through on helpline, and talking to people on the phone is really awkward. Is there nothing they can do to help me until tax credits sorted? I feel there is no help for me at the minute. I can't sleep and just cry all the time. What can I do?

StepChange_Pavan

DotNetter wrote: »

Hi there,

We've been on a DMP for 2 years in January.

We started with around £60k of unsecured debt and that is now down to approximately £54k after 2 years of payments!

Many of our creditors have stopped charging interest or have lowered it. We tried reducing our monthly spend to increase our payments but apart from struggling we found that some creditors actually started charging full interest again!

Anyhow, even though my DMP suggests that we will be debt free in 8 years I am guessing based on the above that this will be far from true.

So, I'm now considering an IVA.

We are home owners. Our mortgage and secured loan is work £130k approx and our home is currently worth approx £150k (based on a 2 independent validations of £145k 2 years ago).

I understand most of how an IVA works in terms of 70% of the value of creditors needing to agree etc and that it's a formal agreement that can last 5 years (please correct me if I'm wrong) however I don't understand how/if there is a risk to us loosing our home?

Obviously 5 years of debt compared to what could be 15years is preferable.

Can you provide any advice?

Hi DotNetter and thank you for your post.

There are many differences between an IVA and a DMP and we would definitely need to look at your situation in more detail to determine which your best solution is.

It’s unlikely that your home would be at risk providing that you were able to maintain the IVA repayments for the full term.

I’d recommend that you get in touch to explore all of your options fully and discuss the pros and cons of each.

You can call our helpline free on 0800 138 1111 and we’re open Monday to Friday 8am - 8pm.

I hope this helps.

Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

Hightower13 wrote: »

Requesting Info on my account
Hi,

I wrote to argos asking for info on my PPI I have with them, as I have no information for my records.

I haven't heard back from them and it has been about 6 weeks. I sent the letter recorded delivery.

Do I need to send a cheque for £1 for the info, as I saw it on a template letter that to do this??!

Thanks

Hi Hightower13 and thanks for your post.

You’re right that you can pay £1 for this information.

There are more details on this reclaiming guide on what to do and how to do it: http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/reclaim/ppi-credit-card-insurance

Hope this helps.

Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

grumblybum wrote: »

Hi
I wondered if you can advise me as I am getting desperate. I have been trying to set up a debt remedy with cccs, but they won't do anything until I can get tax credit confirmation, but the tax credit people are dragging their feet as its a new claim and taken over a month so far with no payments or award notice. I can barely afford my essential bills. In the meantime contact from debtors is getting worse, so many calls a day. I have had to leave work due to my mental health, and it is now getting so bad I can't answer the phone or leave the house without panic attacks. I can't get through on helpline, and talking to people on the phone is really awkward. Is there nothing they can do to help me until tax credits sorted? I feel there is no help for me at the minute. I can't sleep and just cry all the time. What can I do?

Hi grumblybum,

I’m not sure why we can’t help you, but it could be that if you don’t have an income it’s difficult to say what your options are.

I’d recommend that you get back in touch with us to see how we can help as it’s difficult to give detailed advice without knowing more about your situation. You can use our online Debt Remedy if you prefer not to call and you can chat online with our counsellors instead.

In the mean time you can ask your creditors to correspond with you in writing only. Offer them £1 each per month until you are able to get advice on a more long term solution or you know how much tax credits you are entitled to.

I hope this helps.

Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

Hi there,

Many thanks for your question.

The CCCS MoneyAware team are out of the office on Tuesday 16th August, for one day. Please accept our apologies for any delay in replying to your question.

In the meantime you can still receive debt counselling through our online service Debt Remedy (http://debtremedy.cccs.co.uk) 24 hours a day, or call our Helpline on 0800 138 1111 (lines open 8am - 8pm).

Regards,

The CCCS MoneyAware team
http://www.cccs.co.uk
http://www.moneyaware.co.uk

nadine12

Hi all
After some advice re my DMP - have been paying for approx 3 years with no problems. I need to ring them to do a review which is long overdue. CCCS have been unable to pay monies to two of the creditors as they either returned payments or became unable to trace. We have not received any correspondence form the creditors for a couple of years and there is nothing on our credit files either. This money currently amounts to about £400. I have fallen behind on my council tax this year due to my tax credits being stopped for some months (this has now been reinstated a week or so ago). I have received a summons for the council tax so will be ringing them to sort out repayments, but my question is whether CCCS would possibly release this money to be paid off the council tax, due to it being a priority debt?? I will obviously ask when I ring to do a review but just wondered if anyone had an idea. Thanks!

Little_Dorritt

Hi
I've managed in just over a decade to accrue debts of around 16,000 (1 credit card 12,000, loan 3,400 and overdraft). I was just managing all the minimum payments and convincing myself that it would be alright but due to a couple of mis-steps have hit a rocky patch with bank charges just pushing me above my income. I filled in the debt remedy sheet but it put larger monthly payments than I actually pay and suggested a protected trust deed as first option, which scares me a little. I know I need a DMP but theres the other part of me that is saying just get over this bump. I looked at loans that said you can pay around 210/230 for seven or eight years and am sure I can afford that but unsure I'll be allowed one. How easy and confidential are DMPs, I really don't want people to know.

StepChange_Pavan

nadine12 wrote: »

Hi all
After some advice re my DMP - have been paying for approx 3 years with no problems. I need to ring them to do a review which is long overdue. CCCS have been unable to pay monies to two of the creditors as they either returned payments or became unable to trace. We have not received any correspondence form the creditors for a couple of years and there is nothing on our credit files either. This money currently amounts to about £400. I have fallen behind on my council tax this year due to my tax credits being stopped for some months (this has now been reinstated a week or so ago). I have received a summons for the council tax so will be ringing them to sort out repayments, but my question is whether CCCS would possibly release this money to be paid off the council tax, due to it being a priority debt?? I will obviously ask when I ring to do a review but just wondered if anyone had an idea. Thanks!

Hello nadine12 and thanks for your post.

It’s really important that you call us to go through your review. If you’ve had changes in your income, we would need to amend the budget to reflect this.

With regards to the £400 held in your account, it could be possible to release this but when you call we will look into the details of the creditors to see who they are and why your payments haven’t been received.

It’s vital that you come to an arrangement to clear your council tax arrears as these are more important than your debts. When we are able to chat to you about your situation, we will explore all of the solutions that are available to you and discuss what’s best.

I hope this helps.

Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

Little_Dorritt wrote: »

Hi
I've managed in just over a decade to accrue debts of around 16,000 (1 credit card 12,000, loan 3,400 and overdraft). I was just managing all the minimum payments and convincing myself that it would be alright but due to a couple of mis-steps have hit a rocky patch with bank charges just pushing me above my income. I filled in the debt remedy sheet but it put larger monthly payments than I actually pay and suggested a protected trust deed as first option, which scares me a little. I know I need a DMP but theres the other part of me that is saying just get over this bump. I looked at loans that said you can pay around 210/230 for seven or eight years and am sure I can afford that but unsure I'll be allowed one. How easy and confidential are DMPs, I really don't want people to know.

Hi Little Dorritt and welcome to the forum.

It’s difficult to say what your best option would be without looking at your situation in more detail.

If you are considering a consolidation loan, it’s important that you budget carefully to make sure you can afford it and you don’t use anymore credit going forward. However we don’t usually recommend them as they can make your situation worse in the long term.

As I don’t have access to your information, I’d recommend that you contact our web support team. If you give them your reference number they will be able to see all the information you’ve given us and advise you about your recommended solution, why it’s best for you and any pros and cons.

I hope this helps.

Kind regards,
Pavan

frankss

hi,

The issue I have is I owe probably around £9000 to credit cards, I don't earn much more than minimum wage, but make at least the minimum payment every month sometimes I scrape a couple pound over. however the debt level is never going down, I don't use the cards now except in a very rare emergency I think it was once in the last 12 months. In the past when I've applied for a loan to clear them and pay them off i've been unsuccessful, now I'm in a position where I want to get a place with my girlfriend and start a family with her but want to get rid of this debt that plays on my mind constantly