Struggling with debt? Ask a debt advisor a question

sheiky

Hi
My son has got himself into a lot of debt,and has them being taken care of through Baines and Ernst debt management firm.
But he now has another debt reared its ugly head, he signed up for a course with a company called TRAIN2GAME,and only done it for a year,they were taking £135 per month off of him.
He cancelled it after a year,but he has now had a letter off of them saying he owes them about £4500. The trouble is as far as I can see they organize a loan for the course and he is supposed to be paying that off,but it hardly seems fair if he did not continue with it. Anyone else had any dealings with this company.
If he adds this debt on to his existing debts,he is going to be owing about £10,000. He is only on minimum wage.
Have wondered if he would be eligible for going Bankrupt.
I am going out of my mind worrying,which is not good for me as I have been on long term sick for cancer treatment.
Regards Sheila

absolutelynomoney

Hello there,

I have a current account with Halifax that I opened a few years ago and in a time of trouble I stupidly took full usage of the introductory £1000 free overdraft facility. The charges kicked in after a few months and as I couldn't pay it back at the time, they steadily grew until I reached the limit where they ask you to pay it back in full, which I still couldn't do!

They agreed a monthly payment plan with me to reduce the amount gradually, but it was such a small amount I could afford at the time that once the monthy interest and over-the-limit charges were put on top, the payment hardy even made a dent - I was effectively paying off the month's interest and then not even all of it, so I would be drawn back over the limit again. When this happened, they would increase the limit to accomodate the amount and the new charges for going over, then implement the payment plan again - it was a downward spiral.

The situation now is that 2 years later, payments are no longer being made into the account (I had another run of not being able to afford them a while ago), but I have not heard from Halifax for quite a while. I am keen to now pay off the amount, but last I spoke to them, the amount was around £2500 - I am not in a position to pay it off in full straight away, but could make payments of a few hundred pounds at a time to reduce it steadily and quickly.

The worry I have though is that if I begin to pay this off, between each payment so much interest is added that it significantly eats into my efforts to reduce the debt. When I was dealing with them last year, I asked if they could stop the charges to allow me to actually make some inroads into the debt, but they said they couldn't - do you know of anything I can do to help with this situation, or any way to stop these charges and interest to help the debt be paid off? They just seem completely counter-productive! I'm scared of what will happen if I don't pay it off, but worried about contacting Halifax as well

System

sheiky wrote: »

Hi
My son has got himself into a lot of debt,and has them being taken care of through Baines and Ernst debt management firm.
But he now has another debt reared its ugly head, he signed up for a course with a company called TRAIN2GAME,and only done it for a year,they were taking £135 per month off of him.
He cancelled it after a year,but he has now had a letter off of them saying he owes them about £4500. The trouble is as far as I can see they organize a loan for the course and he is supposed to be paying that off,but it hardly seems fair if he did not continue with it. Anyone else had any dealings with this company.
If he adds this debt on to his existing debts,he is going to be owing about £10,000. He is only on minimum wage.
Have wondered if he would be eligible for going Bankrupt.
I am going out of my mind worrying,which is not good for me as I have been on long term sick for cancer treatment.
Regards Sheila

Hi Sheila and thanks for your message.

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

There could be various options available to your son depending on his circumstances, bankruptcy or a debt relief order could be an option. If a debt management plan is the correct way forward we offer these free of charge so that all the money he pays in would go towards clearing the debt.

I’d recommend that your son visit our online debt advice service Debt Remedy (http://www.cccs.co.uk/ref/drcu) to help him find a solution to his debt problem quickly.

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

To help him fill in the form, it’s best to gather together information about:
• His income
• His expenditure
• The creditors he owes money to

He’ll receive a downloadable advice booklet providing a tailored solution for him based on his current circumstances.

If he’s not confident with computers or would like to speak to an advisor then he’s welcome to ring our free Helpline on 0800 138 1111. We’re open Monday to Friday 8am - 8pm and Saturday 9am until 3.00pm.

If he phones 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 him.

If he does call we’d be happy for you to listen into the phone conversation as long as you have your son’s consent to do this, this should help ease your worries about his current situation.

I hope this helps.

Kind regards,

Mat

System

absolutelynomoney wrote: »

Hello there,

I have a current account with Halifax that I opened a few years ago and in a time of trouble I stupidly took full usage of the introductory £1000 free overdraft facility. The charges kicked in after a few months and as I couldn't pay it back at the time, they steadily grew until I reached the limit where they ask you to pay it back in full, which I still couldn't do!

They agreed a monthly payment plan with me to reduce the amount gradually, but it was such a small amount I could afford at the time that once the monthy interest and over-the-limit charges were put on top, the payment hardy even made a dent - I was effectively paying off the month's interest and then not even all of it, so I would be drawn back over the limit again. When this happened, they would increase the limit to accomodate the amount and the new charges for going over, then implement the payment plan again - it was a downward spiral.

The situation now is that 2 years later, payments are no longer being made into the account (I had another run of not being able to afford them a while ago), but I have not heard from Halifax for quite a while. I am keen to now pay off the amount, but last I spoke to them, the amount was around £2500 - I am not in a position to pay it off in full straight away, but could make payments of a few hundred pounds at a time to reduce it steadily and quickly.

The worry I have though is that if I begin to pay this off, between each payment so much interest is added that it significantly eats into my efforts to reduce the debt. When I was dealing with them last year, I asked if they could stop the charges to allow me to actually make some inroads into the debt, but they said they couldn't - do you know of anything I can do to help with this situation, or any way to stop these charges and interest to help the debt be paid off? They just seem completely counter-productive! I'm scared of what will happen if I don't pay it off, but worried about contacting Halifax as well

Hi and thanks for your post,

We’d need to know more about your full situation before we’d be able to advise the best way forward. If you had other debts the solutions may vary.

Halifax are within their rights to add interest and charges as per the original agreement when you opened the account. Neither we nor any other debt management charity or company can guarantee that creditors will suspend interest and charges on accounts like these unless you enter a formal solution.

Creditors will sometimes suspend interest and charges for a short time period such as three months; it might be worth requesting this again in writing, along with offering a schedule of repayment at the same time based on an accurate income and expenditure budget.

As you suggest it’s best to make contact with Halifax and deal with the debt as best you can, first though, I’d recommend that you contact us for some free and impartial advice. We can also assist with a budget and look at all the options available to your based on your full circumstances.

Our free Helpline is on 0800 138 1111. We’re open Monday to Friday 8am - 8pm and Saturday 9am until 3.00pm.

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

Mazz27

Hi,

My husband has recently taken advise from cccs regarding his debt. We followed the advice given and sent a letter to the creditor with a budget sheet showing he could only afford to pay back £5.00 a month.

Today we got a letter from court called a claim form and have no idea what to do now.

My husband has been out of work for 4 1/2 years so I have been supportting him completely. We are worried that they will try and make me pay back his debt or take items that aren't his because we can't prove that only I brought them.

Please can we have a bit of advise on how we should fill out this form and what to do next. Will it be to late to stop my husband getting a CCJ?

Thanks,

Mazz

davidp62

Hi,
for a number of reasons (low wages, depression, and family problems) I fell into quite serious arrears with my council tax. I have never been out of work for long but my partner made no contribution to the household bills until she went back to work two years ago. By this time we had arrears amounting to just over a thousand pounds and were being threatened with eviction because of rent arrears.

When my partner went back to work she promised to pay the council tax which took a weight off my shoulders and allowed me to concentrate on paying off the rent arrears, which I have now done.

Unfortunately I learned in December that she hadn't been paying the Council Tax at all and we had now arrears of £3300 and were being threatened with committal proceedings. I spoke to the council and we agreed that I would pay £200 per month to pay off the debts, I have been doing this and have paid £1200 so far this year. I earn just over £1000 a month so this amounts to about 20% of my wages.

When I spoke to the council in December we agreed that this was as much as I can afford and that when the new bill arrived in April this would be included. Inspite of paying regularly the council have now summonsed me for this years tax. I have spoken to them and told them that I cannot see the sense in this as we had previously agreed that I could not pay more and even if they issued an attachment of earnings they could not bring in as much as I am already paying.

What I find worrying is this: does the arrangement that I had with the council to repay the arrears take precedent over this years bill? If it does then I haven't paid. If it doesn't then why are they taking me to court? On a previous occasion I set up an arrangement with the council, this is before my partner had said that she would take care of the bill, a Bailiff had called four weeks later. When I questioned the council they said that they collect the new bill first which is why they passed the old bill to the Bailiff.

Any advise would be welcome, thanks.

StepChange_Pavan

Mazz27 wrote: »

Hi,

My husband has recently taken advise from cccs regarding his debt. We followed the advice given and sent a letter to the creditor with a budget sheet showing he could only afford to pay back £5.00 a month.

Today we got a letter from court called a claim form and have no idea what to do now.

My husband has been out of work for 4 1/2 years so I have been supportting him completely. We are worried that they will try and make me pay back his debt or take items that aren't his because we can't prove that only I brought them.

Please can we have a bit of advise on how we should fill out this form and what to do next. Will it be to late to stop my husband getting a CCJ?

Thanks,

Mazz

Hi Mazz and thanks for your question.

Don’t worry; you don’t have to pay towards a debt that isn’t in your name. If he receives any income at all you can just include that in the budget sheet and whatever he is able to contribute towards priority debts, leaving £5 to offer to the creditor.

Unfortunately there’s nothing you can do to stop the CCJ process unless you are able to clear the debt in full.

This blogpost details everything you need to know about filling out CCJ forms: http://moneyaware.co.uk/2012/01/received-a-county-court-judgement-ccj/. But if you’d like any help please just give us a call.

I hope this helps.

Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

davidp62 wrote: »

Hi,
for a number of reasons (low wages, depression, and family problems) I fell into quite serious arrears with my council tax. I have never been out of work for long but my partner made no contribution to the household bills until she went back to work two years ago. By this time we had arrears amounting to just over a thousand pounds and were being threatened with eviction because of rent arrears.

When my partner went back to work she promised to pay the council tax which took a weight off my shoulders and allowed me to concentrate on paying off the rent arrears, which I have now done.

Unfortunately I learned in December that she hadn't been paying the Council Tax at all and we had now arrears of £3300 and were being threatened with committal proceedings. I spoke to the council and we agreed that I would pay £200 per month to pay off the debts, I have been doing this and have paid £1200 so far this year. I earn just over £1000 a month so this amounts to about 20% of my wages.

When I spoke to the council in December we agreed that this was as much as I can afford and that when the new bill arrived in April this would be included. Inspite of paying regularly the council have now summonsed me for this years tax. I have spoken to them and told them that I cannot see the sense in this as we had previously agreed that I could not pay more and even if they issued an attachment of earnings they could not bring in as much as I am already paying.

What I find worrying is this: does the arrangement that I had with the council to repay the arrears take precedent over this years bill? If it does then I haven't paid. If it doesn't then why are they taking me to court? On a previous occasion I set up an arrangement with the council, this is before my partner had said that she would take care of the bill, a Bailiff had called four weeks later. When I questioned the council they said that they collect the new bill first which is why they passed the old bill to the Bailiff.

Any advise would be welcome, thanks.

Hi davidp62 and thanks for your question.

You’re right that they would usually start collecting this year’s bill before last year’s which is why they usually like you to be up to date at the start of the new tax year.

Council tax is a priority debt so it’s really important that you come to an agreement that you can afford. I’d recommend that you give us a call so that we can discuss your situation in a bit more detail and advise you on your options. You can call us on 0800 138 1111 (free including from mobiles) and we’re open Monday to Friday 8am - 8pm and Saturdays 9am – 3pm.

Kind regards,
Pavan

[Deleted User]

Hi I have massive joint debts with an ex partner. They have been passed over to the debt collectors. I'm currently not working and I have no contact with her so don't know her situation. I am currently making token payments on each of the debts. I need to do something to get back into control with this - is a IVA or similar an option? I don't know how this would work with a joint debt? Would I have to declare the whole debt or half? Would I be liable to pay the whole debt if it was an iva g? I'm very worried . Any advice - thank you.

Lizardwoman1

Hi I am in an IVA at the moment and have not yet completed the first year. I work full time at the moment and my husband stays at home with our 3 children.

My husband has the possibility of working abroad but it will mean that I will have to stop work as our childcare costs would be over 1200 a month and due to his income we would unlikely be entitled to any help with that but we would not really be able to afford that and we are struggling to find appropriate childcare.

I have read that his income would be taken into account even though he is not part of the IVA. As I will no longer be working would it not be better for me to apply for bankruptcy. The only income that I receive would be from any possible tax credits and child benefit.

Thanks