Struggling with debt? Ask a debt advisor a question

stickman

CCCS_Pavan wrote: »

Hi stickman and thanks for your question.

The aim of a full and final offer is to settle the amount at once. There’s no guarantee that they’ll accept but there’s no reason for them to accept a lower amount over a longer period of time. If it’s paid now, they save money on collecting the debt over the next 7 years. Also, the settlement is usually accepted on the basis that the funds are coming from a third party – if they think that the client can afford the repayments themselves they could continue to chase the full amount.

If you’re in a position to lend the money, it’s a good idea to get some free and impartial advice and we can help with this. He could also consider a lump sum IVA and there’s more information on how these work here: http://moneyaware.co.uk/2011/05/lump-sum-ivas-an-insolvency-secret/.

I hope this helps.

Kind regards,
Pavan

Thanks Pavan,Can see now that if creditors see he can pay montly payments for2 years then why not wait for the 7 yrs and get full payment back.
Now here's the rub.
IF and I mean if,and I know this goes against the grain,son could get loan to pay full and final then
1 repayments are lower than current monthly via DMP
2 period of repayment is shorter thn DMP 5yrs not 7 yrs
Like I said it's a big if but noyt totally impossible is it,even with the higher than normal APR he'd be taking.

mum2one

Yippe 3 said yes to reduced payments, although no mention of interest, but cross that bridge, there my bigger creditors which make a massive difference, had letter from barlayous card and there putting account on hold no interest no charges till they deal with CCCS. So its looking positive, feel more real when i have paid the 1st payment, but onwards and upwards. just bit weird getting use to debit card and cash, but am checking bank account daily, - not sure if gone bit ott, but have A4 file with paper and write all daily entries in and also have a diary with every entry added in, weird as there £200 difference between back account and my figures - know its cheques not cashed but before I would have just gone by bank balance.

xx

purplegirluk1

Hi, I am not sure if I am asking this is the right place, my apologies if I am not.

I have a credit card with £800 of debt on it. I never use the card. I have only been able to make the minimum payments on it for a couple of years so each month I am just paying the interest and the debt never goes down. My financial situation is not likely to change. In the past I had two other credit cards, I went to the citizens advice and with their help had repayment plans set up so now I make a monthly payment to each (well the collections agency) and there is no longer any interest. The company who this card is from refused to set up a similar plan. Now I am left with a card that I cannot see any way of paying off. Do you have any advice please? I need to start paying it off to clear it.

Many thanks.

mum2one

purplegirluk1 wrote: »

Hi, I am not sure if I am asking this is the right place, my apologies if I am not.

I have a credit card with £800 of debt on it. I never use the card. I have only been able to make the minimum payments on it for a couple of years so each month I am just paying the interest and the debt never goes down. My financial situation is not likely to change. In the past I had two other credit cards, I went to the citizens advice and with their help had repayment plans set up so now I make a monthly payment to each (well the collections agency) and there is no longer any interest. The company who this card is from refused to set up a similar plan. Now I am left with a card that I cannot see any way of paying off. Do you have any advice please? I need to start paying it off to clear it.

Many thanks.

sorry to ask when you had the 2 other cards on payment plans did you have this card or have you accured the debts since then.
have you done a dmp remedy plan, theres no charge and it would give you a more reliable answer, x

hspanner

I have been pretty irresaponsible over the years and have run up debt through credit cards and also a bank loan. This totals around 10,000. I am now spending some time overseas and so want to try and consolidate my debt and pay it off in the cheapest way possible.
I was looking at getting 0% interest credit cards and transferring the amounts and paying it off that way, but it's difficult when I have to show employement in the UK and also have to sign documents. Would you be able to please advise me on any was that I can try and get this debt cleared.
Thank you.

StepChange_Pavan

Reggy8 wrote: »

Hi
My ex husband & I accured a lot of debt a long time ago, resulting in us paying a Debt Management Company a hefty amount to deal with the creditors nearly 8 years ago. We separated 2 years go & split the debt into whose name it was in, luckliy none was joint.
I now have my own agreement with the company. I vowed to sort this out once on my own as my ex was crap with money & it was mostly his fault it mounted up (although not entirely, obviously). Anyway a messy divorce & court hearing over children later I'm at last wanting to sort it out.
I pay £89 per month to Eurodebt, they keep £50 & £38 goes to my 3 creditors so I don't think anything has come off the balance in 7 years, they are appalling.
I've been approached to get an IVA which I feel is my only option to sort this mess out. I'm aware of the pros & cons, as I can't get credit now & I'm in a rented property I feel there are only pros. They have arranged to see me next Thursday & say I will pay £140 a month for 72 months (6 years) then 2 extra months as their fee.
Advice appreciated as to whether this is the best option for my circumstances. I owe £24,750 & feel if I continue with Eurodebt I'll NEVEr pay it off & I want to buy a house in the future. I'm employed p/t & I can just about afford the increase to £140 from £89 I'm paying now.
Thanks for advice!

Hi Reggy8 and thanks for your question.

It looks as though you’ve already had some helpful advice from other forum users. Like they say you shouldn’t be paying a fee for a debt management plan as we can provide this service completely free of charge.

I’d recommend that you get some free and impartial advice before signing up to anything. An IVA is a legally binding solution and there could be other options available to you. You can use our free online debt advice service Debt Remedy (http://www.cccs.co.uk/ref/drcu) to find out what your options are. There’s no commitment and you can complete it anonymously if you prefer.

You can also call our helpline if you’d like to speak to someone. 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).

I hope this helps.

Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

Walaboobah wrote: »

Thanks for that Pavan that is very reassuring. I have just received my application pack by Email and am going to send it off. The one issue I have is with the letters to creditors. Should it go to the local branch or to the head office?

Thanks

Andrew

Hi Andrew,

Glad I helped to put our mind at ease. It’s best to send it to the address on your statements or the most recent letter you’ve received from them.

Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

salduck wrote: »

Hi all,
I have debt!
I want to know if I mov in with someone as a lodger would they become financially linked to me? Woudl the address be "blacklisted" for want of a better word should they wish to take out credit?
It is my mum's that I would be moving into and she knows about my money troubles but I dont want it affecting her
Thanks in advance
Sal

Hi Sal and thanks for your question.

Mum2one is right that it would only affect your mum if you had any joint accounts. If not, there won’t be a problem.

If you’d like any advice on your money worries, just get in touch.

Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

Time_to_face_the_music wrote: »

I hope someone can help me with this query:

Why is CCCS help available from 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday and 9am to 3pm Saturday for new clients but only from 8am to 6pm Monday to Friday for existing clients? And why is the former free and the latter at premium number rate?

Hi TTFTM and thanks for your question.

Our helpline has been open on Saturdays for a few months now to cope with the demand of our service. At the moment there isn’t enough demand to open other support departments but please be assured that we do monitor this and it could change in the future if needed.

Calls to our Helpline are free, but our other support departments all have numbers which begin ‘0845’ and calls made using these numbers are charged at local rates. Unfortunately this is the way our lines have been configured so we’re not able to change it and we have no control over the costs imposed by telephone providers.

If you’re an existing client we do have evening appointments until 8pm which are booked in advance at a time that’s convenient for you, and you can also email us to which we will respond individually. Both of these options will save you the cost of the telephone call.

Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

stickman wrote: »

Thanks Pavan,Can see now that if creditors see he can pay montly payments for2 years then why not wait for the 7 yrs and get full payment back.
Now here's the rub.
IF and I mean if,and I know this goes against the grain,son could get loan to pay full and final then
1 repayments are lower than current monthly via DMP
2 period of repayment is shorter thn DMP 5yrs not 7 yrs
Like I said it's a big if but noyt totally impossible is it,even with the higher than normal APR he'd be taking.

Hi again,

We wouldn’t normally recommend taking out a consolidation loan and you can read more about why on our blog: http://moneyaware.co.uk/2011/04/to-debt-consolidate-or-not-to-debt-consolidate/. It also goes into detail about what you would need to consider.

You’re right that it could be his best option if he’s accepted for a loan but it’s important that he considers all his options and the pros and cons of each before signing up.

I hope this helps.

Kind regards,
Pavan