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delosfive

Hello,

Right now, I'm petrified.

At the end of 2008 I was made redundant and I didn't find employment until March 2010. In this time, making ends meet and paying Utilities, rent, etc. became a very hard struggle. Fortunately, my Council Tax was paid in benefits so wasn't a problem.

When I began starting my new job, the flurry to put payments in order (including overdue Utility payments and long-term existing debts) meant that I was scrabbling around for months trying to get back on-track. I hoped it'd take a matter of a couple of months to be back in 'the black' financially, but the problems are still dogging me today.

I was recently floored with the news I'd a tumour. I was hospitalised a couple of times and was unable to work. Fortunately, work were very understanding and though I was only paid SSP and sick-pay from my employers, it meant I wasn't able to earn my maximum salary. With the focus on my being ill, Council Tax and an existing loan from my old Bank went unpaid and now I am in receipt of CCJ confirmations and letters to confirm Bailiff 'intent'. I'm actually terrified of leaving the house in case I get 'doorstepped'.

My Utility bills are back 'on-track' and I'm hoping to increase my working over the Christmas period, to maximise income, but I don't know where to begin with regards to responding to Bailiff letters or formalising an action plan or payment schedule proposal.

I'm planning to visit the Citizen's Advice tomorrow, but any guidance as to what I should propose and how to propose to the Bailiff's would be appreciated.

Many thanks in advance.

StepChange_Pavan

tritons0 wrote: »

hi wondering if you may be able to help. self employed - when good month just scrape by but most months have been pretty poor lately and really struggling - putting money through credit cards and spiralling out of control. i owe about 34 k in debt - 2 loans, 5 creidt cards . i also pay my mum 200 per month for finance she helped me with as well as paying 100 per month the credit union (these are not inclluded in the 34k debt. ) as being self employed i must put away 500 quid each month to cover tax - but really need to put away 700 but cant afford it - and suprise suprise wont have full amount of tax needed to pay taxman in jan - so will have to put on credit card again ! please help:o

Hi trirons0 and thank you for your post.

We have specialist self employed team that will help you to put together a realistic budget and give you advice on how to deal with your personal debts.

To book a telephone based appointment you can call our helpline free on 0800 138 1111. Lines are open Monday to Friday 08:00-20:00. If you do decide to call us, please have details ready regarding your income, expenditure and creditors, as this can help speed up the referral process. If you have all of the necessary information ready, 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.

If any of your debts are business debts, you would need to contact Business Debtline for further advice.

Kind regards
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

shellbell121 wrote: »

Hi,

Im after some advice regarding a 15 year old debt from a bank account. I have only just been contacted about this debt. The bank account was mine but i didnt run up the debt, i think it was my ex. As it was so long ago im finding it hard to remember details that could help me with this. They have told me that i owe £1'000 and when i told the company dealing with this debt (Mackenzie Hall) that i wouldnt be paying without looking into it as it wasnt my debt i was told that they would investigate but that the money would be recovered from me. Can they still chase this 15 years later, had it been done before then it could have been sorted but now im so annoyed because i dont have any debt and its stressing me that they say i owe this money. They have asked me to write a letter to them giving them permission to investigate. If i dont do this what will they do. Im worried that by doing this it sounds like an admission from me that the debt is mine.

Thank you in advance.

Hi shellbell121 and thanks for your post.

You could be right that they are trying to get you to write a letter so that they can use it as an admission to owing the debt.

Provided that you don’t already have a CCJ for this debt, haven’t made a payment or haven’t written to them admitting the debt within the last six years, they are unable to legally pursue you for the debt. You would also need to ensure that your ex partner hasn’t made a payment within the last six years.

This is known as statute barred and refers to the Limitation Act.

If you believe that the creditor is timed out to collect the debt, you may wish to use the template letter below.
Kind regards,
Pavan

Example letter – limitations act

From:
Name:
Address:
Postcode:
Date:

To:
Creditor’s Name:
Account/Agreement No:

Without Prejudice

Dear Sirs
Ref
I do not admit any liability for your claim and will not be making any payment towards it, as it is now more than six-years since any cause of action may have accrued. Any claim would, therefore, appear to be statute barred under section 5 of The Limitations Act 1980 and any court claim will be defended on that basis.
In addition section 2.14 of The Office of Fair Trading Collection guidance states that it is unfair to pursue such claims where, as here, the creditor has made no contact during the relevant limitation period.
If, however, you have substantive evidence that your claim is not statute barred then please supply it to me within 21 days. If you are unable to provide such evidence please confirm that no further action will be taken against me.
Yours faithfully
(Signature)
(Print name)

StepChange_Pavan

candles1978 wrote: »

Hi,

I have had my DMP with CCCS since May this year. Most of my creditors have been really cooperative and have frozen my interest apart from HSBC. They seem to have accepted the DMP for all but one of our accounts which has been passed to their in house debt collection agency. Since it was passed over, we haven't heard anything from them so I am hoping they have finally accepted it. Unfortunately, I was checking our online banking the other day and I noticed that even though HSBC have accepted the DMP payment on our other accounts, they are still charging us interest. This means, for example on our one account, we make a payment of £23.23 and the interest this month was £23.44 so that means we will never pay the debt off!!!

Is there anything I can do about this? Is it worth calling HSBC about it?

Many thanks

Hi Candles1978,

You’re not alone in this situation and it’s unfortunate that HSBC are within their rights to do this.

However, I’d recommend that you call our client support team to inform them that HSBC are still adding interest and charges. We will contact them on your behalf and although we can’t guarantee that they will stop, we will do all that we can to try.

Kind regards
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

longhairedbloke wrote: »

Hi Pavan,

Thanks for the reply. I must have mistyped, the unsecured debt is £31000. We've received the email with the forms to complete and are going to get those done in the next couple of days.

We'd prefer the DMP for now, we'll see how we go for a few months and reasses. We'll keep an eye on things. We've tried to cut back as much as possible, but things like the tv licence will reduce as we've just moved in (they want six months up front) and the council tax took a couple of months to get sorted so we're playing catch up with increased payments for that as well, so hopefully those will reduce and we'll have a bit more money to throw at the debts.

Thanks for your help, we feel much better now the CCCS have been helping us.

Regards,

LHB.

Hi again,

Ah, you would be eligible for an IVA in that case!

If you think that your surplus might increase with changes here and there, the good thing about a DMP is that you can pay more off your debts as and when you have the money.

It’s a good idea to keep assessing your situation regularly to make sure you’re doing the right thing for your circumstances. Sounds like you’re really starting to take control.

Good luck with your DMP.

Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

delosfive wrote: »

Hello,

Right now, I'm petrified.

At the end of 2008 I was made redundant and I didn't find employment until March 2010. In this time, making ends meet and paying Utilities, rent, etc. became a very hard struggle. Fortunately, my Council Tax was paid in benefits so wasn't a problem.

When I began starting my new job, the flurry to put payments in order (including overdue Utility payments and long-term existing debts) meant that I was scrabbling around for months trying to get back on-track. I hoped it'd take a matter of a couple of months to be back in 'the black' financially, but the problems are still dogging me today.

I was recently floored with the news I'd a tumour. I was hospitalised a couple of times and was unable to work. Fortunately, work were very understanding and though I was only paid SSP and sick-pay from my employers, it meant I wasn't able to earn my maximum salary. With the focus on my being ill, Council Tax and an existing loan from my old Bank went unpaid and now I am in receipt of CCJ confirmations and letters to confirm Bailiff 'intent'. I'm actually terrified of leaving the house in case I get 'doorstepped'.

My Utility bills are back 'on-track' and I'm hoping to increase my working over the Christmas period, to maximise income, but I don't know where to begin with regards to responding to Bailiff letters or formalising an action plan or payment schedule proposal.

I'm planning to visit the Citizen's Advice tomorrow, but any guidance as to what I should propose and how to propose to the Bailiff's would be appreciated.

Many thanks in advance.

Hi delosfive and thank you for your post.

It sounds like you’ve had a couple of really tough years. It’s good to know that your utilities are on track and that you’re now well enough to increase your working.

You didn’t mention whether the bailiff letters are related to your council tax or your bank loan. If they are collecting the council tax debt, you could call your council, explain your situation and ask them if they will take the debt back from the bailiffs. If they agree to this, you can come to an arrangement, directly with the council to repay the debt at a rate that you can afford.

If, for any reason the council won’t agree to take the debt back, or if they are collecting the bank loan debt, you will need to try and negotiate with the bailiffs. It’s important that you don’t let them in. Try to negotiate with them outside of the property or through an open window.

Bailiffs cannot break into the property unless you have already allowed them in or they entered through an unlocked door or window, on a previous visit. This is called ‘walk in possession’. Once the bailiff has ‘walk in possession’ they can use force to enter again in future.

If a bailiff enters your property, they will not take any goods on the first visit. They will usually make a list of items in the house which they can take in future. Once they have done this, it is an offence for you to remove any of these items from your house.

However, the bailiff cannot take items that don’t belong to you. If there are items belong to other people in your household, you would need to prove this.

I hope that you manage to get some more detailed advice from the CAB. However, if you were unable to see someone today, you can call our free helpline to speak to a trained debt advisor about your situation. We will be able to help you create a sustainable budget and give you advice on how to deal with your creditors, including realistic offers of payment towards your debts.

To book an appointment, you can call free on 0800 138 1111 and lines are open Monday to Friday 08:00-20:00. If you do decide to call us, please have details ready regarding your income, expenditure and creditors, as this can help speed up the referral process. If you have all of the necessary information ready, 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.

Kind regards
Pavan

Borka

Hi,
our situation is getting serious!

My wife and I have a self-cert mortgage of £120,000 on interest only which has about 8 years to run, and our original plan was to sell our property, currently worth about £320,000, and buy something with the balance when the time comes. By then we will both be nearing retirement and kids should be self-supporting (I am 58, my wife is 53). The mortgage payments are currently around £250/month, and if that was all my debt, I would not have a problem!
The problem is that I was made redundant about six years ago, and spent four years trying to make a go at self-employment, and as a result I now have credit card debts of £32,000. I am now employed again (have been for 20 months) and our joint income is £27,000 pa, but the credit card payments are too much for us to cope with for much longer.
If I could get a further advance on my mortgage to pay off the cards, the payments would be perfectly manageable, but my existing lender (TMW) are no longer making further advances on self-cert mortgages, and I don't think our earnings would enable us to remortgage. What are my options?

delosfive

Thanks Pavan

When it comes to whether the Bailiff's are calling regarding the Bank Loan or the Council Tax, unfortunately, it's both. I've two different companies contacting me. Right now I'm working on raising revenue (selling things, working overtime, spending less) but I can't see how even if I could raise enough money to pay a substantial amount per month (I can afford about £125 to £150 per month for both debts combined) but since I owe about £4k, it's not going to be accepted by them. They don't do 'easy payment terms', but if I'm to meet all the other payment requirements of my Utilities, etc. I just don't have the money to pay any more and afford to eat.

Today someone knocked at my door and I didn't answer it. My friends are offering to take me out to eat, visit, etc. and I can't accept because I'm terrified of leaving the house or opening the door and being caught outside. It's making my dealing with my current health issues even more difficult.

shellbell121

CCCS_Pavan wrote: »

Hi shellbell121 and thanks for your post.

You could be right that they are trying to get you to write a letter so that they can use it as an admission to owing the debt.

Provided that you don’t already have a CCJ for this debt, haven’t made a payment or haven’t written to them admitting the debt within the last six years, they are unable to legally pursue you for the debt. You would also need to ensure that your ex partner hasn’t made a payment within the last six years.

This is known as statute barred and refers to the Limitation Act.

If you believe that the creditor is timed out to collect the debt, you may wish to use the template letter below.
Kind regards,
Pavan

Example letter – limitations act

From:
Name:
Address:
Postcode:
Date:

To:
Creditor’s Name:
Account/Agreement No:

Without Prejudice

Dear Sirs
Ref
I do not admit any liability for your claim and will not be making any payment towards it, as it is now more than six-years since any cause of action may have accrued. Any claim would, therefore, appear to be statute barred under section 5 of The Limitations Act 1980 and any court claim will be defended on that basis.
In addition section 2.14 of The Office of Fair Trading Collection guidance states that it is unfair to pursue such claims where, as here, the creditor has made no contact during the relevant limitation period.
If, however, you have substantive evidence that your claim is not statute barred then please supply it to me within 21 days. If you are unable to provide such evidence please confirm that no further action will be taken against me.
Yours faithfully
(Signature)
(Print name)

Thank you for your help.

Just one more question.....if i send this letter and dont pay can this affect my credit rating? Thanks again.

simon31leeds

Hi there,

Hope you can help me. 4 years ago I got myself into a real pickle of debt and had built up around £50,000 of unsecured debt. At that time I made a conscious decision to do something about it outside of an IVA or formal DMP and although I've had up's and downs with things, but my overall debt position is now just over £20,000 and very serviceable as I have a salary of just under £40,000.

My issue is that one of my creditors, RBS put a payment arrangement on my account some 3 years ago and I have not missed a payment under the arrangement since that time. From debt at the time with them of almost 9,000 I now owe them less than £5,000. Problem is, even though I can service the debt without an issue and make more than the minimum payment each month, they will not remove the arrangement. I don't want to lend anything else with them, but my issue is it's affecting my ability to get a loan to consolidate the debt remaining, meaning that instead of paying say an APR of around 10% I'm averaging nearer 22% because my debt is mainly on cards outside of their introductory offers.

All I want to do is basically get rid of the card debts I have left and pool them into a loan and cancel my contracts with my credit card providers but RBS have said I will never come off my arrangement with them until I fully repay the debt. I must re-iterate I have not defaulted on the payment arrangement with them for 3 years and it seems so unfair that they are holding this to me meaning I can't make inroads into the debt as easily as I could if I had a loan with a decent APR.

Help - is there anything I can do to insist RBS do something?

Cheers in advance

Simon