Struggling with debt? Ask a debt advisor a question

material_girl_3

Hi.

We have been with CCCS for about 8 months now and yesterday I have recieved a letter from the halifax whom are on our creditor list demanding the full oustanding payment which is £493.36. We haven't missed a payment with CCCS so I know they have been paid.

They sent a letter about a month ago saying they required the full amount but we disregarded this as we get the same letters from our creditors each month which we were told by CCCs this may happen but this letter is demanding the full amount before the 17/11/10.

It says "default notice served under the setion 87(1) of the consumer credit act"
"At any time we may require you to pay the whole or part of any overdraft and fees which you owe on your account"

Any advice or help would be greatly appreciated

studantnurse

HI NEW TO THIS SO NOT SURE IF POSTING IN TIGHT PLACE.

I have been in an IVA for 3 and a half years now so even though I have only 1 and a half left I have some issues. i recently joined experian and rand them up to query some things as on my credit report it shows that since i started my IVA i defaulted on my credit card payments every month. Also where it discloses my IVA information it says settlement date July 2010 but I am still paying £200 a month.
Experian advised me to call them and debate why I am still paying, and now i'm confused as it has got me thinking about ways I could get out of it.

I guess my questions are: Should my credit card accounts show as defaulting every month?
Why may it say my IVA is settled?
Is there any way I can arrange to settle my credit card debts outside of the IVA and be done with it?

StepChange_Pavan

Borka wrote: »

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?

Hi Borka and thank you for your post.

It’s difficult to say what your best option could be without knowing the details of your income and expenditure.

I would recommend that you use our online debt advice tool, Debt Remedy. This will assist you in completing a financial statement which includes information on your household, employment, income, expenditure and debts. All this information is used as a basis to determine the options available to you to deal with your situation.

Once you’ve followed the process through and completed all the required information you will immediately be presented with an advice booklet, which will provide tailored advice for you based on your current circumstances. It will also provide advice on ways you may be able to improve your situation.

Alternatively if you would prefer to talk to a debt counsellor about your situation, you can book a telephone based appointment by calling 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.

Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

delosfive wrote: »

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.

Hi Delosfive,

You’re doing the right thing by trying to maximise your income, but remember that your health is just as, if not more, important. If your friends want to take you out, you should let them - it could ease your worries, if only for a while. Ask them to telephone first, so that you know when they’re coming.

If a bailiff does visit, try to discuss your situation briefly with them outside of your house. They may be more understanding if you explain your circumstances and that you are doing your best to repay the money that you owe. Remember that they can’t break into your house, so if you do choose to ignore the door, they have no way of entering.

I’d really recommend that you call our Helpline so that we can go through your situation with you and help you to create a realistic and sustainable budget. Here’s our number again in case you need it: 0800 138 1111.

Please try not to worry too much, as there will be light at the end of the tunnel.


Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

shellbell121 wrote: »

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.

Hi again,

This would depend on whether you are still liable for the debt. If they can prove that the debt is not statute barred, then they could apply for a CCJ which would affect your credit rating and I would advise you to make an arrangement to repay the debt.

However, if it is statute barred, they cannot legally pursue you for the debt and therefore cannot take further action against you. It might be worth looking at your credit reference file to see what is already on there. This credit explained booklet gives you more information on credit reference files and how to apply for yours.

Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

simon31leeds wrote: »

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

Hi Simon and thank you for your post.

Are they charging you the contractual interest that you signed for when you took the credit agreement out? If you have signed an agreement to allow them to charge this interest, unfortunately there is nothing you can do to stop them.

This article may give you some useful information on other ways to improve your credit rating: http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/loans/credit-rating-credit-score

Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

material_girl wrote: »

Hi.

We have been with CCCS for about 8 months now and yesterday I have recieved a letter from the halifax whom are on our creditor list demanding the full oustanding payment which is £493.36. We haven't missed a payment with CCCS so I know they have been paid.

They sent a letter about a month ago saying they required the full amount but we disregarded this as we get the same letters from our creditors each month which we were told by CCCs this may happen but this letter is demanding the full amount before the 17/11/10.

It says "default notice served under the setion 87(1) of the consumer credit act"
"At any time we may require you to pay the whole or part of any overdraft and fees which you owe on your account"

Any advice or help would be greatly appreciated

Hi material girl and thank you for your post.

A default notice is a standard part of the debt collection process which is usually sent after around three to six missed or reduced payments. They cannot proceed along the debt collection process without sending this letter so it is a legal requirement.

You don’t need to do anything - they are just giving you the opportunity to pay the full amount in order to stop any further action. It could just be that they intend to sell the debt on to a collection agency. If you’d like to read more about the debt collection process, you can visit our InfoCentre here.

Hope this helps to put your mind at ease.

Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

studantnurse wrote: »

HI NEW TO THIS SO NOT SURE IF POSTING IN TIGHT PLACE.

I have been in an IVA for 3 and a half years now so even though I have only 1 and a half left I have some issues. i recently joined experian and rand them up to query some things as on my credit report it shows that since i started my IVA i defaulted on my credit card payments every month. Also where it discloses my IVA information it says settlement date July 2010 but I am still paying £200 a month.
Experian advised me to call them and debate why I am still paying, and now i'm confused as it has got me thinking about ways I could get out of it.

I guess my questions are: Should my credit card accounts show as defaulting every month?
Why may it say my IVA is settled?
Is there any way I can arrange to settle my credit card debts outside of the IVA and be done with it?

Hi Studentnurse and thanks for your post.

You certainly have posted in the right place, although I've already replied to your message that you sent us privately.

If you need anything else, just let us know.

Kind regards,
Pavan

material_girl_3

CCCS_Pavan wrote: »

Hi material girl and thank you for your post.

A default notice is a standard part of the debt collection process which is usually sent after around three to six missed or reduced payments. They cannot proceed along the debt collection process without sending this letter so it is a legal requirement.

You don’t need to do anything - they are just giving you the opportunity to pay the full amount in order to stop any further action. It could just be that they intend to sell the debt on to a collection agency. If you’d like to read more about the debt collection process, you can visit our InfoCentre here.



Hope this helps to put your mind at ease.

Kind regards,
Pavan

Thank you so much Paven. Letter like this panic me and all my logic goes out of the window
I'll have a read of the link. Thank you again

sidesix

Hi there,

I need some help because I'm not sure what my next step should be.

Around 2 months ago my Mother got a letter addressed to me at her home from a debt collection agency stating that I had a previous debt with Barclaycard. I didn't recognise the debt and wrote a letter asking for details about the debt.

I was forwarded the statements which go from 2004 to the begining of 2005. This is the first time that I've ever heard from this agency regarding this debt.

I still don't recognise the debt and I wrote to the agent to ask for further information. I also wrote with my address so they contact me at my home rather than my parents.

I pointed out that I've checked my credit report and there is no record of this particular debt with Barclaycard on my account.

They didn't respond, and forwarded letters to my mother stating they will be putting a record on my credit file and soon will be taking court action.

I responded again with a copy of the previous letter which hadn't been replied to.

Today I recieved a letter which doesn't answer any of the questions which I've asked, it just states that my failure to respond to all previous attempts resulted in requiring payment for the debt IMMEDIATELY.

It is just a bog standard electronic letter?

Please help, I'm not sure what to do next? They're not responding to my queries and I still don't recognise the debt. I've noticed different letter templates regarding the 6-year statute barred, but I dont know if that relates to when the credit account opened (2004) or when the last statement occoured (2005)... in any case I can't seem to find any letter templates or advice regarding debts which I don't know about.

They're continuing to harrass me and not reply to any of my questions? What can I write to them about? Are there any laws or quotes I can use to stop them writing these sort of intimidating letters?



Thank you