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Help with advice please
LIZ6_2
Posts: 11 Forumite
Hi
I have been recommended to this forum, I am not used to forums so please bear with me. I have had a look at the forum and dont know whether this should be under cc or WBDF, so i will post on both if thats allowed?
I am in a mess and desperate for any help so if you can give me any advice or let me know if you have experienced similar problems and what the outcome was.
Ok, I will try and keep this brief, I could go on for pages otherwise.
My husband has 3 uk credit cards and has done for years, up until recently these had neen paid in full monthly.
However we moved to Spain a few years ago and notified the cc co's of our new address in Spain.
Unfortunatley our life in Spain has not been too good, we moved at the height of the housing boom, our property has dropped by over 40% in value.
work has been very slow and unemployemnt in spain is a big problem, the spanish understandably seem to try and look after their own by giving them jobs.
my husbands hours have been cut, it was a choice between keeping a job with reduced hours or losing his job.
The debts on his cc in the UK have increased and now due to the lack of work we cannot afford the monthly repayments. My H'band has spoken to the CCCS in the uk and been through income/expenditure, copies of which have gone to the cc co's.
Our outgoings are more than his income and we are being helped out by family on a monthly basis.
we have looked an increasing income by letting out a room, but with 2 boys and a girl it is not viable duue to the layout of the house.
mortgage payments, tax in spain and soc sec payemnts all up to date.
I and my husband are worried sick we are constantly looking for extra work but we do not live in a resort area and work is nigh on impossible to find.
I have done as much research on the internet as I can, sadly because we live in Spain some uk firms cannot offer any help.
Can anyone put our minds at rest, we understand that we have to pay the debts but at present we cannot, hopefully things pick up very soon for us.
The key questions are
Can the cc co's issue a ccj as we dont live in the uk
Am I liable for the debts (someone mentioned that they may freeze my spanish bank, it odes not have much in there but its food money for the rest of the month)
Our liabilities including the spanish mortgage and a second charge by the builder mean our debts exceed our liabilities, so if we became bankrupt I presume the cc co's would not get anything?
As we live in Spain I don't think we can do an IVA, am i right?
Any guidance or help would be greatly appreciated the worry is becoming to great
thank you in anticipation
I have been recommended to this forum, I am not used to forums so please bear with me. I have had a look at the forum and dont know whether this should be under cc or WBDF, so i will post on both if thats allowed?
I am in a mess and desperate for any help so if you can give me any advice or let me know if you have experienced similar problems and what the outcome was.
Ok, I will try and keep this brief, I could go on for pages otherwise.
My husband has 3 uk credit cards and has done for years, up until recently these had neen paid in full monthly.
However we moved to Spain a few years ago and notified the cc co's of our new address in Spain.
Unfortunatley our life in Spain has not been too good, we moved at the height of the housing boom, our property has dropped by over 40% in value.
work has been very slow and unemployemnt in spain is a big problem, the spanish understandably seem to try and look after their own by giving them jobs.
my husbands hours have been cut, it was a choice between keeping a job with reduced hours or losing his job.
The debts on his cc in the UK have increased and now due to the lack of work we cannot afford the monthly repayments. My H'band has spoken to the CCCS in the uk and been through income/expenditure, copies of which have gone to the cc co's.
Our outgoings are more than his income and we are being helped out by family on a monthly basis.
we have looked an increasing income by letting out a room, but with 2 boys and a girl it is not viable duue to the layout of the house.
mortgage payments, tax in spain and soc sec payemnts all up to date.
I and my husband are worried sick we are constantly looking for extra work but we do not live in a resort area and work is nigh on impossible to find.
I have done as much research on the internet as I can, sadly because we live in Spain some uk firms cannot offer any help.
Can anyone put our minds at rest, we understand that we have to pay the debts but at present we cannot, hopefully things pick up very soon for us.
The key questions are
Can the cc co's issue a ccj as we dont live in the uk
Am I liable for the debts (someone mentioned that they may freeze my spanish bank, it odes not have much in there but its food money for the rest of the month)
Our liabilities including the spanish mortgage and a second charge by the builder mean our debts exceed our liabilities, so if we became bankrupt I presume the cc co's would not get anything?
As we live in Spain I don't think we can do an IVA, am i right?
Any guidance or help would be greatly appreciated the worry is becoming to great
thank you in anticipation
0
Comments
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Hi Liz, I'm sorry I cannot offer advice, but hopefully someone will be along soon. It's good that you've spoken to the CCCS, hopefully they will be able to give you some advice. There are loads of friendly people on here. Perhaps you could post your SOA (statement of affairs) one of the stickies in this forum and that will help people see the whole situation.
Good luck, there will be a solution. Don't worry yourselves too much."If you can dream it, you can do it". Walt Disney0 -
Here is the link for the SOA if you want to fill it out. To post on here, format it for MSE. http://www.makesenseofcards.com/soacalc.html"If you can dream it, you can do it". Walt Disney0
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jwil
we are 400 euros a month short of meeting essentials according to the cccs, after cutting everything we can.
Mortgage and second charge are around 30,000 more than all assets, assuming we could actually sell our house. The gap could be alot bigger if the house went to auction
hope this helps0 -
Hi
I may have entered this thread in the wrong location but hopefully a few more people will add their help or advice, if they read this
Many thanks0 -
Liz
The first step is the SOA that jwil linked to.
Make sure you indicate that it is in euros. were CCCS aware you were working in euros?
Ther are different types of SOAs, so comment here may be different to CCCS.
The stark fact is however, that you or OH need to find extra work even if it is only cleaning.
The SOA will give us an idea of the scale of the problem.
Can I ask if your UK credit card companies have an address in Spain for you?The person who has not made a mistake, has made nothing0 -
I have done as much research on the internet as I can, sadly because we live in Spain some uk firms cannot offer any help.
If you mean those firms who say they are there to help you with your debt have a read of this page HERE before you get yourself involved with any of them. The part about them is under the heading "The wrong people to go to..."we are 400 euros a month short of meeting essentials according to the cccs, after cutting everything we can
That is about £330 a month short for the benefit of anyone who's not got a clue."I, on the other hand, am a fully rounded human being with a degree from the university of life, a diploma from the school of hard knocks, and three gold stars from the kindergarten of getting the sh*t kicked out of me." ~ Capt. E. Blackadder0 -
Thank you
we are both looking for work cleaning, anything that will help us.
When I referred to firms in the uk, I was meaning some of the firms that offer debt counciling, but as soon as they know we live in Spain they acnnot help.
I have had a look at the link, very good reading thanks.
As i mentioned earlier I ma knew to this and having given an overview of the position that the CCCS gave me I don't know why I would wnat to put everything on an SOA, am I being over protective0 -
Yeah those were the firms I was worried about, have a read of what Martin Lewis has to say about them eh.
Sod firms- charities are a better idea
"I, on the other hand, am a fully rounded human being with a degree from the university of life, a diploma from the school of hard knocks, and three gold stars from the kindergarten of getting the sh*t kicked out of me." ~ Capt. E. Blackadder0 -
That debt may be a big asset at the moment.jwil
we are 400 euros a month short of meeting essentials according to the cccs, after cutting everything we can.
Mortgage and second charge are around 30,000 more than all assets, assuming we could actually sell our house. The gap could be alot bigger if the house went to auction
hope this helps
You could consider going bankrupt. It is complex, you have some complex research to do on Spanish and UK bankruptcy laws and whether you can go bankrupt in the UK and whether bankruptcies are recognised across borders.
Once you know how it could work out, you may find that your UK creditors would prefer not to let you go bankruptHi, we’ve had to remove your signature. If you’re not sure why please read the forum rules or email the forum team if you’re still unsure - MSE ForumTeam0 -
Hi Liz 6, Have a look at the NID Thd Greats' "Unenforcebility & Templates" thread. If the credit cards were taken out pre April 2007 the debt MAY be unenforcable. I recommend you start there. A number of people have started this process recently and the NID's thread has been invaluable. Good luck0
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