DMP Mutual Support Thread - Part 7

Twit_Head

hunny123 wrote: »

I am looking to start a dmp at the moment, have spoken with the cccs only via online and they have told me an amount of £233 would be what they would take but at the moment ive not missed any credit card payments can i set this up before i miss any or do i have to miss them first of all ??

Also can i still get things like ccj's issued to me as i dont understand how this will help me....ive not had time to ring them due to working etc i can come on here and ask as im not using the phone then ....

If someone could give me a breakdown of how this all works would be very grateful

Thankyou

xx

Hi and welcome!
No, you don't have to miss a payment before you set up a DMP (probably better sooner, rather than later to set it up!) You can send a 'token' payment (£1 or so) to your creditors whilst you set your DMP in motion.
CCJ's can be issued but on the whole they are probably rarer than hen's teeth.
It's a bit of a rocky road at start-up but what your creditors are looking for is a commitment to repay on a regular basis (even though it is at a reduced rate.)
Read back a few pages on this thread to get a feel for how a DMP works.
I think I'm right in saying you can also e-mail CCCS with your questions, but it's best if you phone and speak to someone directly. Write down your list of questions first and have your income/outgoings to hand.
It's all very scary but it will get better in the future-honest
'Twitty'

Twit_Head

bones65 wrote: »

last saturday bought myself a money jar which counts the pennies as they go in. Started saving all the coppers and 5 and 10ps that normally end up down the sofa and have accumalated £12 in the jar, Just think before these small coins just disappeared. Highly recommend anyone to get one of these jars £2.99 thats all. Great way of saving

Ebay sales today have reached £25 and still 7 hours to go....:j
will package and post these tonight then set about finding more clutter i dont need.

Hi Bones
Glad you're feeling brighter now!
My budget is set on 'misery' level so I don't know what I'd do if it wasn't for E-bay plugging the gaps
And I agree - it's amazing how much money you can accumulate tucking your spare change away.
Did Richard Branson ever have to resort to these measures to keep body and soul together?

'Twitty'

Twit_Head

Growurown wrote: »

Hi All,
Remember that windy day when BO was visiting and Prince Charles's comb over was in disarray? Well that was the day our telegraph pole blew down and have been without the internet or phone ever since, and BT reckon it won't be fixed until the end of this week! One advantage though - no creditors calling, but unable to get on line to sort out the bank accounts. Plus hubbies useless work paid his wage into the old bank account which caused a bit of a problem. I wanted to notify the old bank that the over draft is going to be included on my DMP but have had to put this off in case they decided to keep all our wages.

Anyway these things are sent to try us and I am getting my DMP underway. It won't be pretty but thanks to all the useful advice I have read here I am feeling positive and know what to expect.

So thanks guys, will keep you posted.

Hi to you
In my experience 'Life' can sometimes take a wrong turn and kick you in the teeth - but keep smiling
I know it's all very confusing but just make sure your bank account is not connected to any of your creditors. They can 'off-set' your debt by taking some of the money owed from your current account leaving you nowt' to live on for the month.
The start is always a bit of a rocky road but stick with this thread, to learn and share the experiences of others

'Twitty'

londonfraggle

hunny123 wrote: »

I am looking to start a dmp at the moment, have spoken with the cccs only via online and they have told me an amount of £233 would be what they would take but at the moment ive not missed any credit card payments can i set this up before i miss any or do i have to miss them first of all ??

Also can i still get things like ccj's issued to me as i dont understand how this will help me....ive not had time to ring them due to working etc i can come on here and ask as im not using the phone then ....

If someone could give me a breakdown of how this all works would be very grateful

Thankyou

xx

Hello. First things first. BREATHE!!!
BIG response coming up cos you sound worried! Ok - if you are calm....read on. DMP is a seriously bumpy road. Am not going to pretend it's a "get out". Sometimes I have found it harder than when I was "in debt"! BUT.....

Can't tell you exactly what to do about your payments but - if you have set up the DMP (or even just in the process of) = cancel everything (apart from your priority bills eg. mortgage, utilities, etc.). Set up a new bank account which isn't connected with one of your debts (there are lots of threads on here advising which to go for - I went co-op and can't fault them). And don't worry about CCJs etc. - they may or may not happen (my debts were ginormous but no one seems to have bothered trying to take me to court) - and even if they do - again, this thread can help you. In fact - hope that the bu66ers do default you early on (I'm so annoyed that one of my evil preditors only defaulted me this month - 'cos my payments went up to them - p00 heads!!).

The great thing about a DMP is that finally you're in control. No more calls where you have to scrabble about for things to say, or pay something towards nothing. Someone (as well as this amazing thread where I lurk about and take huge comfort from) is now on your side. Yes, your credit rating is shot, yes you to have to live on a budget (fab top I bought in sale today for £4 reduced from £40!), yes pub nights out are replaced by G&Ts (oops!) in. But it is so doable.

18 months ago I was a size 16, drinking to stop worrying. Now I'm a size 12 (ok ok still nearly 14!), I enjoy my wine as much but savour it. I cook from scratch, I cycle everywhere and am so much happier! Plus have reduced my DMP to now just 16 months to go! yay!

If you want any advice this is the place to be. If you want to PM me please do so. I have been the recipient of so much fantastic advice from here! I have managed to pay a massive chunk of my debt off now, thanks to support from here - just as well as have a wedding to pay for soon!!

Fraggle x

copperboom_2

Hi all.

Rang CCCS re my tax issue this morning (finally - mobile was broken and I have no land line) and they didn't seem to understand the issue. The man I spoke to wasn't very sympathetic and said that since I was on the right tax rate he didn't see the problem and that he didn't see any reason why my income would go down in a few months time. Not really sure what to do next, obviously going to send my payslip off and pay the extra for 6 months or whatever it may be, until my pay settles, but I'm worried that the fluctuation downwards will anger my creditors and no one I spoke to at CCCS really seemed to understand or do much to alleviate my fears. Sigh. At least I'm not getting phonecalls from creditors as they've all given me 28 days grace to get myself sorted with the DMP.

Although - I'm wondering if anyone else is having this experience - I'm sure that CCCS have sold my data (particularly my telephone number) on, as I keep getting texts and phonecalls about claiming back PPI and I never used to get these sorts of things before.

bertie1606

Hi everyone, I am new on here, and we are in the process of starting a DMP. My hubby is really worried that our creditors(we have 15) are going to refuse the reduced payments and refuse to freeze interest. So I was wondering if anybody has had creditors refuse to freeze interest? And what happened? Him worrying is now making me worry and I feel sick just thinking about it. We are using cccs, put through to them from National debtline. Also, will they ask to see payslips? As my hubby works on commission we put an average of the last few months income down on the budget statement, am worried our bank with whom we have an overdraft will turn around and say 'hang on, a couple of months ago you got more than that, or less than that so how are you going to pay'. Sorry I'm rambling...

Twins

bertie1606 wrote: »

Hi everyone, I am new on here, and we are in the process of starting a DMP. My hubby is really worried that our creditors(we have 15) are going to refuse the reduced payments and refuse to freeze interest. So I was wondering if anybody has had creditors refuse to freeze interest? And what happened? Him worrying is now making me worry and I feel sick just thinking about it. We are using cccs, put through to them from National debtline. Also, will they ask to see payslips? As my hubby works on commission we put an average of the last few months income down on the budget statement, am worried our bank with whom we have an overdraft will turn around and say 'hang on, a couple of months ago you got more than that, or less than that so how are you going to pay'. Sorry I'm rambling...

HiBertie,

Welcome to the boards! You have come to the best place for advise and support. I too have just started down the DMP route with CCCS and they have just collected my first payment so I can only advise on on how I've been treated but I know there is a lot of experience on these boards and you'll get lots more help.

So, I have 9 creditors and almost all of them have agreed to accept my lower payment and freeze interest. I am still waiting on hear from a couple of them so I don't know what's happening with them just yet.

But CCCS did ask me for my payslip but they are very understanding and reasonable and they will work out your average take home pay and what you can afford to live on and go from there. They work with you not against you.

Please don't be afraid of talking to CCCS and please don't be afraid of the creditors. I found that talking to the creditors and telling them that you are on a DMP kept them at bay and stopped the phone calls. If you ignore them they keep hounding you, so keep them up to date....they really are not as scary as what you think they might be.

With regards to your bank account, are any of your debts linked to your bank account? Eg, if you have a Barclaycard and bank with Barclays they can take your wages to pay off the other. So that's why CCCS advise to change accounts to one that you have no connections with.

Good luck, keep strong and keep coming back here for lots of support! :)

mikon

REVIEW UPDATE - Creditors Not Happy

I arrived home to find a letter from CCCS. They have wrote to me informing me that as a result of me reducing my budget and payment to CCCS one of my creditors HFC have refused to accept the revised offer they have a query over the budget. CCCS will continue to make payments but are just flagging up that HFC may default me and sell the debt on. I knew things had been too good for too long. I have another debt with them so i can expect another letter. I may write to them explaining in detail why my payment has decreased.

On a good note I changed my mobile phone on Sunday went to Phones 4 U and I got a new phone no credit checks as it was an upgrade. I have to say though my stomach was in knots when they were drawing the contract up but got the phone I wanted and the deal I wanted so that cheered me up slightly.

Hope everyone is fine and good luck to all the newbies on the site.

Mikon

mikon

bertie1606 wrote: »

Hi everyone, I am new on here, and we are in the process of starting a DMP. My hubby is really worried that our creditors(we have 15) are going to refuse the reduced payments and refuse to freeze interest. So I was wondering if anybody has had creditors refuse to freeze interest? And what happened? Him worrying is now making me worry and I feel sick just thinking about it. We are using cccs, put through to them from National debtline. Also, will they ask to see payslips? As my hubby works on commission we put an average of the last few months income down on the budget statement, am worried our bank with whom we have an overdraft will turn around and say 'hang on, a couple of months ago you got more than that, or less than that so how are you going to pay'. Sorry I'm rambling...

Bertie1606

I have been on a DMP now for a year. I have just reviewed my payments and reduced them and 1 of my creditors have refused to accept the new payment. All you do is continue to make the payment and the creditors will eventually relent most do. Have a look through some of my previous posts and I was like your Husband worried about the what ifs and you know what the what ifs have not occurred yet. I know its easier said than done but you are doing the right thing and I am speaking from experience. stick with forum and people will help you through.

Mikon

ianmak

One noobie, and an amended noobie:

Jubilee76: 420
Muddlemess1: 301

Everyone please carry on contributing to this excellent thread!