DMP Mutual Support Thread - Part 7

londonfraggle

happytimesahead wrote: »

Hi all, just hoping to get some advice.
After to-ing and fro-ing for afew months decided that I want to get into a DMP, (most likely with CCCS). However my only worry is the debt that has pushed me over the edge is payday loans.
Do DMPs generally work with payday loan companys at all? Or should I try to pay these off (giving token payments to other creditiors in the meantime) before starting the DMP.
Thanks for advice!:)

Hi - well done for getting to this point - it won't be easy to begin with but it really will be the best thing you've ever done.

Thought I'd chip in with my experience of payday loans. They were basically what pushed me over the edge. I had quite a few. And yes the CCCS dealt with them. The problem was that they didn't all deal with the CCCS! So the advice I was given was to make sure I changed bank accounts etc so that any cheques or card payments due to go out were coming out of my old bank account. It meant that the payday peeps, even though I had told them I was on a DMP, continued to cash the cheques etc. that they had from me but all it did was increase my (already horrendous) overdraft with my bank (an overdraft that I had included on my DMP). Of course bank wasn't happy but CCCS continued to deal with them and their advice was that it was easier to deal with the bank than with the payday loan people.

I did also have a couple with companies that just had my bank card/account details. What happened with those was that obviously their attempts to take monthly payments didn't go through (as my old bank had frozen my account - and anyway I'd surpassed my O/D limit with the cheques that had gone through!). They had no choice but to accept (grudgingly!) the DMP as that was the only way they were ever going to get paid. Again, they didn't like it and were by far the most evil creditors to deal with at the beginning (calls all the time) but eventually they settled down when they realised they were getting something as opposed to nothing!

You really just have to treat them like any of your other debts and make sure you add them to the plan and ensure your wages/priority bills etc are all in and out of another account that they can't touch. As long as you have opened a new account all that will happen is that your old account O/D will rise (you'll see it on here a lot but sometimes your debt seems to go up at the beginning of a DMP - just think of it as part of the process!), but as long as your previous account is part of your DMP then the CCCS will just deal with the instead.

My advice is, even if your current bank account was fine and you weren't planning on including it in the DMP, if that's the account the payday peeps have the details of you should tell CCCS, include it in your DMP and make sure you have a new account set up.

Hope that helps and if you want any more info feel free to get in touch!

Good luck.

Fraggle x

Growurown

Hello all, haven't had access to the internet for a week so just been catching up on all the posts.

My first DMP payment goes out in July. I am using CCCS and so far have found them to be very helpful. MBNA told me it would take them 2 to 3 months to set it up (they really are devious these creditors!) and then yesterday both hubby and I had letters from MBNA to say that they have accepted our offer and stopped interest! I was gobsmacked to say the least. I had been paying them something in the region of £150 a month which was my minimum payment so nothing was coming off my balance. I wish I had done this earlier. Still waiting to hear from everyone else though and have a loan with Natwest so was a bit concerned to hear that they were still piling on the charges for other DMPers. That's hardly helpful banking now is it?

Plus points - picked the first courgettes from the veggie patch, yum, and inherited four chickens (now down to three - one went walkabout) from a neighbour who has moved and couldn't take them with him. So courgette omelette anyone?

Have a great weekend all.

Twit_Head

sickasachip13 wrote: »

If I managed to borrow £400 .

Feel a shiver of warning here sickasachip
Really hope when you say "borrow" you don't mean entering into another credit agreement do you???
This is a complete no-no on a DMP.
If the dosh is a 'pressie' from kindly Great Aunt Florence then OK. Just watch your back!

'Twitty'

Twit_Head

DevonGirl wrote: »

Re: Barclaycard.. :mad::mad:

Interested to hear everyone's experiences. Just updating on my previous post. I am over 2 years into my DMP with CCCS. Barclaycard have accepted my DMP reduced payment or 'Agreed monthly payment' as they call it on my statements, but have never frozen the interest, which is 6.9%. I called a few days ago to ask if they would freeze the interest. Didn't just speak to first person, asked for manager, but they refused point blank.

I have now had a letter from BC to advise that they have reviewed the original repayment plan agreement and have decided to INCREASE my monthly interest rate to 1%, which they point out is still a reduced rate in comparison with the BC standard rate.

Has anyone else had a similar problem? It feels like they are doing this just to spite me for asking for a freeze!!

(Just to add that due to the interest only 2/3 of my payment goes to paying off my debt).

Sorry DevonGirl but can't help much.
Just to make you really :mad: B/Card been one of my best creditors. Getting peanuts per month but they're OK with this; sendly monthly statements - all tickety-boo.
Could it be you have now reached/nearly reached your contractual payment amount? They've squeezed the interest out of you for 2 years so let's try for a bit more?
Would contact them again (hopefully get someone more amenable) and really stress your commitment to repay, history of same but the added interest is compounding your financial hardship.
You deserve better than their treatment of you!

'Twitty'

DevonGirl

Twit_Head wrote: »

Could it be you have now reached/nearly reached your contractual payment amount? They've squeezed the interest out of you for 2 years so let's try for a bit more?

Thanks for your advice Twitty - much appreciated.

Sorry if I'm being a bit slow tonight, but what do you mean by contractual payment? Do you mean the minimum amount of my original agreement with them?? :question:

If so, that's long since dead and buried. I think it was about £90 / month I was paying before I defaulted and went to DMP. I now pay them approx £50 per month.

I certainly will contact them again - just deciding upon letter or phonecall. I have had a CCCS review and my DMP payment has had to be reduced (due to 2 year pay freeze and increase in practically area (rent, insurance, food, petrol etc) so that's not going to please Barclaycard at all!

Oh well, tomorrow's another day. Gotta keep chipping away! Have a great sunny weekend DFW-ers!! :cool2:

sickasachip13

Twit_Head wrote: »

Feel a shiver of warning here sickasachip
Really hope when you say "borrow" you don't mean entering into another credit agreement do you???
This is a complete no-no on a DMP.
If the dosh is a 'pressie' from kindly Great Aunt Florence then OK. Just watch your back!

'Twitty'

GOOD GRIEF - no, absolutely not a credit agreement :eek:
Ain't going there again matey.

No, 'borrow' as in 'being given' £400 by a kind parent!:T

Twit_Head

DevonGirl wrote: »

Thanks for your advice Twitty - much appreciated.

Sorry if I'm being a bit slow tonight, but what do you mean by contractual payment? Do you mean the minimum amount of my original agreement with them?? :question:

If so, that's long since dead and buried. I think it was about £90 / month I was paying before I defaulted and went to DMP. I now pay them approx £50 per month.

I certainly will contact them again - just deciding upon letter or phonecall. I have had a CCCS review and my DMP payment has had to be reduced (due to 2 year pay freeze and increase in practically area (rent, insurance, food, petrol etc) so that's not going to please Barclaycard at all!

Oh well, tomorrow's another day. Gotta keep chipping away! Have a great sunny weekend DFW-ers!! :cool2:

Well - contractual payment is basically the percent repayment to amount of your debt (as per your original agreement with the creditor) So as the amount you owe drops, you get closer to what you should be paying (if that makes sense )
I think letter is good - gives you time to assemble your thoughts and rally your arguments. You can keep a copy and also send recorded to prove you have communicated about X subject on X date. But phone also valuable- cuts straight to the chase, can discuss in 'real time' with someone. But keep your cool and be friendly, have the facts to hand. Note the time,date and name of person you are speaking to.
I'm certain so far into your DMP your creditors recognise you are bravely doing your best to repay. I'm sure many,many are getting reduced payments now. You can't make an inch stretch to a mile with your income, so chin up girl and go make your voice heard!
Good luck with it

'Twitty'

Twit_Head

sickasachip13 wrote: »

GOOD GRIEF - no, absolutely not a credit agreement :eek:
Ain't going there again matey.

No, 'borrow' as in 'being given' £400 by a kind parent!:T

Phew - I breathe again!
And kindly parents - Bless 'em :A We've all at some stage 'borrowed' from them haven't we?
My Mum died in January of this year-I'm just having a quick snivel now because her warmth and wisdom was priceless.
Thank 'em nicely sickasachip, and go build a better, brighter future for yourself.

'Twitty'

smcshane

Well as promised writing my update now I have made it under
30K, official figure now stands at £29900. In total I have paid 16K of my debt (interest still being charged on some accounts) and can't quite believe it, thinking back to May 2009 when I started my DMP I never thought I would get to this point:j Well if it wasn't for the DMP I think I would still be going around in circles and getting nowhere. It has really made me think on what is important and how we can still enjoy life without some of the materialistic things which always seemed so important.

For anyone starting on or thinking of a DMP it really gives you the opportunity to take control of your debts and stop them ruling your life. It's not an easy journey and even now I still have to keep writing the letters just as a reminder to my creditors that I am still in "poop", especially as I am now paying min payment or above on some or trying to negotiate some F&F from my squirreled away funds.

Keep going all the journey has its ups and downs but I'm now a 1/3 down and can see an end to a once never ending road.

Sx:T

ukjs1976

Hi... just thought i'd post an update on my dmp. It's been in place since Oct 2010 and I've been paying the agreed monthly payment to my creditors via the cccs ever since. Two of my creditors have taken action almost at the same time???? Banco Abbey, sorry, Santander who i owe just over a grand on an overdraft to) have issued a default notice and egg credit card who i owe a much bigger amount to (about ten grand) have phoned me and said they are going to issue a default notice (I advised the poor sod whose job it is to phone people and tell them this news that I do not recognise telephone calls received at the order of his employer as a reliable form of communication and to put this information in writing... no letter recieved yet).

I informed the cccs of the above info and was told this is entirely normal when on a dmp.

I wondered if anyone knows the ins and outs of what the point of a default notice is and what it actually means in reality? Big thanks in advance.

P.S. I still get junk mail offering credit cards in the post.. who knows what that's all about?!?!