First Step Finance - debt now worse :-(

fiona1971

Hi Folks

First post on here so please bear with me. To cut a long story short, i fell for a sales pitch saying that my debts coulds be reduced if proved unenforcable. Debts are : Loan with Lloyds TSB, Credit Card with Lloyds TSB, Overdraft also with Lloyds TSB & Small amount on a Barclaycard.

Having signed up with First Step Finance in July 2010 I'm now in a worse hole than before !!!. During this time i've been paying £150 per month to this company only to find that not one creditor has been offered a reduced payment hence Lloyds TSB have now taken the debts to court & i'm faced with CCJs. First Step Finance have £1350 of my money from which they will take their fees yet left me facing further emotional distress.

I would like to complain about to poor service & advice i feel i've received through a formal channel, but don't know where to start. Also i'd like some money refunded or at least passed to my creditors once they have taken their fee for so called "work" done on my account.

Thankyou in advance

dancingfairy

I would probably write to them as a first step. I would want to know what their fees were that had been paid, how much and had been paid to my creditors and when. I would give them whatever notice I needed to - you need to get shot of them as soon as possible. I think I would try and get shot of them first and then chase them for any money as I think if you wait until you have tried to resolve this entirely with them you could be many more months down the line and in a worse mess so I would ditch them and then try reclaiming my money back from them.
You need to try and set up an alternative payment plan through a debt charity such as CCCS or National Debtline or your local CAB can help you do this.
You need to find out what stage court proceedings are at and get this sorted fairly swiftly - have CCJ's been threatened or have you actually now got CCJ's? if you have CCJ's you need to know what the conditions of the judgement were - whether you have to pay in full now or what. You may still be able to get the judgment overturned or even get the right to pay in installments but you need to know where you are and get the paperwork off First Step Finance as quickly as possible on this one.
Once you have exhausted the complaints procedure of First Step Finance then you can go to the Ombudsman etc but this is not a quick process which is why I feel you need to get the debts sorted with a debt charity and then go after First Step Finance for any money etc. Have you signed any paperwork with first step finance - have they told you what their fees are? have you got a contract which says what notice you must give them?
df

fiona1971

Thankyou for your prompt reply. I have now cancelled any further standing orders to the company & will put in writing the 2 weeks notice as required. As for their fees, they do it in quite a complicated way, x % of total debts payable, X % of debts paid to creditors then another % for something else. I will request in my letter a full breakdown of money i've paid into their "savings pot" & fees due. I know that none of my creditors have had any payment hence LloydsTSB getting fed up have issued a judgment against me.

Absolute nightmare, i would't recommend First Step Finance to my worst enemy !

fermi

fiona1971 wrote: »

Absolute nightmare, i would't recommend First Step Finance to my worst enemy !

Looks like the OFT are pretty miffed with them as well

Debt management company faces OFT closure

nancysmile

Hello Fiona 71
I am in the process of doing all this ...how is it going with you (I am having a nightmare)
If you are still interested I can tell you of my progress so far
Nancy