Considering Bankruptcy as advised by cccs HELP!

CLAPTON

how many people is this for?

can you list all the debts with APRs and minimum monthly payments

sandralovescats

We have a Bankruptcy thread here with a lot of knowledgeable people

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=273844

Join us there!

livinginhope

Hi again,thanks for the SOA,just had a little look and noticed you haven't posted details of your debts?
Your income of £1638 is actually quite good and your rent is VERY low,therefore the potential for paying the debts is quite high.
As you say your coal/wood costs are eating at the budget,if that is what you are paying,would a calor gas heater or fan heater not work out cheaper?I don't know,but thought I would mention it,we used a calor gas heater for 2 years as our only form of heating and cost vey little to use.
Regarding the sky,I know you are on a contract,but I would still give them a call and tell them you are in financial difficulty and could they either disconnect it or reduce it a lot.
Your food costs are very high,do you cook everything from scratch? it's amazing how much meal planning and cooking everything reduces the budget.
The other thing that jumps out is the pension,I know it is important for the future,but you need to live now,could this be put on hold for a while?
These are just a few of my thoughts,but as I said earlier,I don't think you need to go bankrupt.
LIH

rog2

Hi hdaw - You have been given some good advice above. Normally CCCS would NOT reccomend Bankruptcy unless there were no other solutions. However, after reading your thread, and SOA, perhaps you need a second opinion. Try talking to PAYPLAN, or CAB, and see if they concur with CCCS.
I am bankrupt and, whilst I would never reccomend bankruptcy as the ONLY option for getting rid of your debts, I can assure you that it really isn't so bad - if you have few, or no, expensive assetts (house, expensive car etc.) then the effects of bankruptcy will be more than compensated by the lifting of the 'burden of debt'.
Have a good read through the Bankruptcy Club and Supporters' Club thread, where many of your questions will be answered.
But, above all, do not opt for bankruptcy BEFORE you have explored all of the other options available.
Good luck
Rog2

dancingfairy

Hi and welcome :hello: Please don't panic.

Just a few suggestions about your SOA so far (you need to include the debts to each creditor and the amount and APR's)
Satelite- can you ask them to reduce this?
Food/cleaning etc- this seems quite high- how many are you feeding for this? Go over to the Money Saving Old Style Board and they can help you reduce this as much as possible.
Medicine/prescriptions- are you eligible for free prescriptions? if not can you get a prepayment certificate - you pay a lot less like this. - you can buy 3 month ones or year ones which work out about £9 a month I think.
School dinners- is this necessary - can they take packed lunch?
Hairdressing- have you tried a mobile hairdressers- they seem to be cheaper?Loan to faimly - how long has this got to go - as when you have paid it back you can use this to throw at your debts?

I know that's a lot of suggestions but they are a couple of things you can consider. I'm sure you can make some of the cut backs and throw more at the debts. I'm sure also that more people will be along to give their suggestions as well.

All the best.

Mike_St_Helens

Hiya there,

The advice youve been given above is invaluable. Bankruptcy isnt as frightening as its made out. Here are some other great sites to answer your questions.


http://www.piggybankrupt.co.uk/
http://www.debtquestions.co.uk/debt_forum/

Mike

lynzpower

Actually it seems as though CCCS are suggesting bankrupcy to a growing amount of people at the moment. I have seen a few SOAs where there was plenty of room for manoevre but cccs recommend bankrupcy.

Personally I think there are loads of cutbacks to be made here, but until we know who lives there and what the debts are theres little we can suggest.

rog2

lynzpower wrote:

Actually it seems as though CCCS are suggesting bankrupcy to a growing amount of people at the moment.

Looking at today's News, with Christmas predictions of up to 30,000 personal bankruptcy cases over the next couple of months, then we'll probably be seeing more reccomendations every day.

sanfrancisco

lynzpower wrote:

Personally I think there are loads of cutbacks to be made here, but until we know who lives there and what the debts are theres little we can suggest.

I agree. These are all the things I would change or cut out. Indeed I did, for 3 years.

Outgoings-FIXED
Rent £290
Water £20
Council Tax £100
Electric £50
Vehicle spares / servicing £10
Road Tax £16
Motor insurance £25
Vehicle breakdown cover £6
Sundries / emergencies £10
Medicine / prescriptions £13
School Meals £8
Special Needs Playschool fees £20
Loan from family £120

COULD BE REDUCED:
Wood & Coal £100 - wear jumper, economize more
Contents Ins £14 - get through quidco and get over £125, therefore virtually free next year.
Telephone, mobile, internet £35 - you could get rid of TV altogether, and go to PAYG mobile (I spent about £10 a year - just for emergencies). Ditto for internet (although I consider this essential)
Fuel & parking £150 - cycle more, park further away in free parking and walk
Public Transport £22 - walk more, cycle more
Food / Toiletries / Cleaning £375 - OMG!!! Having said that, I don't know how many this is for. Some people on this board could feed 5000 with that figure.
Pet Food / Insurance £20 - reduce, feed pet value food

CUT OUT
Satelite £30
Life Insurance £30
Pension £55
Hairdressing £13
Clothing / footwear £20
TV Licence £12
School trips / activities £15

TOTAL OUTGOINGS £1,579

Please note, this is just MY opinion and I'm sure others totally disagree, as to what is essential and what is not. I just wanted to highlight what COULD be cut out IF required.

CUT OUT savings £175
REDUCED SAVINGS (very approx) £170
PLUS OLD £59 = TOTAL £404

You could also get part time jobs, sell stuff on ebay. Potentially you could be out of debt in 4 years, if not sooner. (I know, I know this is all approximate and guesswork!)

Broken_hearted

I don't think you need to go bankrupt at all. We have a lot less coming in and are still managing to pay our debts down despite CCCS advising us to go bankrupt. By the end of 2008 we will be debt free.