friend with money worries

1sue23

First of all excuse my spelling and grammer I have problems in this area Today I had a phone call from a friend I have not known her very long she is in her 60s and has had breast cancer and is not in good health suffers from depression and other ailments caused by stress ,her husband is also in poor health having lost his job has a heart complaint etc ,they only have pension to live on,while on phone asked her how she was and she started to cry and started telling me the bailiffs were going to visit her house because she owed 200.00 turns out her son died in car accident 7 years ago it was his fault but no one else was injured car he was in purchased on finance for 6.500 friend stood as security if he was unable to pay after death of son was taken to court ordered to pay 120 a month which she has done 3 weeks after sons death she found out she had breast cancer with funeral and everything else going on missed 3 payments but assumed she had caught up with these .when she had made final payment assumed that was the end of it until started getting letters from bailifs acting for finance company telling her they would be coming to house to take goods to value of money owed plus costs she felt unable to tell husband worried he would collapse again or worse,her son was only 20years old then the breast cancer and other problems I canot believe how cruel the finance company are being endless phone calls threats of action goods they would seize she has not slept she is crying and has considered suicide as she is so desperate bailifs are coming on Friday can anyone offer any advice as to what she can do as I am very worried about her.

angelavdavis

This is completely out of my field, but in lieu of someone else coming online with a better suggestion, here goes:

I suggest you visit your friend and encourage her to contact her GP tomorrow and ask the GP to write a letter to the Debt collection agency informing them of her/her partners' current health situation. Have this letter ready for when the debt collection agency call.

I would also suggest that you stay with your friend while she phones the agency to detail her current health situation. They surely won't push if it is only £200.00 owed.

Anyone out there can help on this one please!?! THANKS

plumduff-2

Your friend needs to seek specialist advice from a face to face adviser - CAB - could you go with her for moral support...

This is a tough one... to answer on a site like this without seeing the paperwork.. However, the finance comany cannot just send a bailiff round willy nilly... the debt would have had to have gone through the county courts first and then enforced through the county courts.. so maybe (and I cant say for definate) then the finance company may be threatening her with a visit from one of their monkeys sat in the corner chewing their nails..

Unless this was some sort of HP agreement, in which case they may be threatening repossession of the goods. Hwever, again, if only 3 payments are outstanding then they would need a court order to repossess anything..

So tell her to find as much paperwork as she can relating to this and get down to CAB ASAP...

1sue23

when her son died in accident the payment for debt went to county court as she stood as guarantor for the car was told liable for debt ,last 7 years has paid what was requested ,the lost 3 months occured because of time it took to go to court and because she was hospitalised with breast cancer.She never missed a payment and was happy to say the least when final payment went out.She sent letter to finance company to confirm debt was settled heard no more so assumed things were fine.Letter from debt collection company came out of the blue saying she owed £700.00 managed to raise £500 cashed in insurence policy her only one and the last of her savings which left £200 had no other money contacted debt collection people and beggeg for more time but told as the 7 years were up in 4 weeks time she had to pay the money up.Have seen letters very nasty and threatening.Coming on Friday was told if she does not allow them in they will contact police who will force entry she has no money and cannot raise the money untill March time when she will have left over rates money,but they will not wait .