Need some advice/help on debt!

Lyndsey555

I just wrote a big long thing that took me about 20 minutes to write then I was checking it over the screen went off and I lost the lot, aargh I hate when that happens!

Ok so I'll start again. I am relatively new to registering on this board but I have been browsing the last few years.

So I am looking for some info on paying off my debts. I will give you a bit of background info first so you know where I am coming from. I am 24. I have a big problem with spending. If I want something, I MUST have it. I don't stop thinking about it until I do. Because of this I have gone from having no overdraft to being £2k overdrawn in the last 3 weeks. I have been buying Christmas presents (which is fine as I'm all done now) and I bought myself a kindle, an iPad 2, car insurance which was £700, this was obviously unavoidable and was the cheapest I could find, and just general food shopping, clothes etc. I needed my overdraft to pay for car insurance and after that I just lost it and went mad, a bit like when you think sod this diet! Spending gives me a huge buzz, obviously the afterwards isn't so good when I'm in debt but at the time I don't care one bit.

Other debts - I have a car loan with around £4200 left of which I pay £110 a month, as it's with LTSB who I work for its 7.2%, I will never find a better rate and my credit isn't the best at the moment so there's no chance of refinance and I have a balance transfer with MBNA which has until, I think, June 2012 on a 0% rate, I have £1180 owing on this (previous spending on my LTSB card) and I'm paying off £100 a month or more when I can afford it. I am not OTT in debt but I am working part time and having about £700 which is quite difficult as I was on full time money until I had my baby 15 months ago and was getting about £400 more a month.

I have savings with NS&I of £1000 exactly which I have tonight sent off a request for to have transferred into my current account which will pay off half my overdraft. I really didn't want to do this as I've worked hard to save this money but I feel it is the best thing to do at the moment.

The overdraft fees - £2.50 a month overdraft usage fee (it's normally £5 a month for non staff), and overdraft interest, which the letter said is around 0.87%. I've not had any fees/charges yet as I've not had the overdraft long enough but I am dreading them. I've never found it easy working out interest percentages on things so I don't know if this will be crazy money each month or if it will be alright on £2k, any ideas anyone?

Normally I would just pay off the overdraft as much as I could as I'd have no other choice but I am tempted by an offer on my airmiles card with Lloyds who are offering me up to £1400 on a BT of 0% for 6 months from the day I do the transfer, with a 3% fee of course. I would like to do this for the other £1000 I'll owe on my overdraft but the thing is, I don't have any other credit cards apart from MBNA which if course I owe £1180 on so I couldn't transfer it onto that.

I was thinking of putting it onto my other half's Barclaycard which he owes nothing on, which he is happy to do (he's completely trustworthy, we've been together 5 years and is WAY better with money than me!) and then him transferring the £1400 credit balance straight into my current account to do it that way. I know Lloyds will transfer a credit amount into your current account from their card if you ask them to but I don't know about other card providers, do all others do this or is it just Lloyds? And if the overdraft on its own will work out cheaper, what's the point? The BT will be a £42 fee, just for 6 months so I'll still owe say £800 but my Lloyds card is only 12.9% so the rest owing won't be charged an astronomical interest rate thankfully. Any good maths people here who can work out this difference?

One other thing, this month, idiot me paid MBNA on a Sunday which is the day it was due (20th) and I didn't think anything of it as it goes by faster payment from my online banking but it didn't show as credited until Monday and now I've had a £12 late fee and I'm worried my BT promotional rate will now have been stopped. I have sent them a secure message tonight to ask that if this has happened, if they can let me off this one time, if they don't this will be a whole other ball game as this MBNA card has a rate of around 18% and I can't afford to pay more than about £100 a month off.

I was just planning on (before the £2k overdraft problem) paying off my MBNA, then the loan as quickly as possible and save all I can as I'm looking to get back into studying to do nursing and my plan is to go to uni in September 2014 or 2015 after doing an access course part time and I was hoping for a good, at least, £3k saved by then but I've just lost £1000 taking it from my savings for this

So basically I'd like advice from people looking in with an unbiased point of view as to what path to take here. My parents couldn't lend me the £1k as they're on their !!!!!! and my credit is only average at the moment so I've got no other chance of a different BT and I know I can't get another loan with Lloyds at the moment (I've checked ) the only other thing I can get is another £800 on my overdraft which is the last thing I want now!

So to you reading, what would you do if you were in my position? Apart from stop spending of course I really do think I have a problem

And then, any other tips for stopping spending? I mainly use my card on eBay, amazon, amazon kindle, a bit of itunes, diesel and food shopping. I was thinking of cancelling my debit card and just having a savings card and transfer all spending money into that that I can only withdraw at a cashpoint but then I worry what I will do if I want something from amazon/eBay etc. I have asked my other half that if I give him money for something could he buy it for me which he is happy to do but the thought of not having my own independence with my own debit card (we don't have a joint account) worries me as what if I need it in an emergency etc and I hate carrying more than a few quid around with me.

Any advice is welcome, even if you think I don't want to hear it, maybe I need tough love!

Thank you!!

antonic

Congratulations on taking the first step to a debt free future, the hardest part is realising that you have a problem (like me !) and once your past that point I am not saying it gets easier (it doesnt !) BUT at the end you will be debt free !.

First you need to fill this in :

http://www.makesenseofcards.com/soacalc.html

Then we can all make suggestions on maximising your payments and reducing your outgoings.

Good luck !

Lyndsey555

Hi, thanks for your reply, I'm on my iPad now and I can't seem to copy and paste it so I will do it tomorrow instead

laisbojar83

Hi and welcome,

You will receive some great advice here.
Just a thought.. have a look at everything you have bought for Christmas (hopefully you still have receipts for it all) and maybe you could return some items.
Sometimes when I am feeling a bit down I buy stuff I dont really need but when I get home, or next day, I feel terrible about my shopping madness so I return it all :rotfl:or most of it, at least.

Keep up the positive attitude and with the help and support from the members of this forum you will achieve your goals.

Take Care,

L x