NEWBIE Just acknowledging debts and in need of support and advice ;-)

elsiepac

Hi jaldoc

I didn't want to read and run.

I think the reason you're not getting many replies is because it's difficult to advise based on "what might happen".

I would suggest the best thing is to post an SOA - yes, we know you're broke and can't pay anything right now, but it will encourage replies. Also, you can list your debts on it which will present them in a clearer manner!

I suspect the advise you'll get will be along the lines of pay token payments of £1 a month to the creditors/DCAs actively chasing, and ignore the others for the time being but keep hold of the paperwork.

As you will get told, you can't give them what you don't have. But paying token payments to the chasey ones will keep them off your back a little bit, especially if you go through one of the free debt companies/charities, e.g. CCCS, Payplan. CAP or CAB.

Good luck and hope to see that SOA up soon!

LC

jaldoc

Hi Elsiepac

Thanks for your reply

I think people are misunderstanding what I'm trying to say/ask in my post so I'm going to reword and post again.....me putting up a SOA isn't going to help answer my questions so the fact you're the second person asking for it means I haven't been clear enough as to what info I'm looking for in my first post! I really must learn to be more concise! Fingers crossed the next one works lol

Thanks

XXSCOTSLASSXX

jaldoc wrote: »

Hi Elsiepac

Thanks for your reply

I think people are misunderstanding what I'm trying to say/ask in my post so I'm going to reword and post again.....me putting up a SOA isn't going to help answer my questions so the fact you're the second person asking for it means I haven't been clear enough as to what info I'm looking for in my first post! I really must learn to be more concise! Fingers crossed the next one works lol

Thanks

I think people are assuming as per your signature you are looking for the best way to start dealing with and paying off your debt... hence the request for SOA so they can help and advise where to make cuts to enable you to make some form of payment...

reading through your original post and the mention of goodwill gestures, write offs etc plus the fact you do not feel the need to post a SOA as cannot/are not paying anything leads to the assumption rather than help in paying are your looking for loops holes or a way out of paying your debt... would that be more accurate as to what info you are requesting?

jaldoc

XXSCOTSLASSXX wrote: »

I think people are assuming as per your signature you are looking for the best way to start dealing with and paying off your debt... hence the request for SOA so they can help and advise where to make cuts to enable you to make some form of payment...

reading through your original post and the mention of goodwill gestures, write offs etc plus the fact you do not feel the need to post a SOA as cannot/are not paying anything leads to the assumption rather than help in paying are your looking for loops holes or a way out of paying your debt... would that be more accurate as to what info you are requesting?

I'm currently not in a position to start paying off my debt, however once I have a job sorted (I've had a good career, have a strong CV and am currently in the interview process for 4 different jobs!) then I will start paying back towards the debts. However I really just want to focus on debts I need to pay, and forget about those which may just 'drop off' in a few months time later into 2012.

A lot of my queries are more about Statute Barred, debts dropping off, reclaiming charges etc rather than arranging payment plans just now, as I'm just not in a position to do so (even £1 isn't managable as I'm having to contribute towards my rent using my JSA - 50% of my JSA every week goes towards paying my rent and I don't want to downgrade my accommodation as I'm confident a new job will come up soon, I just have to struggle in the meantime!).

XXSCOTSLASSXX

with regards to your questions re statue barred pls see below... Im no expert however by reading this and the fact DCA have been contacting you regularly re the debt ie there has not been a period of 6 years with no contact whatsoever, id be unsure whether this would apply.... if you had absolutely no contact from them in that time it looks like they can still sue u over the debt however ud be in a far better situation.

Time under the Limitations Act starts to run from:

the date you should have made a payment;
the date you last made a payment; or
the date you or your representative acknowledged in writing that you owe the debt.

You should go to the most recent of these events and count six years. If six years has expired, the debt is statute barred. While this does not mean that the creditor cannot ask you to pay the debt, it does mean that if the creditor seeks to sue you in court for payment, you will have a complete defence



and forget about those which may just 'drop off' in a few months time later into 2012. i dont think even though they may drop off your credit report these debts will just actually disappear?? i may be wrong lol

curlytop12

hi,

think you should ring one of the debt charities (read the stickies) first to get the answers on which debts to prioritise,and which will be statute barred at 6 years.
when you have that information and a new job,pop back here,give us your income and outgoings,and debts you wish to pay off THEN the advice will flow!!

good luck with those things,see you in the not to distant future!

antonia1

Your best option is probably to speak to one of the debt management charities (CCCS, Payplan etc). The fact is, although you are now acknowledging you debts, you aren't actually dealing with them yet. Also, you say you don't want to downgrade your accommodation, not that you can't. It doesn't really sound like you've had your lightbulb moment yet to be honest. Especially as the reason you want to sort things out is so that you can clear your credit score and then get into more debt.

jaldoc

antonia1 wrote: »

Your best option is probably to speak to one of the debt management charities (CCCS, Payplan etc). The fact is, although you are now acknowledging you debts, you aren't actually dealing with them yet. Also, you say you don't want to downgrade your accommodation, not that you can't. It doesn't really sound like you've had your lightbulb moment yet to be honest. Especially as the reason you want to sort things out is so that you can clear your credit score and then get into more debt.

I can confidently say I have had my lightbulb moment in that I need to start managing these debts instead of just burrying my head in the sand and pretending they don't exist. I have taken more action and acknowledgement of them in the past few days than I have ever done. I'm still in the first few days of this process so if 'dealing' with them means having payments being made towards them - then no I am not at that stage. Perhaps I will change my signature.

As for downgrading my accommodation, it's not overly expensive, I just rent a room in a shared flat however in the borough of London I live in the housing benefit award is only enough to cover a single room in some of the roughest and scariest parts of the borough where I would risk walking down the street, never mind finding a cheaper place to live there. However if in say 6 months time I'm still unemployed then I will have to reconsider this, as for now I'm staying where I am. This house has been the only consistent thing I've had in my life for the past few years and I'm not letting it go after just being out of work for a short time.

Like I said I've had a good career, and I'm confident in getting a new job soon, I have held fairly senior positions in some of the biggest companies, and earned good money (although when I was earning I was pretending the debts would go away). I'm with a number of specialist recruitment agencies, and I am, for a number of them, their 'featured candidate' as they know I'm in good chance of getting a job soon.

Only recently I've started to realise that the debt needs to be sorted and as soon as I have a job again I will start paying off some of the debts. So in the meantime I'm looking for advice so I can start planning which debts to pay, so as soon as the first income comes in then I know who should get what. However I think I'd rather just pay those which are big debts, and the smaller ones which defaulted almost six years ago I may be able to let them quietly slip off my credit report. I know this may not be morally right in some people's view - but this is the only way I can start paying off the bigger important debts.

The reason I want to sort things out is so I can get rid of the problems the younger me created, pay off the debts I need to pay, hope the small ones disappear in 2012 when the six years since default anniversary has passed, then I can start building a good credit rating slowly so in the future the more grown up and sensible 30something me might be considered for a mortgage.

Sorry if this isn't the lightbulb moment that others call it on here, and sorry if people disagree with what I'm trying to do... I thought i've done really well the past few days in organising all my debts, and coming up with questions so i can start planning for how to manage them once I have a job sorted.

Thanks.

pauletruth

yes speak to cccs have you thought about bankruptcy/ debt relief orders. it maybe worth clearing them now so that when your on your feet again they won't be pulling you down.

curlytop12

am sending you good wishes for a new job very soon!think you are great for looking at the problem now rather than "oh,i'll look into the debt scenario when i get a job.....when i've a couple of wages earnt " etc!!