Lotte123's DFW diary

lotte123

More progress. Got some statements through from HSBC and am looking at at least £400 in charges on there. OH has also started giving me £30 a month to repay it (can't do it directly as on DMP with CCCS). Got a letter from AA about the PPI 'refund'. Called them and spoke to a very nice friendly woman who explained they couldn't refund it as I hadn't paid it! I said I wasn't looking for a cheque but for them to knock it off the total. So she asked that I write again this time asking them to 'cancel' it. So that will help.

And got a settlement figure for my car that seems really generous (it was a bit of a heap but the drink driver did such a good job of totalling it that he covered up all the damage I had previously done on it!!!). So I'm thinking of buying a cheapy car and using the left over to pay off my JL card. Have some money in my daughter's savings account that I could wipe the BOS with so that could be 2 gone in an instant.

HB lady came round today. Will get 10 days' money! She wasn't too optimistic about the backdating thing - but can at least try it. If you don't ask etc.

And have heard nothing from my landlord. You would think that if someone who owed you rent told you they were moving out you would get in touch to make sure they were going to repay it. But I know a tenant of theirs left last year not having paid 11 months rent!!! I think if they say nothing I'm not going to pay. I have lived in this house for 5.5 years and in that time they have done nothing to maintain the house. There have been holes in the floor where it has rotted for over a year and which they have known about. The gas fire has not worked all winter despite me writing to them in November and asking for it to be fixed. So part of me thinks they don't deserve it. Anyway just a thought - anyone else got a perspective on it?

Seaxwyn

Hi Lotte

I haven't read your whole thread in detail but just a quick reply on the rent thing - my OH and I left a rented house some years back owing lots of rent.

I must have owed about six months and him 12. We had been in a dispute with the landlady about various things, she took us to court but as defended ourselves and raised various issues the case got adjourned and we moved out before it came back to court. Also we had the satisfaction of making the landlady look bad in front of her own solicitors as she had told lots of lies.

It's probably a different scenario from yours but I guess it costs a landlord to go to court and if they are worried you will start talking about the poor maintenance, lack of heating etc.

Good luck - hope you get away with it

lotte123

Thanks Seaxwyn - sorry it has taken me so long to reply - have been in the process of moving. My landlady is now very keen to get in touch with me which makes a change! I still haven't decided exactly what to do about the arrears situation although I am determined not to pay a month's worth of it when I couldn't actually live in the house because there was no bathroom. I disputed it at the time but then backed off as I was so worried about her not renewing the tenancy and ending up homeless. Now I no longer have that worry I am more prepared to fight my corner. I am sure if I bleated to her that I had no money she would probably let me off but that's just not my style. Anyway I will update on the situation once I have decided how to play it. The bottom line is that it is heavenly living in a nice modern house with intact floors, ceilings and walls that is warm and clean and light!!!

Moneywise I have got some HB which is brilliant - about £80 which is £80 more than if Bobby hadn't given me a nudge - so thanks again Bobby :T . And I got an offer letter from first direct of £647 to be wiped from my charges (total requested was £926). As they have been one of the more helpful organisations on this particular journey I am going to accept this offer. HSBC will not get such treatment!!!

Other news is that I finally found a van to buy today with my insurance money (plus a little extra so bang goes the idea of using some of that money towards my debt but at least it will help with building the business up!) and I got a call from the makers of Scrapheap Challenge today to tell me and my team that we got in!!! How funny is that?:D But a little bit scary too! :eek:

Have let the moneysaving side of things slide a bit recently but the letter from fd has spurred me on!:j And literally just had a call from John Lewis as writing this - they have finally agreed to suspend interest:T What a brilliant day :j Am going to update my signature now ...

lotte123

Was just about to post success on charges board when I realised that everybody else was getting all their money back or at least 90% of it. Suddenly offer doesn't look quite so great! Am now considering writing back and rejecting it - hold that signature update ...!

lotte123

Think I have managed to sort out my old landlord. Wrote an offer just saying that I could either pay back a tenner a month to clear debt or was in a position to make f&f settlement of 500 (money from my daughter's savings account). Didn't get into any arguments about what I owed and what I disputed - worked out that after my deductions I was prepared to pay 750. She came back and said that she couldn't accept 500 but would accept 650! Now just have to ask for that in writing and this could be sorted in a week or so. Am so relieved - this was starting to make me sick. I have had so many bad times and wasted so much money in that house and I could just see it stretching on for ever more. Feels like a huge weight off my shoulders. Was also proud of my first ever negotiations.

Am about to take first direct to court so feeling a little scared about that one too. Decided not to take their offer. HSBC haven't got back to me so will be posting their final warning. Keep thinking that I will probably be the first person in history to take them on and lose - in which case I will be charging substantial amounts of money for media interviews! But it is amazing to think that just by reclaiming those charges I could have reduced my debts by 1500. I am keeping my fingers crossed that it works out OK.

lotte123

I am going through my paperwork and updating my stuff on the snowball site and have realised that of the £60 I pay each month to first direct on the £5.4k I owe them, about half is swallowed up in interest. Everyone else has frozen the interest or passed it over to a DCA. I don't know how I managed to agree this one but it's not looking to be quite the deal I thought it was when I agreed to it. Does anyone have any suggestions as to what I can do with it? It's the highest amount I am paying to any one lender and yet it is making the least impact.

Many thanks!

anniestar

Hi Lottie, haven't been arround mouc recently. You are doing so well hun, am proud of you. How is "the boy?" Still as beautiful as ever i guess. Give him a love from me please. A XX

lotte123

Hi Annie - no, not been around much - life keeps getting in the way! Have just got back from filming 3 rounds of Scrapheap Challenge - got knocked out in the semis. Was great fun but wasn't earning any money while doing it so didn't help much with being debt-free!

On top of that am organising move to Weymouth, divorce and 2 bank charge court cases. It's all very very stressful. The boy is blissfully unaware of all of this of course and is a great calming influence. One look into his big brown eyes and my heart beat slows right down!:heartpuls

I've sorted out my ex-landlady and paid her all that money back. Reached an agreement with British Gas and keeping up with the payments on all the others though would like to be whittling them away quicker. Will update my signature and see how that feels. :rolleyes:

lotte123

Kind of shocked to realise that it's been 4 months since I last posted on my thread. Part of reason is that since move to Weymouth in July I have had no internet access at home - home being a caravan. But now in a friend's garden and they have wireless. Am hoping to be moving into a house at the beginning of next month and have also found a job which starts in a couple of weeks and will mean I have a regular income, fixed hours and no hassle with paperwork. Bliss!

I got all my bank charges back just before they froze everything - phew. And since my LBM in January I am pleased to report that I have managed to reduce my debt by £5k. :j Am really proud of that and whilst I don't think I can continue at such a meteoric rate I am intending to clear between £3 - 3.5k each year to be debt-free in about 5 years.

Debts as they stand at moment (amount, interest, monthly repayment amounts) are:
BoS £ 1,352.27 0% £10 a month
John Lewis £ 1,955.69 0% £31 a month
AA loan £ 6,651.00 0% £45 a month - hoping to up to £90
first direct £ 4,174.55 1% above base rate - £60 a month
BG - elec £ 315.28 0% £25 a month
BG - gas £ 160.30 as above
HSBC £ 751.00 0% £40 a month
Council tax, rent arrears and water rates - all cleared.

Am also looking at ways to up my income such as mystery shopping and the like. Have managed to massively reduce my food bills by planning ahead and only buying what's on list.

Will hopefully be updating a bit more regularly now as focus back on!

ANDENA

lotte123 wrote: »

Kind of shocked to realise that it's been 4 months since I last posted on my thread. Part of reason is that since move to Weymouth in July I have had no internet access at home - home being a caravan. But now in a friend's garden and they have wireless. Am hoping to be moving into a house at the beginning of next month and have also found a job which starts in a couple of weeks and will mean I have a regular income, fixed hours and no hassle with paperwork. Bliss!

I got all my bank charges back just before they froze everything - phew. And since my LBM in January I am pleased to report that I have managed to reduce my debt by £5k. :j Am really proud of that and whilst I don't think I can continue at such a meteoric rate I am intending to clear between £3 - 3.5k each year to be debt-free in about 5 years.

Debts as they stand at moment (amount, interest, monthly repayment amounts) are:
BoS £ 1,352.27 0% £10 a month
John Lewis £ 1,955.69 0% £31 a month
AA loan £ 6,651.00 0% £45 a month - hoping to up to £90
first direct £ 4,174.55 1% above base rate - £60 a month
BG - elec £ 315.28 0% £25 a month
BG - gas £ 160.30 as above
HSBC £ 751.00 0% £40 a month
Council tax, rent arrears and water rates - all cleared.

Am also looking at ways to up my income such as mystery shopping and the like. Have managed to massively reduce my food bills by planning ahead and only buying what's on list.

Will hopefully be updating a bit more regularly now as focus back on!

what a small world i live in portland nr weymouth anyway well done to get your self sorted. i have one of hsbc managed loans which is charging me a lot of interest i have bombarded every forum to let them know how we are getting ripped off ,i have been told by cab that i have got to complain to my branch manager first i have a loan in place to pay it off but i want to find out what i should say as at end of day i want to claim back for miss sold loan any suggestions