Think it is time to get real and get the ball rolling

RD_78

Hi All,

This is my first post on the board,I have finally woken up to the fact over the last couple of days that my debts are unmanageable and I have to take the first steps towards going bankrupt it seems.

In 2008 I had accumulated about £18500 of unsecured debt, however the 5-550 pounds per month needed to pay them was manageable due to earning a good basic salary with excellent bonuses. The debts were made up of one substantial loan, another approx £2800 and a credit card of approx £1100.
Unfortunately at the end of 2008 I was made redundant, I did get a decent payout, however stupidly frittered it and used it to supplement my living for a while thinking I would soon get another job on similar pay.

I did get a new job in Feb 2009, however the salary was pretty much a 1/3 of my previous salary. I negiotated reduced payments with my 3 creditors of approximately £70 per month if I remember correctly, I have been continually renegotiating reduced terms since and now pay a combined £104 to my creditors, due to a couple of salary increases.

The large loan and credit card company continue to accept my reduced payments however the smaller loan company/bank have rejected my latest offer of approx £19 and said enough is enough. I have appealed but don't expect much joy.

Therefore I have 2 options to pay off the debts which are now approx £16500, either try to set up a DMP through somebody like CCCS which will take 12 years to pay off if they even accept it... or take the plunge and finally have the balls to realise that despite my best efforts and bright ideas. I am going to struggle to find myself another job which will give me the free cash to pay off my debts.

I have a couple of concerns however I have been an idiot and lazy with my income and expenditure forms whilst negotiating reduced terms with my creditors, rather than being honest and declaring all of my small payrises I know how much free cash I can afford and have manipulated them to fit. I am scared this could be used against me, I have told my creditors I earn 2K less than I actually do, however the disposable cash is correct, because I had my head in the sand and never expected it to come to this.

Additionally although I do not necessarily earn a managers wage I have a managers position in the company I work for now and in my current role I do "promote" the company, Am I misintepreting this comment on bankrutpcy information?

I also am a Director of a Ltd Company which I set up 50/50 with a friend to try to generate extra cash, which is barely trading so will have to deal with that situation also.

I have so many questions and have already had a good read of the stickys to try to ascertain what to expect in the coming months.

I plan to speak properly with the CCCS tomorrow having finally had the realisation that this problem is not going away, but also hope others who have been in a similar position to me can provide some advice on this board.

I live in rented accomodation and have no assets asuch, other than a car worth about £650 and the usual furniture tv's etc nothing of any note.

I haven't been able to concentrate on anything since receiving the intial phone call rejecting my reduced payment offer and writing this post seems to relieving some of the burden already although I acknowledge I have a difficult road ahead.

tigerfeet2006

RD_78 wrote: »

Hi All,

This is my first post on the board,I have finally woken up to the fact over the last couple of days that my debts are unmanageable and I have to take the first steps towards going bankrupt it seems. Well done on taking those steps to sort yourself out.

In 2008 I had accumulated about £18500 of unsecured debt, however the 5-550 pounds per month needed to pay them was manageable due to earning a good basic salary with excellent bonuses. The debts were made up of one substantial loan, another approx £2800 and a credit card of approx £1100.
Unfortunately at the end of 2008 I was made redundant, I did get a decent payout, however stupidly frittered it and used it to supplement my living for a while thinking I would soon get another job on similar pay.

I did get a new job in Feb 2009, however the salary was pretty much a 1/3 of my previous salary. I negiotated reduced payments with my 3 creditors of approximately £70 per month if I remember correctly, I have been continually renegotiating reduced terms since and now pay a combined £104 to my creditors, due to a couple of salary increases.

The large loan and credit card company continue to accept my reduced payments however the smaller loan company/bank have rejected my latest offer of approx £18.55 and said enough is enough. I have appealed but don't expect much joy.

Therefore I have 2 options to pay off the debts which are now approx £16500, either try to set up a DMP through somebody like CCCS which will take 12 years to pay off if they even accept it... or take the plunge and finally have the balls to realise that despite my best efforts and bright ideas. I am going to struggle to find myself another job which will give me the free cash to pay off my debts.

I have a couple of concerns however I have been an idiot and lazy with my income and expenditure forms whilst negotiating reduced terms with my creditors, rather than being honest and declaring all of my small payrises I know how much free cash I can afford and have manipulated them to fit. I am scared this could be used against me, I have told my creditors I earn 2K less than I actually do, however the disposable cash is correct, because I had my head in the sand and never expected it to come to this. Don't even worry about it. It is a non issue unless we are talking major amounts.

Additionally although I do not necessarily earn a managers wage I have a managers position in the company I work for now and in my current role I do "promote" the company, Am I misintepreting this comment on bankrutpcy information? Again it is nothing you have to worry about.

I also am a Director of a Ltd Company which I set up 50/50 with a friend to try to generate extra cash, which is barely trading so will have to deal with that situation also. You have obviously realised that you can't be a Director whilst BR, so this will need to be sorted before you go BR,

I have so many questions and have already had a good read of the stickys to try to ascertain what to expect in the coming months. Well done

I plan to speak properly with the CCCS tomorrow having finally had the realisation that this problem is not going away, but also hope others who have been in a similar position to me can provide some advice on this board. And a very well done :T Read, read and read some more, ask questions, read and ask, read (even if you think a thread does not apply to you, it is best to read it as it may come in useful later)

I live in rented accomodation and have no assets asuch, other than a car worth about £650 and the usual furniture tv's etc nothing of any note. As you may be aware the OR may contact your LL to asertain a few things, but this doesn't usually cause a problem if you are a good tennent and pay on time and keep the house nicely. You can always reassure the LL that because you will have no debts to pay you will have no added pressures so the rent is a priority that the OR has allowed for.

Is the car essential for you to get to work?

I haven't been able to concentrate on anything since receiving the intial phone call rejecting my reduced payment offer and writing this post seems to relieving some of the burden already although I acknowledge I have a difficult road ahead.

You know it is going to be tough and it is a road you have to walk but it is a road with a definate end and not an indefinate one that you have at the moment.

RD_78

tigerfeet2006 wrote: »

You know it is going to be tough and it is a road you have to walk but it is a road with a definate end and not an indefinate one that you have at the moment.

Thanks very much for your comments, they are much appreciated.

With regards to the car, it is feasible to get to my place of work using 2 buses, taking approximately 1 Hour 15 minutes each way. Alternatively the car gets me there in approximately 20 minutes, so theoretically could do without it, however obviously would prefer not to.

With regards to my landlord, the tenancy agreement is in my partners name with the local authority.

debtinfo

Hi RD_78, just a tip, the reason you probably got lots of views and only 1 answer is that it helps if you ask short concise questions after all the info you have provided

as regards the managent position, is it a large company, the bit of law you have heard about is about if you are managing or promoting the entire company, ie if you are making overall decisions either on your own or within a team about the direction of the company, if you are middle management or salesman, ie you are just implementing the decisions made above you then it is not a problem.

the above will obviously be the opposite for the company with your friend as you are quite clearly in control of the fate of the company on that count

as regards what you have told creditors, whilst i would never recomend to people to not be honest at all times, i do not think you have broken any law as you are not required by law to give them that info in the first place, as you are probably aware that needs to stop now because the info you will be providing to the court is legally required and must be entirely accurate

alastairq

With regards to the car, it is feasible to get to my place of work using 2 buses, taking approximately 1 Hour 15 minutes each way. Alternatively the car gets me there in approximately 20 minutes, so theoretically could do without it, however obviously would prefer not to.

Hi RD_78

To be granted exemption as an asset in BR, you have realised certain criteria regarding usage must be met.

Just because a journey to work could feasibly be conducted by public transport, doesn't mean to say it is the best option, with regards to costs.

Thus...even though you could use buses, you need to find out how much the fares would amount to [season tickets as well]...and how much additional time this would absorb.....and how that may affect your family life.

Any emphasis on a limited [bus] timetable, for example, all aids your negotiations with the OR regarding your car's exemption.

Also, don't disregard the role your car plays within your family day-to-day life...

assemble your evidence, & present this to the OR....after all, they also need your evidence to justify their decision regarding exemption?