defaulting on credit card account?

cv65user

I have a friend who has been struggling to pay his credit card 150+ a month for the past 5 years (which they have stopped his credit card so he cannot use it anymore). They tell he is just always paying off the interest and has never managed to actually pay off the balance.

off the top of head , 150 a month * 12 months in a year * 5 years = at least a whopping 9000! lol. I am guessing his balance is going to be not far off from that amount but he didnt tell me. I am going to check if PPI was added onto it.

so he has no job and his benefit money goes all towards paying this credit card off. i am shocked. he asked me for help. i have never been in debt (i hate credit cards). I didnt know what to suggest to him other then to write to them to hold the interest and set up a viable payment plan.

I havent had a credit card in years, I assumed the best thing for him as he has not house and just a 11 year old car asset was to default on his account so that interests stops accumulating. then debt collection company will only chase him for the amount owed/defaulted on?

would this be a good suggestion or am I wrong?

cv65user

or is there somehting like a debt relief order where he gets a DLA to write to all debtos he does not have to pay it off/ or even interest. and if his financial circumstances does not change after 12 months it gets written off>?