Young and Hopeless!!

Beautiful-Moose

On my Barclaycard I pay £120 off a month and that has 0% on the balance transfer until Feb 2013. However I have purchased on this so that will get charged at the normal 18.9% apr. My natwest card has no 0% on it. However Barclaycard did offer me 0% for 12 months on a balance transfer the other day so I was thinking I may transfer the Natwest amount to the Barclaycard then cancel the Natwest card and just have the one card and up how much I pay off it to £220 a month instead until the 12 month period is up then see what offers are about and transfer the whole amount over then? I just don't see a credit card allowing me to transfer both amounts over to the one card.

Or should I just transfer the Barclaycard sum over to a 0% card as the apr is higher than Natwest.

Beautiful-Moose

Well having felt proud of myself for dealing with my debts and having a cheap weekend indoors, the 1st in a long time, it was all for the wrong reasons. I found out on Friday night my mum has a rare form of cancer and will need a massive op in the next few weeks which will also mean she is off work for 3-6 months. She also has to have this op in Basingstoke as that is the nearest hospital that has specialist who deal with this form of cancer.

I duno what to do. My mum had a massive op last year for cancer and I think this was one of the triggers for my massive debt as I kept buying stuff "to cheer me up" and having massive drinking sessions and nights out to take my mind of things. I know I should be thinking about her and her needs right now but I keep thinking I don't want to go down the same route I did last time. Also I now need to factor in travel costs into my next monthly budget as I live in SE London so will need to drive or get a train to Basingstoke on a next to daily basis.

Sorry if this is a really boring post. Just as I was starting to feel happy and optimistic I am now feeling ever more hopeless

EJG1982

Right woman you ARE NOT HOPELESS!!! :eek:

The fact that you are confronting all this and preparing yourself to get it sorted is far far far from hopeless. You're seeking advice and positively looking to the future, even when an obstacle comes up you've already thought about how best to cope with, nothing hopeless about that is there :T huh? huh? no i thought not:rotfl:

sorry to hear about your mum, i myself went through ops and 6mths of chemo at 21 for ovarian cancer and my fella around the same time was going through the same with his mum. i know only too well from various sides about keeping positive, the affects if has on relatives and the spending to keep myself happy!! look at my sig, they dont get to those figures on there own :rotfl:

dont for a second think its selfish to look after yourself aswell as your mum. i know you dont have the best history re money with them but try as best you can to keep your future at the forefront of your mind when it comes to getting to see her, picking up the slack on their finances if comes to it and materialistic spending to make yourself feel better in the short term.

obviously without knowing the ins & outs of her illness (and i dont expect you to share unless you want), will she be in a situation that instead of travelling to her every/every other day, could you keep in contact by phone call on some of the days to avoid spending so much in travel and putting more strain on your finances. your still there for her daily and then make the physical visits more worth while. i used to make my fam do this when i was in because of travel.

with your cards i personally would (and using this approach with my own) move as much on to a 0% as poss, if barclays can offer to transfer the whole natwest for 12mth, then go for it. dont worry too much about the purchases as 18.9% is not shocking. once natwest is clear, cut the card but dont cancel and close the account. you will benefit from having this showing as 'available' credit on your credit history. if you cancel it, having 1 maxed out card wont look good as your using 90-100% of your available credit. having the natwest, empty but showing would bring this down to something like 60% (all depends on limit of the card)

clear as much as you can on barclays (without pushing yourself in times of need) over next 12 mths, then towards the end look for another 0% offer. It could be that once you clear natwest in a few months they send transfer offer to you, this happened with us.

just try and avoid applying for any cards for at least 6mths after moving balances about to let eveything settle down on your file.

have you done a experian/equifax check lately?

take one day at a time and dont stress out if you cant pay above the min. payment, its better to meet the min, giving your self a little free cash for travel to your mum/emergencies than spending or getting cash out on the cards :eek:

and remember your page/diary is here to unload whatever you want, the whole reason many are in debt is due to built up stress and worries. getting it off your chest even if has nowt to do with money will help, if it goes unheard for a few days its doesnt matter, just saying/typing your mind out loud lets you review it from another angle xx

keep ya chin up & keep us posted moose :A

Jox

Sorry about your mum xx

I think you'll approach things differently this time now that you've had your lightbulb moment.

Good luck with everything xx

Beautiful-Moose

EJG1982 - Thank you there was some great advice in there. I shall sit down this weekend and sort out the cards. I think rather than trying to apply for a new credit card with a 0% offer I will just do the balance transfer and just up my payments on that card over the next 12 months then start looking for a new card. I will defo cut up the Natwest Credit Card once the balance transfer has gone through.

The hospital have apparently offered us a house near Basingstoke for me, my dad and sister so that when we go to visit we don't have to try and make it home again the same night. That will help big time I think.

Jox - Thanks! I hope you are right. So far so good

EJG1982

thats great news about the house for you guys, defo going to make it easier.

and good plan on the transfer, one balance is always easier to manage and once you see it coming down its a great incentive to keep going.

remember to chip away at that overdraft, while your c/card is on an offer pop a little bit to it each month aswell

best of luck

Beautiful-Moose

I always forget about my overdraft when talking about my debts. I was thinking that once my card loan finishes in July 2013 then I can focus that money into the overdraft. I will be rid of it by this time next year.

Beautiful-Moose

Well today has been good. I am going to try and claim mis-sold PPI. It's worth a go and I think I have a good case! Hopefully if that is successful it will go some way to clearing my car loan then I can focus all my attention on this horrible credit card debts. I've just filled in the forms provided on the MSE site.

Has anyone got any advice on claiming PPI? Also how can I find out if I have been paying for PPI on my credit cards?

tallyhoh

Beautiful-Moose wrote: »

Well today has been good. I am going to try and claim mis-sold PPI. It's worth a go and I think I have a good case! Hopefully if that is successful it will go some way to clearing my car loan then I can focus all my attention on this horrible credit card debts. I've just filled in the forms provided on the MSE site.

Has anyone got any advice on claiming PPI? Also how can I find out if I have been paying for PPI on my credit cards?

it will show on your credit card statement or your loan agreement. My friend & my partner have claimed theirs back. All it took was a phone call & a form to complete, they had it within weeks plus interest. Dont go to those people claiming they will do it for you, its a rip off.

Beautiful-Moose

I just looked at my credit card statment and for the last 4 months at least I have been charged interest rates twice on the same day. Could this be the PPI payments? If not I am now curious as to why I have been charged twice?!

I am defo going to do it myself. There is enough help on here to do it alone.