Staring into the abyss

Dr_No_Vocal_Cords

Hello everyone

Apologies for elbowing my way in here as a newbie and immediately asking for advice - only I don't know where else to turn. I'm in deep sh*t, have no idea about where to turn and am hoping someone can point me in the right direction.

Or perhaps someone has a similar experience to call on.

I owe around £8000 immediately, have been out of work for about 3 months, and have no feasible means of raising the funds to get the creditors off my back. I have a young boy to feed, and he's just started a great school which I fear he will have to leave.

I am/was a freelancer and lost my contracts in the summer. I'd already suffered a few blows and for a year or so was earning much less than I needed to be, meaning I was unable to put money aside for my taxes and of course when that became due I had no way of paying it.

Yesterday was rent payment day and for the third successive month I didn't/couldn't pay it. I have a private landlord and it's only a matter of time before she calls it in and/or kicks us out.

Here's a rough breakdown of what I owe and to whom:

• Unpaid rent: £1800
  
• Tax (HM Revenue & Customs): £4000 (This has been referred to bailiffs and court action is imminent)
  
• Outstanding nursery fees: £1500 (court action is imminent)
  
• School fees: £400 (due any time)
  
• Council tax: £200 (court action threatened)

Of course I have other regular bills to be paid (BT, internet, gas/electric, Sky etc) and soon enough I'm not going to be able to pay any of those either.

Essentially I feel I need £10k pretty much immediately. My credit rating is dismal due to mistakes in my young adult life which have never been rectified.

I'm pretty good at compartmentalising all this stuff and until now have coped well. However, I'm down to my last £100 and when that is gone I am well truly in the sh*t. It's as if the floodgates in my mind have opened and all of a sudden I have crumbled under the weight of all this.

My wife is on a very low salary, and to cap things off she has been seriously ill for the last 3 months. She is probably well aware of the pickle we're in but is too ill to discuss it, so I'm carrying this load on my own.

I have no idea where to turn. Perhaps bankruptcy is an option but I truly have no idea how any of this works.

Once again, apologies for waltzing in and dumping this long and dull post on you all. You've probably seen similar countless times. Thanks for reading, and I look forward to your advice.

Cheers

sunshineangel

first thing that comes to mind is have you applied for housing benefit and council tax benefit? as you say you wife has a low paid salary you may be able to get help but you need to be quick as i think they can only backdate it for 4 weeks so wont cover all if your entitled but may help with some arrears and may help keep your home x
Your main prioity is rent, food and council tax and norm bills the ones taking you to court will have to do that for now and courts will make yo do a soa and then arrange payment plans accordingly. also you could contact cccs or paypaln and fill in their online form for free advice and help with a plan that is right for you. x

sunshineangel

also if you post a statement of affairs with interest rates etc we may be able to see where cuts can be made to start clearing debts. Also look around for things to ebay or sell on facebook groups, do surveys, mystery shopping and anything else you can to up your income where poss. x

Dr_No_Vocal_Cords

Thank you for your reply.

I should have mentioned - I applied for jobseekers allowance but I was entitled to absolutely nothing, due to the type of 'stamps' I'd been paying as a self-employed person.

I did a "am I eligible for housing benefit" thing online and the answer was no. I suppose I should call and find out in person but I'm expecting another 'no'.

downsizer3

If you are self employed and just not earning much/nothing - tax credits may also apply. Are you not elligable for income support? Go in and see them at the job centre- don't rely on internet.
Unfortunately the bills you owe are all 'baddies' - but if you don't have the money - the debts can't be paid. Your rent is an issue and I think you need to get to Citizens Advice quickly. There may be some emergency help available to you.
Why are you paying school fees? Is there not a state school nearby?

sunshineangel

a lot of the time the online calculators reguarding housing benefit and council tax are just rough gauges. Wont hurt to fill in forms for them and submit them the worst you will get is a no and have wasted 5 mins filling in forms.

can you move in with family? or somewhere cheaper to rent? do your family get working tax credits too?

Dr_No_Vocal_Cords

downsizer3 wrote: »

If you are self employed and just not earning much/nothing - tax credits may also apply. Are you not elligable for income support? Go in and see them at the job centre- don't rely on internet.
Unfortunately the bills you owe are all 'baddies' - but if you don't have the money - the debts can't be paid. Your rent is an issue and I think you need to get to Citizens Advice quickly. There may be some emergency help available to you.
Why are you paying school fees? Is there not a state school nearby?

Re income support - nope. I was signing on but receiving no benefit whatsoever, so I stopped last week. More hassle than it was worth for £0.

Re school fees - he's in the nursery part of the school (he's not 4 until January). This used to be free but as of this year the Tories have introduced nominal fees. It also includes his dinner money. It will be free as of next year.

Dr_No_Vocal_Cords

sunshineangel wrote: »

a lot of the time the online calculators reguarding housing benefit and council tax are just rough gauges. Wont hurt to fill in forms for them and submit them the worst you will get is a no and have wasted 5 mins filling in forms.

can you move in with family? or somewhere cheaper to rent? do your family get working tax credits too?

Both mine and my wife's parents live in Spain, we have no options and desperately don't want to leave where we are now, having lived here for 10 years and just started our son in a great nearby school.

We don't get any help from the state which seems ridiculous given the state of our finances and also the fact we've never claimed anything in the past.

SusieT

If you have no income and your wife has been working could she claim benefits instead of you? she should be entitled to more because she will have been on an employed stamp and the DWP computer likes that more. Stupid that the self employed are not able to claim anything though

wannabee_in_credit

I think that you urgently need to get some advice. I would contact one of the debt charities rather than citizens advice as you're more likely to get answers quickly. I have a dmp with CCCS and highly recommend them.
I'm not sure why you wouldn't qualify for help from the state - genuinely I don't know. Is it something to do with your contributions or other income.
But it seems to me as though you urgently need some advice. You also need to bin the non essentials like Sky, and school fees. How do you stand job wise - are you looking for work?
I really do wish you good luck.

jet9cat

Hi and welcome

Just a quick hit and run answer here as I'm at work, but you should be getting at least th basic child tax credit and should talk to them to see if you qualify for working tax credit as well. Also have you spoken to HMRC about the debt or just not paid it? They can sometimes be quite helpful about spreading payments due but only if you discuss it with them, otherwise they will automatically go down the taking you to court route.