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StepChange_James

mandyh42 wrote: »

Hi weve been on our dmp for 4 years with stepchange and have paid over 20k, we still have 30k left and its going to run for 6ish more years if we keep paying at the same rate. We may be coming into 20k .....I wonder how likely it is that we could clear ALL our debts with !!!!!! ? Could stepchange help with this ? Im worried that we may open ourselves up to problems if we show our hand and they refuse. Our biggest debt of 14k is with sainsburys the rest our relatively small but there are lots of them. Thanks for any advice.

Hello Mandy,

I think we will be able to help you with this. If you give us a call on the usual number and ask for a review you can talk over your options with an advisor.

We've got a team that specialises with full and final settlements. If it's likely to be a possible option then your advisor will pass yoru details on to them and they'll be able to talk you through how it works.

It's hard to say whether all your creditors would be willing to accept a full and final offer but I know that this does happen in some cases. They've got to decide if it's better to take a smaller lump sum now or wait for a long time to get it all back through monthly payments - many companies would rather get the money now.

There's an article on our blog with more about this: http://moneyaware.co.uk/2012/09/full-and-final-satisfaction-from-stepchange-debt-charity/.

Kind regards

James

mrjarvis

HI

I have been told by Motor mile Finance I have 2 debts with Speedloan Finance for £300 from dec 2011 and £250 from March 2012 , I originally challenged this by email in January this 2015 stating I remember taking a loan out but I don't remember taking 2 out and find it hard to believe that a company would allow me to take a loan out whilst already having one outstanding. Anyway I would be grateful if you could look into this for me before I offer you a payment option and I would like to see some sort of proof ie signed contracts & my ID used to do so. If I do owe for 2 loans I will then send you a expenditure form and repayment plan .

I received a letter through the post unfortunately I can't remember who from but it stated that one of the above loans wasn't outstanding and was basically dismissed.

Anyway today I have been ringing around companies seeing what I owe and how much, when I spoke to Motormile the girl told me I had two loans and that for payment plans had not been set up with for the loans with Speedloan Finance these are the 2 above and that I need to pay them off she told me Speedloan were no longer trading and they are collecting the debt on their behalf.

She had a record of the email I sent but said they had no record of any letters being sent out and I need to provide this I have thrown it away I did say the letter came quite soon after I emailed them but she was adamant it didn't come from them.

My question is do I need to repay Speedloan if they don't any longer trade?

How can I find out where this letter came from

Also would Speedloan give me 2 loans if I already have one outstanding

Thanks

Phil

jcorbygas

We have been on a DMP with Stepchange for 5 years and should have another 5 years to go! However, due to stupidity/lack of knowledge on my part, we took out a huge interest only mortgage which needs repaying in 9 years time. At the end of this time, at the moment we will have no option but to sell our home and even allowing for a small increase in property values will only have a few thousand in equity in our house.
We need to make some sort of saving to put towards a property/somewhere to live in the future but cannot afford to pay the mortgage and pay the DMP payment each month together + put towards paying off the mortgage.
If we drastically had to reduce our DMP payment so that the money could instead go towards paying off some of the mortgage each month, how would Stepchange/our creditors view that? There is no way we could afford to change to a repayment mortgage for the few years left.
Thank you

k3williams

We have lots of debt due to repeated unemployment, credit card and loan debt and mortgage arrears that we are paying off each month. We are currently both working, but I suffer with depression and anxiety, I work part time on a self employed basis. We have no money left after our outgoings, so are unable to make more than token payments towards our debt.

The situation is making me ill, as I can't see how we will ever pay off our debt. We tried to sell or house, but no one is interested as new houses are being built nearby. Our house is already worth £35000 less than when we bought it ten years ago. We probably have about £25000 equity.

But .. If we sell we wouldn't get another mortgage due to our terrible credit rating and renting seems scary because landlords around here don't allow pets. We would never be able to buy again as we wouldn't be able to save for a deposit and as we have no pension our house was our investment for the future.

I don't know what to do, can anyone advise?

Former_StepChange_Rory

Hi there, thanks for posting.

It sounds like the main issue you're having are around what debts and loans you have with the creditor. If they are being unclear or not explaining things to you then your next option would be to make a formal complaint to the creditor that's now dealing with the debt.

We'd usually suggest putting the complaint into writing and sending it recorded delivery so that you know the creditor has received the complaint. In the complaint, set out what you'd like them to do and then hopefully this will resolve things.

It's also very common for debts to be sold to third-party debt collection companies and often when companies go into administration their debts are sold on too, which is normal practice and is allowed to happen.

If you're unhappy with the response you get from the creditor, you can escalate the complaint to the Financial Ombudsman (http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/) who can act as an intermediary between both you and the creditor.

Once you know what is outstanding, you can then start to take steps to deal with the debt and you should be much clearer about where you stand.

Hope this helps,

Rory

mrjarvis wrote: »

HI

I have been told by Motor mile Finance I have 2 debts with Speedloan Finance for £300 from dec 2011 and £250 from March 2012 , I originally challenged this by email in January this 2015 stating I remember taking a loan out but I don't remember taking 2 out and find it hard to believe that a company would allow me to take a loan out whilst already having one outstanding. Anyway I would be grateful if you could look into this for me before I offer you a payment option and I would like to see some sort of proof ie signed contracts & my ID used to do so. If I do owe for 2 loans I will then send you a expenditure form and repayment plan .

I received a letter through the post unfortunately I can't remember who from but it stated that one of the above loans wasn't outstanding and was basically dismissed.

Anyway today I have been ringing around companies seeing what I owe and how much, when I spoke to Motormile the girl told me I had two loans and that for payment plans had not been set up with for the loans with Speedloan Finance these are the 2 above and that I need to pay them off she told me Speedloan were no longer trading and they are collecting the debt on their behalf.

She had a record of the email I sent but said they had no record of any letters being sent out and I need to provide this I have thrown it away I did say the letter came quite soon after I emailed them but she was adamant it didn't come from them.

My question is do I need to repay Speedloan if they don't any longer trade?

How can I find out where this letter came from

Also would Speedloan give me 2 loans if I already have one outstanding

Thanks

Phil

NoMore

@StepChange_Rory,

Are you aware that there are lot of people reporting on the forum that their expected payment from SC to Barclayard has not yet been credited and in at least one case has caused BC to to cancel the payment agreement and re instate interest :

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=68262577&postcount=4441

This is not good and appears related to the recent change in SC payment methods (changing to payment within days of receiving our money).

This is not an individual issue, as I say it appears to be affecting everybody with SC and BC payments, could you please investigate as a matter of urgency.

Thank you.

Former_StepChange_Rachel

jcorbygas wrote: »

We have been on a DMP with Stepchange for 5 years and should have another 5 years to go! However, due to stupidity/lack of knowledge on my part, we took out a huge interest only mortgage which needs repaying in 9 years time. At the end of this time, at the moment we will have no option but to sell our home and even allowing for a small increase in property values will only have a few thousand in equity in our house.
We need to make some sort of saving to put towards a property/somewhere to live in the future but cannot afford to pay the mortgage and pay the DMP payment each month together + put towards paying off the mortgage.
If we drastically had to reduce our DMP payment so that the money could instead go towards paying off some of the mortgage each month, how would Stepchange/our creditors view that? There is no way we could afford to change to a repayment mortgage for the few years left.
Thank you

Hi there, thank you for posting.

It’s difficult to predict what your best debt solution will be in a couple of years from now as so much can change in that timeframe. You’re more than welcome to talk over your concerns with us however and review your budget if you feel that it’s not currently working for you.

Kind regards

Rachel

StepChange_Jen

k3williams wrote: »

We have lots of debt due to repeated unemployment, credit card and loan debt and mortgage arrears that we are paying off each month. We are currently both working, but I suffer with depression and anxiety, I work part time on a self employed basis. We have no money left after our outgoings, so are unable to make more than token payments towards our debt.

The situation is making me ill, as I can't see how we will ever pay off our debt. We tried to sell or house, but no one is interested as new houses are being built nearby. Our house is already worth £35000 less than when we bought it ten years ago. We probably have about £25000 equity.

But .. If we sell we wouldn't get another mortgage due to our terrible credit rating and renting seems scary because landlords around here don't allow pets. We would never be able to buy again as we wouldn't be able to save for a deposit and as we have no pension our house was our investment for the future.

I don't know what to do, can anyone advise?

Hi there,

Thanks for posting.

I’m sorry to hear you’re having to deal with this at the moment.

From what you’ve said, it sounds like you’d benefit from some free debt advice.

We’d be happy to take a look at your situation and discuss any possible debt solutions with you, as a charity all of our advice and support is free, confidential and impartial.

So that we can give you the best possible advice we need to be fully aware of your current financial situation. To do this we need to put together a budget using your income, household bills, living costs and a list of your debts. Once we have this information we can offer specific advice and debt solutions that are tailored to your situation.

There are two ways you can get help from us:

· You can use our free, online Debt Remedy tool on our website at www.stepchange.org/debt-remedy. This is an anonymous tool that will guide you through the process of completing a budget and then offer you the best advice for your situation. If you get stuck or have any questions, you can call us or web chat with us.

· If you’d prefer to speak to someone you can call our Helpline which is free from landlines and most UK mobiles. Please call us on 0800 138 1111, we’re here Monday to Friday 8am to 8pm and Saturday 8am to 4pm. It would be helpful to have some information about your budget when you speak to us as this will save you some time.

I hope this helps. If you have any further questions please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Jen

tomtom321

Hi,

I recently married, and my wife has approx £12k of debt with various creditors, banks, old credit cards etc. Some of which have been sold on. She is currently managing this through a debt management company. She pays back approx £500 per month. Obviously the management company take their cut...17%ish I think.

I have enough money in my personal savings to cover the amount owed, but have been reluctant to spend my money on debt incurred by her ex.....the source of the problem.

But it may be an option I'm willing to explore. I have always been carefully with money and like to have a nice stash for emergencies.

Is it possible to negotiate with he companies without the management company? And is it possible to get them to reduce the debt for immediate payment? I don't like her paying the management company and want to pay as little as possible.

Hopefully I have explained myself properly....

Any advice on this matter would be greatly appreciated.

T

StepChange_Private_Messages

tomtom321 wrote: »

Hi,

I recently married, and my wife has approx £12k of debt with various creditors, banks, old credit cards etc. Some of which have been sold on. She is currently managing this through a debt management company. She pays back approx £500 per month. Obviously the management company take their cut...17%ish I think.

I have enough money in my personal savings to cover the amount owed, but have been reluctant to spend my money on debt incurred by her ex.....the source of the problem.

But it may be an option I'm willing to explore. I have always been carefully with money and like to have a nice stash for emergencies.

Is it possible to negotiate with he companies without the management company? And is it possible to get them to reduce the debt for immediate payment? I don't like her paying the management company and want to pay as little as possible.

Hopefully I have explained myself properly....

Any advice on this matter would be greatly appreciated.

T

Hi there, thanks for getting in touch.

It certainly sounds like your wife would benefit from some free and confidential debt advice. We offer debt management plans as one of several debt solutions. We charge no fees for this service as we’re a charity.

Your wife is within her rights to contact her creditors directly and ask that they work out a more affordable payment plan. They’re not obliged to reduce the payments however, and may be more willing to cooperate if they see that your wife has explored her options by getting impartial debt advice from someone like us. If it’s an option, we may also be able to discuss full and final settlements with you if this is something you are considering.

It’s understandable that you may feel reluctant to pay money towards your wife’s debts if they’re from a previous relationship. If she was to get in touch with us, we would need to go through her budget in order to give guidance on what her best options might be versus the current arrangement she has at the moment. This is because we base our advice on what income is left over after all priority living expenses – such as rent, council tax, utilities etc – are accounted for.

When someone lives with a partner, they can either put together a joint budget detailing what each person pays into the household in terms of income and what they pay out on expenses, as well as any debts both individuals may have, or the person needing debt advice can go through a single budget only detailing their own income and what their share of each household expense is. If the latter option is more preferable, it might be a good idea for your wife to work out exactly what she contributes to each living expense, then get in touch with us to go through her budget.

There’s two ways your wife can work through a budget with us:

She can contact us for free advice by calling our Helpline. One of our advisors will be more than happy to talk with her about her situation in full.

You can find out how to get in touch with us here: http://www.stepchange.org/Contactus.aspx

Or, if she prefers, she can use our online Debt Remedy tool. Debt Remedy is anonymous and takes around 20 minutes to complete. Once your wife enters information about her budget and debts, it’ll create a personal action plan for her to help tackle the problem.

You can find Debt Remedy here: http://www.stepchange.org/Debtremedy.aspx

If you’ve got any more questions please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Kind regards

Rachel