Struggling with debt? Ask a debt advisor a question

SitAndBeg

Still there James ? While I'm waiting I thought I might as well add an observation or two. That might possibly connect with a reader or two here. One observation is the amount of letters debtors receive when *Bank-to-Debt Agency" change-over occurs or if/after post has somehow been "lost" or not received.. It crossed my mind just how much stress this could cause someone. Just imagine a constant stream each month or three arriving. Why, if you didn't know any better, and you had received the amount of threatening letters I've received, you could even reach the conclusion these debt collection threats and letters were purposefully designed to have exactly that effect. But no, why would a bank or it's backers want to scare vulnerable people ,that's just plain daft.

StepChange_Jen

SitAndBeg wrote: »

Still there James ? While I'm waiting I thought I might as well add an observation or two. That might possibly connect with a reader or two here. One observation is the amount of letters debtors receive when *Bank-to-Debt Agency" change-over occurs or if/after post has somehow been "lost" or not received.. It crossed my mind just how much stress this could cause someone. Just imagine a constant stream each month or three arriving. Why, if you didn't know any better, and you had received the amount of threatening letters I've received, you could even reach the conclusion these debt collection threats and letters were purposefully designed to have exactly that effect. But no, why would a bank or it's backers want to scare vulnerable people ,that's just plain daft.

Hi there,

Creditors are the people you owe money to. So banks would be included as part as this, along with other companies and partner organisations.

If you feel like we have given you incorrect information, you can file a complaint and a member of our team can look into it further for you. You can find out how to make a complaint here:

http://www.stepchange.org/Legal/Complaintsprocess.aspx

We can’t really comment on the methods other companies use however if you’re unhappy with the way a creditor has treated you it might be worth filing a formal complaint with them.

Kind regards,

Jen

gethro

Hi
I have been on a DMP for many years ,I am now paying £182 a month and owe £9596 and a debt free date of 19/6/2020 over half of the debt is to Natwest from an overdraft and credit card,the rest is from other credit cards.
Later this year I will be in the position to take a sum of money from my pension and would love to pay of these debts do you still get settlement figures like other debt management companies and what sort of sum would I need to clear these debts.
Regards Geoff

Former_StepChange_Rachel

gethro wrote: »

Hi
I have been on a DMP for many years ,I am now paying £182 a month and owe £9596 and a debt free date of 19/6/2020 over half of the debt is to Natwest from an overdraft and credit card,the rest is from other credit cards.
Later this year I will be in the position to take a sum of money from my pension and would love to pay of these debts do you still get settlement figures like other debt management companies and what sort of sum would I need to clear these debts.
Regards Geoff

Hi there Geoff, thanks for posting.

If you find yourself in a position to settle on these debts, we do have a settlements team here at StepChange who can help you make full and final settlement offers to your creditors. In order to do this however, we would need to review your budget to determine that this would be the best course of action for you.

If you decide to settle directly with the creditors yourself, it would be wise to get any agreed settlement figure in writing for your records. You can read more about full and final settlements on our website: http://www.stepchange.org/Debtinformationandadvice/Debtsolutions/Settlementoffers.aspx

It wasn’t clear from your post if you’re on a DMP with StepChange or with another organisation. If you’re not with us, it’s worth noting that as we’re a charity, we don’t charge any fees for our DMPs. If you’re currently being charged a fee for your DMP, you’re welcome to get in touch with us and review your budget to see if we can offer you a more beneficial debt solution.

You can put together a personal action plan on your debts by using our online advice tool Debt Remedy: http://www.stepchange.org/debtremedy.aspx

Alternatively, you can call our Helpline on 0800 138 1111. We’re open Mon – Fri 8am to 8pm and Sat 8am to 4pm.

I hope this helps,

Kind regards

Rachel

gethro

Hi Rachel
Sorry i didn't mention it but yes I am on a plan with stepchange,thanks for the answer I will see what happens in July when I can get to my pension and get in touch with the settlement team.
Regards Geoff

StepChange_Rachel wrote: »

Hi there Geoff, thanks for posting.

If you find yourself in a position to settle on these debts, we do have a settlements team here at StepChange who can help you make full and final settlement offers to your creditors. In order to do this however, we would need to review your budget to determine that this would be the best course of action for you.

If you decide to settle directly with the creditors yourself, it would be wise to get any agreed settlement figure in writing for your records. You can read more about full and final settlements on our website: http://www.stepchange.org/Debtinformationandadvice/Debtsolutions/Settlementoffers.aspx

It wasn’t clear from your post if you’re on a DMP with StepChange or with another organisation. If you’re not with us, it’s worth noting that as we’re a charity, we don’t charge any fees for our DMPs. If you’re currently being charged a fee for your DMP, you’re welcome to get in touch with us and review your budget to see if we can offer you a more beneficial debt solution.

You can put together a personal action plan on your debts by using our online advice tool Debt Remedy: http://www.stepchange.org/debtremedy.aspx

Alternatively, you can call our Helpline on 0800 138 1111. We’re open Mon – Fri 8am to 8pm and Sat 8am to 4pm.

I hope this helps,

Kind regards

Rachel

vikwikx

hi, would like your opinions please. my partner has been paying credit card debts for a few years now. he had an account balance last year in june and it was approx £730. he received a letter saying account closed and a cheque returned. mmm puzzled thanx vikwikx:o

StepChange_James

vikwikx wrote: »

hi, would like your opinions please. my partner has been paying credit card debts for a few years now. he had an account balance last year in june and it was approx £730. he received a letter saying account closed and a cheque returned. mmm puzzled thanx vikwikx:o

Hi Vikwikx,

It's rare that I'm asked about credit card companies not wanting to take your money, but that seems to be what's happened here.

It could be that the debt has been cleared but I guess your partner would know if he'd repaid the debt in full. It might be worth adding up the payments he's made since last June to see if they're close to or more than the £730 he owed back then.

Another reason for this could be that the company has just written off the debt and closed down the account. If I'm honest, I don't think this is all that likely but I suppose it could have happened.

The third, and potentially more likely option, is that the company could have passed the debt on to another organisation, like a debt collector. This would usually only happen if the payments were being missed or the company wasn't happy with the amount being paid.

If this is the case then the new company should be in touch to collect payments, though I'd expect this to have happened already.

I'd suggest giving the original company a call and asking them what's going on. They should have a record of what's gone on with the account and be able to tell your partner why the cheque was returned.

Kind regards

James

stuartduncan

hi i have just joined the forum and i was looking for a little advice.
i have a default on my credit file and I'm not sure the best thing to do.
the default is for £629 with lowell and the first default mark on my credit file is from april 2012.
lowell put another default notice (red R) on it every month from then. is this normal?
if i agree to pay lowell monthly, will the whole thing drop off my credit file 6 years from the first default date, or will it be 6 years from the date that i settle the default?
this is the only bad mark thats on my credit file.
i got accepted for a mortgage last year but i am paying way too much in interest because of this default so my plan is to remortgage after this drops off so i can get a far better deal.
so in short, 1. if i settle this default with monthly payments, will it drop off 6 years after the original default, or 6 years after the date it is settled?
2. is it even worth paying at all or should i just wait until the default drops off

thanks for any advice and apologies if this is in the wrong section

StepChange_James

stuartduncan wrote: »

hi i have just joined the forum and i was looking for a little advice.
i have a default on my credit file and I'm not sure the best thing to do.
the default is for £629 with lowell and the first default mark on my credit file is from april 2012.
lowell put another default notice (red R) on it every month from then. is this normal?
if i agree to pay lowell monthly, will the whole thing drop off my credit file 6 years from the first default date, or will it be 6 years from the date that i settle the default?
this is the only bad mark thats on my credit file.
i got accepted for a mortgage last year but i am paying way too much in interest because of this default so my plan is to remortgage after this drops off so i can get a far better deal.
so in short, 1. if i settle this default with monthly payments, will it drop off 6 years after the original default, or 6 years after the date it is settled?
2. is it even worth paying at all or should i just wait until the default drops off

thanks for any advice and apologies if this is in the wrong section

Hi Stuart,

The default itself should drop off your credit file some time shortly after the six year anniversary of it being added (it can take a couple of weeks to update).

The payment history for this debt lasts for six years from the date it was entered too, so it's possible that you'll still have some negative information on your credit file just not the default.

If this debt is still outstanding then it could continue to affect your credit rating. I'd recommend getting advice from us about how best to deal wtih it, you can do this using our Debt Remedy advice tool. Here's the link: http://www.stepchange.org/DebtRemedy.aspx.

Kind regards

James

ScarletMouse

Hi there,

I am not sure if this is the kind of question you can help with but I hope so.

I am 26 years old, when I was 18 to around 21 I wasn't in the best place and made many silly mistakes money wise which I am starting to really worry about; I was pressured due to my situation/people I was associated with, to take out pay day loans and not be able to pay them back, use a credit card to the limit and not make the payments etc. I know it has affected my credit as when I got to a better place in life I wasn't able to qualify for things I applied for etc.

Basically, I have stuck my head in the sand and avoided and hidden and tried not to think about the issue for a long time; letters will be sent to my current address and I had been in the awful habit of just throwing them away. I know it is awful, I do, but I need to do something about it now as it is causing me major stress and anxiety, I am so worried someone will turn up at my house or contact my work. I know I am likely to have CCJs from the people who have, I imagine, given up trying to reclaim the funds, and others are still trying to contact me.

The issue now, I have lived at my current address for 2 years, I finally have my dream job paying currently £18,000 a year but that will rise a lot as I become more experienced/qualify however the career I have, which followed a degree and a post graduate course, requires you to be able to say you have 'financial responsibility,' as a way of proving you are 'of good character'; from what I have seen that means to not be bankrupt or have been bankrupt but it is still a worry.

My question is, how can I find where these debts have been sold on to? I have no idea how much I owe, who to etc. and I need to figure it out and a way to sort it out. Do I need to use one of those debt reconciliation organisations, and if so, who would know about that?

Any advice you could offer would be seriously appreciated.

Many thanks.