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  • I've received a letter from DRA (The Debt Recovery Agency - debtrecoveryagency.co.uk)

    The reads that a UAE Bank has instructed The Debt Recovery Agency to collect an outstanding balance. I completely accept the debt is mine and I contacted them to arrange a recovery plan, however they are trying to insist on either full payment of approx £4000 or a substantial repayment amount each month. I've already got a very strict budget pared down as far as it can go, and they are refusing my offers of repayment. They are also saying that the "transfer fee" would be too much, and they have to speak to the bank.

    From this, it would seem that the bank still own the debt and are using DRA simply to contact me. Can anyone please advise whether it's worth contacting stepchange to help with this, or is there anyone that is familiar with how these kinds of things can go when you're not on the kind of budget to simply hand over £100-£200 a month?
  • Hello. I need some advice regarding my DMP. I started it with SC just over a year ago. I had around £8k of unsecured debt - credit cards, overdraft, catalogue, and payday loans. Once the DMP was set up, I'm afraid I kind of buried my head in the sand, assumed because I was making the agreed payments everything would somehow work out. I've checked my online DMP statement the overdraft and catalogue debts are now starting to noticeably decrease, which is heartening, however my 3 credit card debts have actually increased from what they were at the start of the DMP as Barclaycard, Aqua and Capital One are all still charging me late payment fees, over limit fees and interest. Realistically I will never clear my debt with them if they keep charging me these fees - I cant pay on time as my payment dates are determined by when Stepchange pay them, I am constantly over my limit because of these fees and interest so it is a vicious cycle, and I have no idea how to get out of it.


    Should I call the card companies myself? I thought one of the benefits of a DMP was that SC managed it for you, to reduce the stress and anxiety caused by dealing with creditors yourself. I am considering stopping my DMP altogether, and instead paying my overdraft and catalogues directly - the same amount they are being paid via the DMP and simply stopping paying my credit cards until they pass the debt on to a DCA thus meaning no more interest/charges to be added. I feel I wont be any worse off than I am now as I am paying over £100 a month to 3 credit card companies, only for my debt to increase every month for the last year. It's really demoralising, and I am struggling to see any way out. Any advice greatly appreciated! :)
  • StepChange_Rachael
    StepChange_Rachael Posts: 375 Organisation Representative
    Third Anniversary 100 Posts
    Hi

    Welcome to the forum and thanks for posting.

    Creditors do have the right to pass a debt to a collections agency once the contractual payment has been missed as this will cause the original agreement to default. The collection agency would then be responsible for collecting the debt.

    I’m assuming that the debt is from abroad and they’ve instructed this company to collect for the debt in the UK. If this is the case the collections company will have to follow UK rules of collection and it is something StepChange debt charity can help and advise you with.

    If the debt is unsecured then they are only entitled to what is affordable after you’ve paid all your priority expenditures and living costs.

    If the debt is being collected in the UK it’s certainly something we can help you with.

    We are unable to give advice on debt that was taken outside of the UK and not being collected in the UK as debt law changes depending on the country. I’d advise you to seek legal advice if you’re looking to return to the UAE while the debt is still outstanding.

    You can contact StepChange debt charity for free and impartial advice by following this link .

    We’ll tailor our advice and recommendations to you individually by taking into account your financial situation.

    Thanks

    Rachael

    I've received a letter from DRA (The Debt Recovery Agency - debtrecoveryagency.co.uk)

    The reads that a UAE Bank has instructed The Debt Recovery Agency to collect an outstanding balance. I completely accept the debt is mine and I contacted them to arrange a recovery plan, however they are trying to insist on either full payment of approx £4000 or a substantial repayment amount each month. I've already got a very strict budget pared down as far as it can go, and they are refusing my offers of repayment. They are also saying that the "transfer fee" would be too much, and they have to speak to the bank.

    From this, it would seem that the bank still own the debt and are using DRA simply to contact me. Can anyone please advise whether it's worth contacting stepchange to help with this, or is there anyone that is familiar with how these kinds of things can go when you're not on the kind of budget to simply hand over £100-£200 a month?
  • JoJoH_2
    JoJoH_2 Posts: 1 Newbie
    Hello Team

    I took out an IVA a few years ago after a relationship breakdown left me with too many debts that I couldn't afford on a single salary. The. IVA customer advisor explained how it all worked and we joked together about how I'd be debt free within 5 years. He was very jovial about the whole process and I remember him laughing down the phone when he explained that although I'd have to try and remortgage my house when it came to the end of the 5 year period, I'd never get a remortgage (due to having an IVA, bad credit history and insufficient income) and so then the remaining debt would be officially written off and then it would be all over and done with. He made it sound like the perfect solution.
    In reality, my life has been miserable, letters from creditors threatening me, letters from other financial companies telling me my IVA would be better managed by them and letters and phone calls from my actual IVA company on a variety of issues which I have all found very distressing. The IVA company have threatened me with breach of agreement when they misunderstood a telephone conversation with one of their advisors and they thought I'd applied for a credit card, when in fact it was my mother's. They have rang me on 3 occasions to demand my monthly payment as they said my direct debit had not been paid. When they checked their systems, it was an error and my payment had gone through fine. They even sent me a letter demand for payment of £4000 (one week before Christmas) as they said my income had been higher than I'd declared. Again, an error on their part - my earnings had increased but my lodger had moved out so overall my income remained the same. All this was declared on my annual review paperwork but not picked up by their advisors.
    I've got 5 months left to go on my IVA and today I went through the humiliating experience of approaching my bank and building society to apply for a remortgage, only to be refused as expected. But my IVA does not stop as I was originally informed by the happy chappy who went through explaining the process to me at time of application. Apparently they can extend it for a further year, something I was not made aware of at all either at the start of or during my IVA. It's already been extended once due to a drop in income (which is understandable) but I cannot get my head around why a further year needs to be added just because I can't remortgage? Can I do anything about this? My father has even offered to pay off the last few months worth of the payments just to close the IVA and that involved jumping through more hoops and getting his offer in writing and providing ID etc which was nearly a month ago and still no response from the company. I can see why the IVA company would want my IVA to continue as they negotiated quite a substantial admin fee for setting up the arrangement and they would be out of pocket. But their customer service has been appalling and their errors don't justify the fee. I feel the IVA process was not fully explained, this extra year of payments has come as a shock and all I can see is another 12 months of paying out money to them I can still barely afford. I know it's my fault I got into debt and I'm not saying I shouldn't pay what's due but this arrangement has not been the happy solution they sold me. I wrote a complaint to the solvency practitioner ombudsmen 4 weeks ago and I'm still waiting for an official response. Is there anything more I can do? Will this IVA be with me for another 2, 3 or 4 years?

    Many thanks for listening.
    Jo
  • sourcrates
    sourcrates Posts: 31,583 Ambassador
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts I've been Money Tipped! Name Dropper
    JoJoH wrote: »
    Hello Team

    I took out an IVA a few years ago after a relationship breakdown left me with too many debts that I couldn't afford on a single salary. The. IVA customer advisor explained how it all worked and we joked together about how I'd be debt free within 5 years. He was very jovial about the whole process and I remember him laughing down the phone when he explained that although I'd have to try and remortgage my house when it came to the end of the 5 year period, I'd never get a remortgage (due to having an IVA, bad credit history and insufficient income) and so then the remaining debt would be officially written off and then it would be all over and done with. He made it sound like the perfect solution.
    In reality, my life has been miserable, letters from creditors threatening me, letters from other financial companies telling me my IVA would be better managed by them and letters and phone calls from my actual IVA company on a variety of issues which I have all found very distressing. The IVA company have threatened me with breach of agreement when they misunderstood a telephone conversation with one of their advisors and they thought I'd applied for a credit card, when in fact it was my mother's. They have rang me on 3 occasions to demand my monthly payment as they said my direct debit had not been paid. When they checked their systems, it was an error and my payment had gone through fine. They even sent me a letter demand for payment of £4000 (one week before Christmas) as they said my income had been higher than I'd declared. Again, an error on their part - my earnings had increased but my lodger had moved out so overall my income remained the same. All this was declared on my annual review paperwork but not picked up by their advisors.
    I've got 5 months left to go on my IVA and today I went through the humiliating experience of approaching my bank and building society to apply for a remortgage, only to be refused as expected. But my IVA does not stop as I was originally informed by the happy chappy who went through explaining the process to me at time of application. Apparently they can extend it for a further year, something I was not made aware of at all either at the start of or during my IVA. It's already been extended once due to a drop in income (which is understandable) but I cannot get my head around why a further year needs to be added just because I can't remortgage? Can I do anything about this? My father has even offered to pay off the last few months worth of the payments just to close the IVA and that involved jumping through more hoops and getting his offer in writing and providing ID etc which was nearly a month ago and still no response from the company. I can see why the IVA company would want my IVA to continue as they negotiated quite a substantial admin fee for setting up the arrangement and they would be out of pocket. But their customer service has been appalling and their errors don't justify the fee. I feel the IVA process was not fully explained, this extra year of payments has come as a shock and all I can see is another 12 months of paying out money to them I can still barely afford. I know it's my fault I got into debt and I'm not saying I shouldn't pay what's due but this arrangement has not been the happy solution they sold me. I wrote a complaint to the solvency practitioner ombudsmen 4 weeks ago and I'm still waiting for an official response. Is there anything more I can do? Will this IVA be with me for another 2, 3 or 4 years?

    Many thanks for listening.
    Jo

    No, it's standard practice for anyone who can't remortgage to have there IVA extended a further year, you should of been told that.

    Don't give in now as you are so close to completion.

    Apologies to stepchange advisor for jumping on the thread, but I have personal experiance of this.
    I’m a Forum Ambassador and I support the Forum Team on the Debt free wannabe, Credit file and ratings, and Bankruptcy and living with it boards. If you need any help on these boards, do let me know. Please note that Ambassadors are not moderators. Any posts you spot in breach of the Forum Rules should be reported via the report button, or by emailing forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com. All views are my own and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.For free non-judgemental debt advice, contact either Stepchange, National Debtline, or CitizensAdviceBureaux.Link to SOA Calculator- https://www.stoozing.com/soa.php The "provit letter" is here-https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2607247/letter-when-you-know-nothing-about-about-the-debt-aka-prove-it-letter
  • Former_StepChange_Matthew
    Former_StepChange_Matthew Posts: 35 Organisation Representative
    Hello. I need some advice regarding my DMP. I started it with SC just over a year ago. I had around £8k of unsecured debt - credit cards, overdraft, catalogue, and payday loans. Once the DMP was set up, I'm afraid I kind of buried my head in the sand, assumed because I was making the agreed payments everything would somehow work out. I've checked my online DMP statement the overdraft and catalogue debts are now starting to noticeably decrease, which is heartening, however my 3 credit card debts have actually increased from what they were at the start of the DMP as Barclaycard, Aqua and Capital One are all still charging me late payment fees, over limit fees and interest. Realistically I will never clear my debt with them if they keep charging me these fees - I cant pay on time as my payment dates are determined by when Stepchange pay them, I am constantly over my limit because of these fees and interest so it is a vicious cycle, and I have no idea how to get out of it.


    Should I call the card companies myself? I thought one of the benefits of a DMP was that SC managed it for you, to reduce the stress and anxiety caused by dealing with creditors yourself. I am considering stopping my DMP altogether, and instead paying my overdraft and catalogues directly - the same amount they are being paid via the DMP and simply stopping paying my credit cards until they pass the debt on to a DCA thus meaning no more interest/charges to be added. I feel I wont be any worse off than I am now as I am paying over £100 a month to 3 credit card companies, only for my debt to increase every month for the last year. It's really demoralising, and I am struggling to see any way out. Any advice greatly appreciated!

    Hi there,

    Thanks for getting in touch. I'm sorry to hear that your creditors are applying interest and charges whilst you're on a debt management plan (DMP). Creditors have the right to apply interest and charges as part of the credit agreement you made with them however, we do tend to see that interest and charges start to reduce once the plan is up and running.

    I'd recommend that you get in touch with our Aftercare team who will be able to provide you tailored advice around your DMP. Their number is 0300 303 5300 and they are open Monday to Friday, 8am til 6pm.

    They should be able to bring up the details of your plan and advise you on the best way to proceed.

    I hope this helps
    Matthew
    I work as a debt advisor for StepChange Debt Charity and have specific permission from Martin to post on these boards to try and help those in debt. Read more information on StepChange Debt Charity in the Debt Problems: What to do and where to get help article. If you find you're struggling with debt and you need further help try our online advice facility Debt Remedy.

    Don't be afraid of getting debt advice. We'll help you take one more step towards getting help with your debt.
  • Former_StepChange_Matthew
    Former_StepChange_Matthew Posts: 35 Organisation Representative
    Hello Team

    I took out an IVA a few years ago after a relationship breakdown left me with too many debts that I couldn't afford on a single salary. The. IVA customer advisor explained how it all worked and we joked together about how I'd be debt free within 5 years. He was very jovial about the whole process and I remember him laughing down the phone when he explained that although I'd have to try and remortgage my house when it came to the end of the 5 year period, I'd never get a remortgage (due to having an IVA, bad credit history and insufficient income) and so then the remaining debt would be officially written off and then it would be all over and done with. He made it sound like the perfect solution.
    In reality, my life has been miserable, letters from creditors threatening me, letters from other financial companies telling me my IVA would be better managed by them and letters and phone calls from my actual IVA company on a variety of issues which I have all found very distressing. The IVA company have threatened me with breach of agreement when they misunderstood a telephone conversation with one of their advisors and they thought I'd applied for a credit card, when in fact it was my mother's. They have rang me on 3 occasions to demand my monthly payment as they said my direct debit had not been paid. When they checked their systems, it was an error and my payment had gone through fine. They even sent me a letter demand for payment of £4000 (one week before Christmas) as they said my income had been higher than I'd declared. Again, an error on their part - my earnings had increased but my lodger had moved out so overall my income remained the same. All this was declared on my annual review paperwork but not picked up by their advisors.
    I've got 5 months left to go on my IVA and today I went through the humiliating experience of approaching my bank and building society to apply for a remortgage, only to be refused as expected. But my IVA does not stop as I was originally informed by the happy chappy who went through explaining the process to me at time of application. Apparently they can extend it for a further year, something I was not made aware of at all either at the start of or during my IVA. It's already been extended once due to a drop in income (which is understandable) but I cannot get my head around why a further year needs to be added just because I can't remortgage? Can I do anything about this? My father has even offered to pay off the last few months worth of the payments just to close the IVA and that involved jumping through more hoops and getting his offer in writing and providing ID etc which was nearly a month ago and still no response from the company. I can see why the IVA company would want my IVA to continue as they negotiated quite a substantial admin fee for setting up the arrangement and they would be out of pocket. But their customer service has been appalling and their errors don't justify the fee. I feel the IVA process was not fully explained, this extra year of payments has come as a shock and all I can see is another 12 months of paying out money to them I can still barely afford. I know it's my fault I got into debt and I'm not saying I shouldn't pay what's due but this arrangement has not been the happy solution they sold me. I wrote a complaint to the solvency practitioner ombudsmen 4 weeks ago and I'm still waiting for an official response. Is there anything more I can do? Will this IVA be with me for another 2, 3 or 4 years?

    Many thanks for listening.
    Jo

    Hi Jo,

    Thanks for posting and welcome to the forum.

    I'm sorry to hear about the experience you have described whilst on an IVA.

    An IVA usually lasts for 5 years however, if you're a home owner, you will be asked to re-mortgage your property. If this isn't possible then the IVA continues for an additional year. This means that the IVA will run for 6 years in total (however this could be slightly longer if you have missed payments, had payment breaks etc.)

    An IVA is a legally binding agreement which makes it difficult for me to provide you advice around this however, you have almost completed the IVA by the sound of things. When this is complete the remainder of the debts included in the IVA should be written off. If you're struggling with the payments then I suggest you speak to your insolvency practitioner to make them aware of your current circumstances so they can review your payment plan.

    You have also made a complaint to the relevant ombudsman who should be looking into this for you. If you've not heard anything back then it may be worth getting in touch with them directly to find out about their time-scales and to discuss how your complaint is progressing. Once the ombudsman has come to a conclusion they will advise you on the outcome and what action will be taken.

    I hope this helps
    Matthew
    I work as a debt advisor for StepChange Debt Charity and have specific permission from Martin to post on these boards to try and help those in debt. Read more information on StepChange Debt Charity in the Debt Problems: What to do and where to get help article. If you find you're struggling with debt and you need further help try our online advice facility Debt Remedy.

    Don't be afraid of getting debt advice. We'll help you take one more step towards getting help with your debt.
  • I got into financial difficulties a while ago and am paying back my creditors. One of them is Argos for a store card.
    I have been making regular payments, but missed one due to changing job, which I informed them of at the time. Their response was to ask for the full balance to be paid and threatening recovery action. They started another chain of correspondence at the same time, which was very confusing, wanting an up to date summary of my financial position, which i provided. I have since made up that missing payment and continued paying my regular amount, which was agreed by Argos in writing previously. A month ago one of my other debts was paid off and I wrote to Argos informing them of a £20 increase from this month. Tonight I have received another letter wanting the full balance, charging £12 for the letter and threatening recovery action.
    I shall write to them yet again tomorrow, repeating what I have been telling them for the past year that I will not favour them over any other creditors. To cap it all they have started adding interest again so my balance is going down extremely slowly.
    If they take me to court or send bailiffs I will only be able to make the same payment that i already do. I am not in a position to, nor do I wish to take out further credit or even a loan from family to pay off this debt, even though it is my greatest wish as I loathe having to deal with them and want them off my back. I am so angry and upset, does anyone have any useful advice to deal with this and to stop the threats?
  • balood_2
    balood_2 Posts: 6 Forumite
    Hi

    I defaulted on a Welcome Finance Loan many years back. I later claimed back the PPI and it reduced the figure I owed to £2051.91. The debt was sold on to Arvato financial solutions. They have not every contacted me for payment even though they have all my details, as I am paying off another loan via them. The debt has previously appeared on my credit history with noddle but it has now dropped off.

    I want to buy a house via the co-ownership scheme here in Northern Ireland. To do this I need 1 year clear credit history, no defaults etc. I am planning to borrow a lump sum from a family member that will allow me to pay all my debts. I will be paying my family member off over 2 years with interest.

    The question why should I borrow money of them to pay Arvato if they are not chasing me for payment and if it does not appear on my credit history.

    Can anyone explain to me why I am not being hounded by Avrato for the debt???

    Thanks
    Dave
  • Former_StepChange_Richard
    Former_StepChange_Richard Posts: 119 Organisation Representative
    edited 3 June 2016 at 5:43PM
    I got into financial difficulties a while ago and am paying back my creditors. One of them is Argos for a store card.
    I have been making regular payments, but missed one due to changing job, which I informed them of at the time. Their response was to ask for the full balance to be paid and threatening recovery action. They started another chain of correspondence at the same time, which was very confusing, wanting an up to date summary of my financial position, which i provided. I have since made up that missing payment and continued paying my regular amount, which was agreed by Argos in writing previously. A month ago one of my other debts was paid off and I wrote to Argos informing them of a £20 increase from this month. Tonight I have received another letter wanting the full balance, charging £12 for the letter and threatening recovery action.
    I shall write to them yet again tomorrow, repeating what I have been telling them for the past year that I will not favour them over any other creditors. To cap it all they have started adding interest again so my balance is going down extremely slowly.
    If they take me to court or send bailiffs I will only be able to make the same payment that i already do. I am not in a position to, nor do I wish to take out further credit or even a loan from family to pay off this debt, even though it is my greatest wish as I loathe having to deal with them and want them off my back. I am so angry and upset, does anyone have any useful advice to deal with this and to stop the threats?

    Hi there,

    Welcome to the forum and thanks for your post. I'm sorry to hear how this situation is making you feel but, we can certainly help you with this.

    You're absolutely right in not wanting to show any preferential treatment to this company if you have others to pay as well. As with any creditor, it's only fair of them to ask you to pay what you can realistically afford.

    So we can give you the best advice to deal with this, we'd need to know more about your situation and complete an advice session with you. You can begin this with us by contacting us here or using our self-help Debt Remedy tool on our website. Once we have completed this with you we will be able to give advice tailored to your circumstances.

    If you feel that you are being mistreated then you have every right to make a complaint. As always with complaints you should make it in writing and keep copies of anything you send for your records. Follow the companies complaints procedure which you should find on their website. If they don't respond in time or they do not give you a satisfactory response, you can escalate your case to the Financial Ombudsman to investigate further for you. They have the power to overturn decisions made against you.

    Hopefully this has given you a good starting point to get some help. Do let us know if there's anything else we can do.

    Many thanks,
    Richard
    I work as a debt advisor for StepChange Debt Charity and have specific permission from Martin to post on these boards to try and help those in debt. Read more information on StepChange Debt Charity in the Debt Problems: What to do and where to get help article. If you find you're struggling with debt and you need further help try our online advice facility Debt Remedy.

    Don't be afraid of getting debt advice. We'll help you take one more step towards getting help with your debt.
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