Struggling with debt? Ask a debt advisor a question

Former_StepChange_Richard

inepta wrote: »

Thank you Richard. As i thought then. This was not what the advisors were telling me when i called in. I am worried that they will be giving incorrect advice to others.

Not a problem.

I believe my colleague Rachael has sent you a private message with information about making a complaint if you wish. Let us know if you need any help with this if you'd like to take it further.

Richard

Karfy

Hi there,

I need some help as I've gone further into debt due to illness/disability and the extra costs of paying for it. I've only been getting lower rate DLA in both mobility and care and I called up DWP to be reassessed as my condition deteriorated and I had to be moved onto PIP but the whole process has taken so many months, maybe like 10? And now I'm just waiting to hear the decision.

But in the meantime my costs have increased and I now have £1500 on a Halifax credit card and I'm almost £1800 into my Barclays current account overdraft and now that Barclays changed the charges I'm having to pay £1.50 a day for that overdraft. £48 just came out of my current account and I just can't afford it...

I've tried applying for a 0% balance transfer card to shift the cc debt and got declined. But I checked my credit score and it seemed the only issue was my cc debt? Maybe its because my income is so low? I'm currently on ESA £125 pw and DLA £44 a week... but my costs due to disability are higher hence the increasing debt.

Any advice and guidance would be great, thanks. I just don't know what to do and the Barclays charges have stressed me out a lot.

Thanks,
Katharine

Former_StepChange_Richard

Karfy wrote: »

Hi there,

I need some help as I've gone further into debt due to illness/disability and the extra costs of paying for it. I've only been getting lower rate DLA in both mobility and care and I called up DWP to be reassessed as my condition deteriorated and I had to be moved onto PIP but the whole process has taken so many months, maybe like 10? And now I'm just waiting to hear the decision.

But in the meantime my costs have increased and I now have £1500 on a Halifax credit card and I'm almost £1800 into my Barclays current account overdraft and now that Barclays changed the charges I'm having to pay £1.50 a day for that overdraft. £48 just came out of my current account and I just can't afford it...

I've tried applying for a 0% balance transfer card to shift the cc debt and got declined. But I checked my credit score and it seemed the only issue was my cc debt? Maybe its because my income is so low? I'm currently on ESA £125 pw and DLA £44 a week... but my costs due to disability are higher hence the increasing debt.

Any advice and guidance would be great, thanks. I just don't know what to do and the Barclays charges have stressed me out a lot.

Thanks,
Katharine

Hi Katharine

Thanks for your post. I'm sorry to hear of the issues you've been having trying to get reassessed. I can appreciate how stressful this must have been and what a long 10 months it must feel like. We can certainly help you with your finances though.

One of the best things to do in a situation like this, if you haven't already done it, is to make your creditors aware that you are struggling financially. Tell them about your situation and that you are seeking advice. You can mention to them that you have contacted a StepChange Debt Advisor and that you are seeking professional advice to help with your situation. If there's anything they can do to help whilst you get further advice from us, this a great starting point.

So that we can give you the best advice, we'll need to build a budget with you that will show what is happening with your finances in detail. From this we will then be able to work out the best way to help you and the best solution for your debts.

You can start this process by using our Debt Remedy tool on our website. This will allow you to build your budget in your own time and it will provide an advice booklet once completed.

Alternatively you could call our Helpline and one of our advisors can make your budget for you before they explain your advice to you. All our contact details are available here.

I can't say for sure why you were declined the credit card you applied for or what specifically is affecting your credit score. There are many factors that can affect your credit score. You may have read about it already, but if not, this article on the forum is a really helpful guide to your score.

I hope this helps.
Richard.

Simontqy

Can anyone advise me, I have just enquired if I am able to take out an IVA. What does anyone think of gopher money who I have spoken to, and Harrington brooks who would be the provider, I just don't know what to do

Former_StepChange_Richard

Simontqy wrote: »

Can anyone advise me, I have just enquired if I am able to take out an IVA. What does anyone think of gopher money who I have spoken to, and Harrington brooks who would be the provider, I just don't know what to do

Hi Simon

Thanks for your message and welcome to the forum. Hopefully I'll be able to shed some light on this for you.

I can't comment on the providers you mention as I have never dealt with them myself. Hopefully you will have gained a good first impression about them in the conversations you've had so far.

What is perhaps more important to consider though is if an IVA is right for you. An IVA is a legally binding arrangement and a method of insolvency. It can be a great solution for debts when used in the right circumstances.

If you're in any doubt I would suggest using our free Debt Remedy tool on our website. You can complete this in your own time and at the end it will advise you on the best way to deal with your debts. If an IVA is best, the Debt Remedy tool will recommend this. If there's any better alternatives, the website will suggest these instead. There's no obligation to take our suggestion either so you can always go back to Gopher if you wish.

I hope this will help to put your mind at ease. Let us know if you need anything else.

Take care
Richard

magiccat1227

Hi,

I have been with your service for a couple of years now, and i have just conducted my annual review.

I have come off the phone really upset after 2 and half hours of what felt like and interrogation rather than help. Also i felt that some of the questions were not answerable or you/your service were not offering advice.

I am not happy at all.
questions such as

how many adults in the house?
me - 3
you - there was only 2 last year
me - yes my son is now out of education so is classed as an adult.
you is he contributing to the house
me - yes towards the bills etc
you - why is that not showing on the income spending
me - it is i would not be contacting you if i did not need your help


not happy why has this changed in previous years it was a review and an agreement of how we would proceed?

csgts

Hi
In a nutshell (a large one!)
In 1996 i divorced my husband, taking with me all of our debts , and no assets at all, as he did NOT use a bank account... Don't ask, this was Cornwall! LOL
By 2004 i was really struggling financially and the Coop Bank lent me £15K ( i cannot even begin to remember how that was able to happen) to cover my debts...
i have the paperwork for that loan agreement.
Over the intervening years my financial status has never really recovered and one debt agency after another has bought out the loan which now stands at just over £10K all these years later- i have been paying interest free minimum repayments for years... currently set at £18.50 a month.
i am still struggling even though fully employed-
is there any way that i can wipe this loan off after such a long time, or will it follow me to the grave? (My ex died several years ago having never paid one penny towards his financial liabilities!

Cheers.

StepChange_Allen

magiccat1227 wrote: »

Hi,

I have been with your service for a couple of years now, and i have just conducted my annual review.

I have come off the phone really upset after 2 and half hours of what felt like and interrogation rather than help. Also i felt that some of the questions were not answerable or you/your service were not offering advice.

I am not happy at all.
questions such as

how many adults in the house?
me - 3
you - there was only 2 last year
me - yes my son is now out of education so is classed as an adult.
you is he contributing to the house
me - yes towards the bills etc
you - why is that not showing on the income spending
me - it is i would not be contacting you if i did not need your help


not happy why has this changed in previous years it was a review and an agreement of how we would proceed?

Hello

Thanks for posting and letting us know about this.

We always strive for the best possible client care and to make what can easily be difficult things to talk about as comfortable as possible, so I'm sorry that you feel like this after speaking with us.

So that we can look into this for you, we'd need a few details about your plan and the call, so I'm going to send you a direct message in order that you can provide this. I hope this is okay.

I'll be in touch very shortly.

Allen

Covmum

I will try to make this short but it's quite a long story. In 2015 I was taken to court for council tax arrears from 6 year's before. I owe £6000 and I had ignored all the letters hoping it would go away. Anyway the magistrates agreed I could pay £200 a month but they gave me a suspended committal order. After Xmas my circumstances changed and I could no longer afford the £200 so I went to the CAB for advice. They were really helpful and tried to liase with the council but they wouldn't accept a lower amount and said I would have to go back to the magistrates and ask for the order to be adjusted. I was given a date in may 2016 but on the morning of the hearing my partner was taken ill and I had to stay with him and my son. I rang the courts and sent in a letter plus the statement from the cab. A few days later I received a letter from the courts saying that because I hadn't appeared in court I had to contact the court officer in 5 days or a warrant for my arrest would be released. I rang the court officer and was told someone would be in touch. Nobody contacted me so a week later I rang again and even offered to pay a lower amount but they wouldn't accept it. Since then I have heard nothing. Now a baliff has contacted me and told me I have to present myself at the court tomorrow and I will be arrested and put before the magistrates. I am really scared they are going to send me to prison. My children simply couldn't cope without me. My son has autism, my daughter has anxiety and self harms if she is stressed or separated from me and my partner has MS.
I am trying to see a solicitor today but can anyone offer any help or advice . I really don't want to go to court. I'm willing to pay the council a £100 a month.

Former_StepChange_Rachel

csgts wrote: »

Hi
In a nutshell (a large one!)
In 1996 i divorced my husband, taking with me all of our debts , and no assets at all, as he did NOT use a bank account... Don't ask, this was Cornwall! LOL
By 2004 i was really struggling financially and the Coop Bank lent me £15K ( i cannot even begin to remember how that was able to happen) to cover my debts...
i have the paperwork for that loan agreement.
Over the intervening years my financial status has never really recovered and one debt agency after another has bought out the loan which now stands at just over £10K all these years later- i have been paying interest free minimum repayments for years... currently set at £18.50 a month.
i am still struggling even though fully employed-
is there any way that i can wipe this loan off after such a long time, or will it follow me to the grave? (My ex died several years ago having never paid one penny towards his financial liabilities!

Cheers.

Hi

Thank you for your post and welcome to the forum. I'm sorry to hear of the difficulties you've been having, both recently and in the past, but I can help you with this.

There are ways of having debt written off, especially when you're unable to repay the debt within a reasonable period of time. Options like bankruptcy or a debt relief order (DRO) would legally write off your unsecured debt but there are certain criteria and considerations.

We would be happy to look at your situation and let you know what options are available to you. If bankruptcy, or something similar, is worth considering then we can let you know all of the pros and cons of that solution.

So that we can give you the best advice, we'll need to build a budget with you that will show what is happening with your finances in detail. This budget would need to include details of your income, essential spending and a list of your debts.

You can start this process by using our Debt Remedy tool on our website. This will allow you the build up a budget in your own time and will provide you with an advice booklet at the end for you to read over.

Alternatively you can call our Helpline and one of our advisors can make your budget for you before they explain your advice. All of our contact details are available here.

I hope you've found that helpful.

Rachel