Need all the help I can get please!

cheekylu

unoriginal_uk wrote: »

£110 is an absolutely RIDICULOUS amount to be paying for 2 mobile phone contracts each month. You say you can't lower the tariff - does this include any bolt-ons that you can remove? Are you absolutely sure you can't reduce this - even by phoning them up and basically telling them they might not even be able to take the money from you next month because there won't be enough money in your account?

I went online with my mobile provider and was easily able to lower my tariff to save me £10 per month - I am with o2 but I can't speak for other networks. When do your mobile contracts run out?

Don't get more payday loans out - you'll dig yourself an even deeper hole.

You pay £40 a month for your TV license? Surely this is not right? The annual fee for a tv license is 145 quid so you should be paying approx £12 a month?

Your loan and 'another loan' are these with banks? Sometimes you can approach the bank and ask for more on the loan - i.e. you might be able to get another 2k or however much you need and put it onto the loan, to pay your payday loans back - anything has got to be better than the ridiculous amount of interest you must be paying on these.

Hopefully some of that is helpful!

Hi

The reason our phone contracts are so high is because they are iphone 4s's and on a 2 year contract, they finish this December, we don't have any bolt ons on them lol. I have tried reducing it but they won't and if I was to go on a payment plan with them they would cut my phone off and I can't have that as I have no other way of contacting anyone.

The reporting my card as stolen sounds like a good idea? But are you definitely sure they wouldn't be able to take the funds still, also if I did go on a payment plan with the payday loans wouldn't I get charged tons of interest and be worse off? I mean wonga is about 4000% apr.

Also my mistake with the tv licence its every 3 months that I pay £40 they told me I couldnt pay monthly yet until I had paid my tv licence for a year or something.

My other loans are with Greenwood and Provident not the banks as our credit rating is so bad that even they wouldn't offer us a loan.

Thanks
Lucy

bubblebath_2

cheekylu wrote: »

Hi

The reason our phone contracts are so high is because they are iphone 4s's and on a 2 year contract, they finish this December, we don't have any bolt ons on them lol. I have tried reducing it but they won't and if I was to go on a payment plan with them they would cut my phone off and I can't have that as I have no other way of contacting anyone.

The reporting my card as stolen sounds like a good idea? But are you definitely sure they wouldn't be able to take the funds still, also if I did go on a payment plan with the payday loans wouldn't I get charged tons of interest and be worse off? I mean wonga is about 4000% apr.

Also my mistake with the tv licence its every 3 months that I pay £40 they told me I couldnt pay monthly yet until I had paid my tv licence for a year or something.

My other loans are with Greenwood and Provident not the banks as our credit rating is so bad that even they wouldn't offer us a loan.

Thanks
Lucy

Hi Lucy

I just wanted to say that I really sympathise with you.
I know in your head now you must be thinking 'there's no way out of this' but no debt problem cannot be solved.

As someone else said. Definitely open a basic bank account somewhere else and transfer all your money into that and make sure your income gets paid into that.

PayDay loans have a really horrible habit of taking money out and making you go overdrawn even if you tell them you have no money

They will try and take money from the card first and then the bank direct.

I know what you mean about IPhone 4S.

Unsure if you have tried this, but call the customer services and tell them that you cannot pay. They desperately do not want to lose a customer who is tied down to 2 years so before they ask for the phone back they will do anything which includes extending the contract but reducing the monthly tariff. That worked with a friend of mine.

So sad to see that one of your loans will go up from £30 to £130 in a month.

Refuse to pay. They know that all they can do is add interest but if it was taken to a court there's no way they would make you pay all of that interest with the limited income you are on.

National Debt Line can send you templates to send.

Remember when the payday company replies, it's basically just bold writing to make it sound extremely serious and maybe with different company names on the top, they use scare tactics but that's all it is. They know they can't MAKE someone pay it all back hence why they charge huge interest to cover their risks.

Does it look like there will be some improvement to your hours soon?
That 0 hour contract sounds horrendous.

Really feel for you and so sorry you are having to go through this.

I think Provident allows a couple of missed payments don't they before they get funny??

brummiebabe

When did you try to reduce your phone contract? I say that because my provider (O2) generally offer you the option to reduce your tariff once you're a year into the contract. If you tried pre your ' December Anniversary' then you might find you get a better response now.

Good luck.....and take the advice of the above posters.....they know what they're talking about;)

MrsH070707

As many others have said, nothing is impossible and, as hard as it ma be, positivity and optimism is the key. Burying your head in the sand and hoping it will all go away just ends up doubling or tripling the size of the mountain to climb - and thats talking from experience. The payday loan vicious circle is a killer and a very easy trap to fall into.

JOb wise, I think someone else mentioned about whether your hours would be likely to increase in the next few months? If not, is there anyway you could seek out another retail job to fill in the rest of the time you now won't be working? Or maybe a complete move to somewhere else where that might be able to offer you a much better full-time or at least decent hour contract? Maybe think about something else - supermarket, coffee shops, DIY shops etc etc

As for the phones - in my opnion this is sucking up a huge amount of your income. Personally I would write down all your contacts, call the phone providers and ask to go on a payment plan (thereby cutting off your iphones), get yourself down toTesco or somewhere similar and pick up a cheap Pay as you go mobile (cheapest Tesco do is a basic samsung for £10) so you would still be connected but only get £5/10 top up for essential calls, use free wifi where you can to email/Facebook people instead. Yes it means giving up a nice phone for a basic one but the road to recovery is a humbling one.

Sell stuff if you can - DVDs/CDs/BluRays/Computer games/old games consoles/books/clothes/anything that you don't need/use - use ebay/amazon marketplace/playtrade or anywhere else you can think of. You might be surprised how much 'stuff' you have that you don't need.

Definitely get a new basic bank account and definitely get on to your Payday Lenders and seek out payment plans.

I hope you're OK - debt is frightening and disheartening and stressful but you are not alone, not even close. It doesn't matter whether the hole your in is deep or shallow, it always feels like an impossible task to begin with - best thing you can do is actually have a read of the other posts on this forum (a) to see how many others are in the same boat and (b) to see the inspirational posts by people who, after hard work and perserverance, have become debt free (which is what we all want!)

xxx

cheekylu

Hi

Thank you for all your replies. I will have to open a new bank account I guess then which is annoying as I will have to change all my direct debits lol.

As for selling stuff on eBay I have already sold pretty much everything and have nothing else to sell.

I will definitely give my phone provider a ring again.

As for the payday loans I am still so worried they will try and take me to court and supposing they whack on like £1000 interest, it's the not knowing how much interest they would charge that is worrying me the most.

Lucy

FatVonD

Could your partners move back to his parents so you could claim benefits?

Willing2Learn

Hi Lucy,

It's a really horrible thing that you and your partner are going through and I really feel for you both. I've read through this thread a few times and wanted to offer some suggestions for you to consider.

I'm going to divide this into three sections:
- Debts and contractual commitments
- Income
- Housing
I advise that in addition to seeking support on this forum, you also seek professional advice, advocacy, support and guidance on each of the above

Debts & Commitments
As far as I can see, there are only three priority debts/commitments. Council Tax and TV license are priorities as non-payment can result in a custodial sentence (worst-case scenario). Rent is the other priority for obvious reasons.

• Cancel all payments to all your other debts as you cannot currently afford to pay them. Not even £1/month.
• If you still have the account with your old bank ensure that have written to them to cancel and withdraw authority for all direct debits and continuous payment authorities (directly refer to OFT guidance) Write to each of the creditors explaining your current situation, requesting that repayment plans are frozen for three months with interest also frozen. Don't sign your name (just type it). Advise that you have cancelled authority for them to collect money via DD or continuous payments. Advise them that if they wish to contact you, they must do so in writing as you do not authorise them to contact them by phone, text, email or by an other means.
• You may want to contact Council Tax separately requesting, again explaining current financial circumstances, enquiring if you could come to alternative arrangement (maybe postponing payments for a quarter)
• Contact Stepchange or national debtline for support with managing these debts today

This is the only way I can see your monthly budgetary outflows being sufficient to pay rent and put food on the table.
If the gas and electricity are paid by direct debits contact them too and let them know they won't be receiving any money for three months.
You could, if you wanted, stop paying TV license as you can ring up afterwards and catch up on missing payments. You have a legal duty to pay this and I would never advise anyone to act unlawfully.

Income
Seek professional advice to ensure you receive anything and everything to which you or your partner may be entitled.
Did you that there are grants available to help people pay their utility bills if there is evidence of low income? The British Gas Trust, for example, can provide grants to customers of any energy supplier (subject to satisfying eligibility criteria).
If things are still really tight, and you find yourself going hungry, don't be shy or too proud to get a food parcel via a Food Bank.

Housing
Whatever you do, keep paying your rent. With food, it is your number one priority. If there is a shortfall then pay whatever you can. If your landlord is seeking to evict you at any point, ensure the due legal process is followed (in most cases and dependant on the type of tenancy it takes a few months). Click here for guidance
As well as the statutory requirement for councils to pay housing benefit or LHA, they also have the power to make discretionary payments - so make the enquiry.
Local Authorities also have a duty under 2004 legislation to incorporate policies and schemes on homelessness prevention within the 5-year strategy.

Because of your age and gender it may be possible to get temporary accommodation in a Women's Housing Project (hostel) should you the need to arise. But you need to act now by contacting appropriate agencies to prepare for worst case scenarios. Hopefully things will work out and you do not need to explore this type of scenario, but it is advisable to plan ahead just in case. The same agencies may be able to help you with your current situation too without getting to the stage where hostel accommodation is required.

If worst comes to the worst are you able to move back home and is your partner able back to his family home?

cheekylu

Slight problem, I get paid this Thursday 31/01/13 which is when the payday loans come out and I have spoke to work and it is too soon to transfer the payment to a new bank account, what do I do? As if I can't make my wages go into a different account then the payday loans are going to take it all.

No there isn't an option for my partner to move back to her parents as they are overcrowded there and there isnt any room, I really don't want to lose this place that is my biggest priority as we've only been here 3 months as it is.

As for Stepchange I have already got a budget plan with them, which is why I only pay the £2 a month on my debts, should I contact them again?

Really the only way I can see my situation improving is if I can somehow get out of paying the full payday loan amounts on Thursday, luckily I have been given more hours at work, 30 this week and 25 the next, I spoke to my boss and told him me and my partner really need more hours and it looks like temporarily this may have worked so I should have enough to pay my rent and basic bills but I just don't have enough to pay payday loans. I really need to get out of paying the payday loans on Thursday but if I cannot move my wages then how can I? As if I report my card as stolen then as someone on here said before the payday loans will then try to access the money from my bank account. I really don't know what to do I wish I never got into debt I hate it, right now all I am doing is working to pay the bills I never have any left over.

I've been told the only housing benefit I can get is £165 a month and I am not eligible for council tax, I am wondering how they came to this decision as my rent is £500 and council tax £128 so £628 and all they are offering is £165 when I am on such a low income, I don't understand how they expect me to be able to pay all this.

Thanks again for your replies.

Lucy

FatVonD

Ask your company to stop the payment and to pay you by cheque. We have done this at work before on the day before it was due to be credited to the account so it IS possible. It'll be embarrassing but you may have to throw yourself on the mercy of your accounts department.

Are you in the same town as your partner's parents? I know you say they're overcrowded but it might have to be done. She would still be able to stay with you a couple/few nights a week without affecting your benefits.

eyeopener2

speak to your bank immediately and cancel the payment authorities for the payday loans. they will quibble this but use the link to the OFT guidance to push your point.

Do this, be strong, and then you have breathing space to gather your thoughts. The payday loans will squeal like the little pigs they are but **** em.

please contact your bank asap.