credit card debt

taximan5419

I dont have more money to pay off credit cards, also it would take decades to pay off what I could pay off in just five years with a manageable loan, why the bank couldnt see this is beyond me

gb12345

taximan5419 wrote: »

I dont have more money to pay off credit cards, also it would take decades to pay off what I could pay off in just five years with a manageable loan, why the bank couldnt see this is beyond me

As I said earlier, at the moment you are a nice earner for them. It is people in your position that fund the people who have a credit card and pay it off every month, thus earning nothing for the bank.

Until you are in a position where you aren't paying them, they have no incentive to help you I'm afraid.

Your best options would be to speak to a debt charity or take a look in the debt free wanabee forum and see if you can find a way of reducing outgoings to have more cash to throw at the debts.

matttye

Innovate wrote: »

What did you do Mattye when you had loads of Debt or have I got the wrong person?

I've never had more than £1500 debt (overdraft), which I paid back each month as I was earning at the time. Was really eager to get a car when I first passed my driving test, so I borrowed money to get a £900 used car.

I did get defaults for about £600 on a credit card and £300 with O2 when I lost my job a few years ago. Paid those back monthly once I got a new job as an apprentice, back when the wage was £80 per week, so it took a while

No 'bad debt' since 2009. Anything I've borrowed since has been promptly paid back!

bingy_burge

Debt Management seems the only option, lenders will be loath to help you before you start missing payments by which time its to late. I had this argument with Jacamo as my minimum payment was not clearing much after interests and charges so asked them to freeze it and in term I would pay another 15 a month they told me to fuc off. So i stopped my payments and then they were more agreeable.

Tixy

taximan5419 wrote: »

I dont have more money to pay off credit cards, also it would take decades to pay off what I could pay off in just five years with a manageable loan, why the bank couldnt see this is beyond me

At the moment you presumably owe debts to various different banks, they each have a small amount loaned to you and therefore at risk of you defaulting.

Your own bank have looked at your credit file and at any existing debts you have with them. They have decided you are too high a risk for them to risk lending £16k to. If you are currently only paying minimum payments they will likely think you are struggling financially already. If they were to risk lending £16k to you they think you may not be able to repay it.

What are the APRs on your current cards? If they vary considerably is there any unused limit on the lower rate cards that you can use to try to limit the interest you pay?
It might also be worth looking at the snowball calculator and putting in your balances and rates and what you can afford a month to see how long it will take you to clear the cards - http://www.whatsthecost.com/snowball.aspx

cydney65

Taximan, head on over to the Debt Free Wannabe board. They'll help you out, but they will ask you to fill in a statement of affairs-handy link in Matttyes reply above.

I had £17000 of debt four years ago on credit cards, paying the minimum. I got rid of the debt by asking for lower APRs, transferring some of the balances to my OH's cards with a lower APR and also by cutting back on non-essentials. Doing a SOA is very handy in this respect, in fact it's essential as until you know where your money is going every month you can't start to make savings. Snowballing is great too. You get really addicted to it.

I have used a loan before, secured on my house no less, to clear my debts and then racked up more debt on the cards because I hadn't really understood why I spent my money on meaningless stuff. Once I had my lightbulb moment at the end of 2008 I really had to address my problems with money which basically boiled down to low self esteem and wanting to be liked. Getting a grip on my finances has really empowered me; I became debt free and have now started saving for my retirement.

My only advice to you is to get mad! As has already been pointed out, you are a nice little earner for these credit card companies. They want you to keep paying the minimum so they can keep on collecting the interest. Why should they have your hard earned cash? Why should they live off your money...it is YOUR money after all. Get mad, refuse to be used by them, take control.

Fill in your SOA find out where your money is going and if you need some help either come on this forum and/or contact one of the debt charities, never, ever go to a fee based debt company.

Good luck and keep posting