Never thought this would happen to me....help!

marilyna

youknowthis123 wrote: »

I never thought I'd be doing this, but i have nowhere else to turn so here's my story!

I'm 28 and work for one of the biggest names in global media (I'm not showing off, merely demonstrating that ANYBoDY can get themselves into a debt nightmare!)

My monthly take home is just under 1600 after tax.

Outgoings as follows:

Rent: £750 (I live in London and am under contract)

Travel: £120

Living: 350-400 (inc. all bills)

My story:

I decided once it would be a good idea to take payday loan (free money after all!) I then got myself into the !!!!. I took out a personal loan (everydayloans) in order to pay off payday loan. Now 6 months later and many payday lenders later, I'm sat in a pub in Westminster(don't have a go at me for having a pint, i had the lightbulb moment and realised a few things as a result) dreading the next three to four years of my life paying off debts. But I'm an intelligent guy (despite being financially inept!) , I know I won't get beaten up or go to jail. However I want to rid myself of debt demons ASAP.

So I finally reached a point where my income will not cover my remt, living and creditor payments.

Here is my financial situation:

Every day loan: 2000
Wonga: 1500
Swift Sterling: 775
Wage day advance: 195
Quid Market: 250
Quick quid: 312
Vivus: 246
CFO: 200
Mr Lender: 300
Lending Stream: 160
Vodafone: 500

Total: 6438

I am on payment plans with the majority but still this didn't help. Details as follows (per month):

Wonga: 150
Swift Sterling: 100
QQ: 50
LS: 50
Vivus: renew monthly for £40
WDA: 50
Mr. Lender: 50

My Everyday Loans agreement is an 18 month loan paying £200/month (don't ask me what I was thinking!) original loan was for £1500. I called today and to pay off today would cost around £1700 (despite already paying £200 per month since april

CFO and Quid Market are due to come out in full this payday (27/09)

From where I'm sitting/leaning. I have a few options ":

1: Churchwood finance - i pay them a Pre agreed fee (£230 per month). They do the leg work and I get a hugely reduced monthly payment. I've read the forums I know they have a bad rep. But these posts are from years ago, have they improved? Is it worth going with them just to get a DPA in place? By the way I know they charge a monthly fee.(I've actually already signed the documents but I'm not due to pay until the end of the month, I know I can get out of this.)

2: Payplan - will they even be able to help beyond advice?

3. CCCS- just tried calling but offices are closed will try again tomorrow lunchtime.

My aim: is obviously to be debt free ASAP but to pay off at a rate I can afford. Around £200-£250 per month.

My concerns: mainly everydayloans. They are a face to face lender, I have spoken to them , I have been to their office, they do scare me a bit. But I'm a big boy , I can stand up to them if I have the grounds upon which to do so. I'm confident of handling the payday lenders myself, but EDL worry me.

Second concern is keeping this between the creditors and I. This is my mess and I intend to sort it out but at a rate that I can afford.

My plan of action: despite the concerns I am intending on going with Churchwood Finance in order to get the ball rolling. However I have an appointment with Payplan tomorrow and will be speaking to CCCS tomorrow lunch also.

So guys there it is in black and white. I am committed to paying this off and have the occasional increase in. Income from month to month, nothing too drastic. I also earn okay money but by no means am i raking it in.

I need your help. In a year or two I want to be offering you all advice having drastically decreased what I owe. Please, any pointers at all would be more than welcome.

Thank you all for being there when I thought I was all alone.

Regards,

Youknowthis

How did you set up a repayment plan with Swift Sterling,Quickquid and Mr Lender?

I am having no luck with them at all.

antonic

I`m a very satisfied Payplan customer who used them to pay off approx £24k debt in 90 months and so I would recommend them.

I would also congratulate on the hardest part, which is to release you need help - good luck to you !.

My one piece of advice to you is when you set your budget , make it realistic because your in this for the long haul and so adding a couple of months to your plan so you can live, is well worth it !.

wegle

youknowthis123 wrote: »

1. How likely are Payplan to be able to help me?
2 How likely are my creditors to accept the Payplan?
3. If one creditor (namely everyday loans) refuse to cooperate, what do I do!?
4. What are my rights? I.e. at the end of the month do I refuse outright to pay my creditors (unless of course a Payplan is in place)?

1. They will help you as much as they can. Even if it is just offering advice.
2. As likely as they would any other company. At the end of the day they can't get blood out of a stone, they either accept what payplan and you decide you can offer, or they get nowt. They don't care who is helping you, they just want some money.
3. Use the advice given to you by payplan, work with them and the awkward creditor to come to a resolution. However, this hasn't happened yet, so no point worrying about it now. It might not happen!
4. If you can't pay, then you can't pay. If they ring you tell them you are seeking debt advice and Payplan will be in contact with them shortly.

Good luck, and please do get that SOA posted. Everyone will be able to offer much more specific advice once you have.

Learning2Budget

Nothing else to add but well done on your lbm! As others have said please set a realistic budget. Makes life far more bearable in the long run. L2B.x

youknowthis123

Wow, once again I'm so thankful for all the responses to my few posts. All great info and keeping me moving in the right direction.

Still not quite got to the SOA (hectic at work) but will do asap, I have nothing to hide and I guess the more honest I am about my situation the more relevant the help and advice will be.

I just had a secondary light-bulb moment, which I wasn't expecting! It finally makes sense to me that i need to set up a new bank account and get my wages paid into there. I know that sounds obvious, but I now understand that it will put me fully in charge of my finances again for the first time in about 18 months. I can then decide who to pay what, instead of having my account cleaned out.

Although next payday will be hard, with all the lenders on the phone to me, it will be easier than the last as I'll know that I have money in my new account.

I went for Barclays Basic, not actually set up yet but have my appointment next wednesday and understand the account will be set up the same day. That will give me enough time to get work to redirect my wages into this new account.

Just wanted to share.

YKT

DreamerHelen

Well Done for arranging to set up a New Bank Account....that way the Debt people can complain and stomp their feet all they want but your money will be safe!!

I'm not suggesting you ignore them....they will need to be paid off eventually....but they will be paid off in YOUR time...not theirs!!

Good Luck and I'll keep up to date with your Diary... x

dancingfairy

Will they/won't they accept a payment plan? That's the big question. Well, firstly they won't refuse a payment (generally speaking).
At first they will refuse to offer you a payment plan. They may try and rinse your old bank account. Eventually they will either give up and sort of accept the payment plan (but not formally), they may formally accept your payment plan or after much huffing and puffing and bluffing take you to court.
This means a judge will look at your finances and make a decision as to how much you can afford to pay them per month and make an order that that's what you should pay. This is highly likely to be in the region of the exact same amount that Payplan/Stepchange are paying that creditor. There are a few variations in how it's worked out but as long as your SOA is reasonable a judge is highly likely to accept it.
Do not worry unduly if a payday loan company rinse your old bank account, it just means you owe more to your old bank account and less to the payday lender.
When dealing with Payplan/Stepchange etc make sure you are pushing them to push your creditors to stop interest and charges. Some are better than others I think at pushing your case.
df

youknowthis123

marilyna wrote: »

How did you set up a repayment plan with Swift Sterling,Quickquid and Mr Lender?

I am having no luck with them at all.

I asked them outright first time and they all agreed. But they were (you could say) unrealistic but it got to the point where I had to do it in order to get out of the whole paying in full every month thing.

If I earned maybe 200 more a month I could probably avoid a DMP but at this stage I don't think I have a choice! I'm worried about my credit file to be honest...it's a long time of being blacklisted. But I've never been able to get credit, I've only just worked out how it all works and I'm 28!

I wonder, should I attempt one last time with my new bank account to pay off outside a DmP?

youknowthis123

marilyna wrote: »

How did you set up a repayment plan with Swift Sterling,Quickquid and Mr Lender?

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I am having no luck with them at all.

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I asked them outright first time and they all agreed. But they were (you could say) unrealistic but it got to the point where I had to do it in order to get out of the whole paying in full every month thing.

If I earned maybe 200 more a month I could probably avoid a DMP but at this stage I don't think I have a choice! I'm worried about my credit file to be honest...it's a long time of being blacklisted. But I've never been able to get credit, I've only just worked out how it all works and I'm 28!

I wonder, should I attempt one last time with my new bank account to pay off outside a DmP?

youknowthis123

Thank you DF for the pointers, much appreciated.

I just got off the phone to Payplan, and with a bit of tweaking to my budget they have come back with an offer of 238 GBP per month. To be honest I wanted max 200 per month, do you think I can negotiate down? Or should I just accept. I will be able to keep up without the extra 38 so maybe I should just leave it. Just need to send over all my ref numbers, and await a call from my assigned account manager next week. Good progress I think, still nervous about it all kicking off on payday, but at least I'm taking steps to repay the debt and take control of my finances once more!

Thanks,

YKT