Help urgent advice needed

fermi

Hi again,

I'm amazed that you've been turned away or been given such negative advice by organisations that are recommended on pretty much every legitimate debt advice site.

Have you tried:

National Debtline: http://www.nationaldebtline.co.uk/ Tel: 0808 808 4000

They also provide free non-profit making advice, and are normally excellent.

Also there is:

Insolvency Helpline: http://www.insolvencyhelpline.co.uk/ Tel: 0800 074 6918

who's website info is very good, although I'm not sure about how good or independent the telephone advice is.

Keep being persistent, and if necessary don't be afraid to contact again some of the organisations who have knocked you back. Sometimes you just end up with the wrong individual on the other end of the phone.

Was it a 'money advisor' that you saw at CAB? Most of the 'normal' advisor's know very little of these issues, and can sometimes fail to refer you on to the more experienced ones.

Richard_S

fermi wrote: »

Hi again,

I'm amazed that you've been turned away or been given such negative advice by organisations that are recommended on pretty much every legitimate debt advice site.

Have you tried:

National Debtline: http://www.nationaldebtline.co.uk/ Tel: 0808 808 4000

They also provide free non-profit making advice, and are normally excellent.

Also there is:

Insolvency Helpline: http://www.insolvencyhelpline.co.uk/ Tel: 0800 074 6918

who's website info is very good, although I'm not sure about how good or independent the telephone advice is.

Keep being persistent, and if necessary don't don't be afraid to contact again some of the organisations who have knocked you back. Sometimes you just end up with the wrong individual on the other end of the phone.

Was it a 'money advisor' that you saw at CAB? Most of the 'normal' advisor's know very little of these issues, and can sometimes fail to refer you on to the more experienced ones.

thm,

Apologies, I didn't realise you'd posted again. I agree with fermi, it just doesn't sound as though you're talking to the same people that we have. CCCS only take brief details initially and then arrange for somebody to call you at a convenient later date.

It's possible you got through to somebody who didn't understand the problems you're facing. Your husband's earnings are not relevant anyway, it's the level of your debt and how you're coping with it, or not, that's the imporatnt factor.

Give yourself chance to collect your thoughts and phone again.

Richard

Richard_S

Hi thm,

Another thought. Is the Statutory Demand issued by a Court or from a solicitor's office? If it's from a solicitor then it's just a scare tactic, if it's from a Court then you'll be able to attend the hearing and the Judge will allow you to suggest how you intend to repay the amount and won't expect you to pay more than you can afford.

Regards

Richard

Richard_S

Thm,

If your immediate concern is the Statutory Demand, you need to find out whether it’s from the Court or not. If it is then your first step is to prepare an Income & Expenditure Account to calculate your disposable income because that’s what the Court will use to make a decision on how much you can afford to offer in payment towards the debt. Being served with an S.D isn’t the end of the world; you’ll have plenty of time to work out how to approach the situation.

Are you certain that your husband hasn’t got any other debts that he’s hidden from you?

terrifiedhelpme

Richard_S wrote: »

Thm,
Are you certain that your husband hasn’t got any other debts that he’s hidden from you?

I certainly hope not or it could be divorce court *if I could afford it* LOL

Seriously though, had chance over the weekend to have a couple of hours without thinking about it and enjoyed myself for the first and last time in AGES, god know's when the next opportunity will arise.

Anywhoo....

Got in touch with the National Debtline who were quite helpful and have given me a huge list of numbers to call, they also said that my 1 horse would be safe as it is my child's pony and that if I could gain an income from my other they possibly wouldn't be interested in her so a possible less panick situation. But I have now got a contingency plan just in case worst case scenario happens so at least they will be safe.

Also got given the number for shelter regarding the ex-landlord issues and while they were not particularly helpful we did find out that he has actually commited a couple of criminal offences so there is a possibility of a counter claim or at least a good defence regarding his claims.

I also got in touch with CCCS and they emailed me some forms to fill out and they are calling tonight at 5pm for an in depth chat to see how they can help.

The SD is issued by the solicitor not the court does that make much difference in time scale?

x thanks again x

Richard_S

terrifiedhelpme wrote: »

I certainly hope not or it could be divorce court *if I could afford it* LOL

Seriously though, had chance over the weekend to have a couple of hours without thinking about it and enjoyed myself for the first and last time in AGES, god know's when the next opportunity will arise.I'll bet once you start to get control of the situation, instead of just reacting to it, you'll be amazed how many more enjoyable hours you're able to spend.

Anywhoo....

Got in touch with the National Debtline who were quite helpful and have given me a huge list of numbers to call, they also said that my 1 horse would be safe as it is my child's pony and that if I could gain an income from my other they possibly wouldn't be interested in her so a possible less panick situation. But I have now got a contingency plan just in case worst case scenario happens so at least they will be safe. Hey, sounds like another problem consigned to where it belongs; the dustbin.

Also got given the number for shelter regarding the ex-landlord issues and while they were not particularly helpful we did find out that he has actually commited a couple of criminal offences so there is a possibility of a counter claim or at least a good defence regarding his claims.With his record on health & safety, you could probably petition for his bankruptcy

I also got in touch with CCCS and they emailed me some forms to fill out and they are calling tonight at 5pm for an in depth chat to see how they can help. Please let us know how you get on with them.

The SD is issued by the solicitor not the court does that make much difference in time scale?

x thanks again x

Hi thm,

A Statutory Demand can only be issued by a Court, if it's from a solicitor then it's just a scare tactic. If they do decide to go ahead and serve it through a Court then it could be 2-3 months depending how busy the Court is, and then you've a couple of weeks to respond, so it's not an overnight process.

If you defend the S.D and the Judge accepts your proposals then they're stuck with whatever you proposed; in the unlikely event of it going against you they still have to Petition for your bankruptcy and again that's not something they can do overnight. Again, you can also defend yourself against a petition and to be factual your debts are not huge, so a Judge is going to give you every opportunity to come up with a payment proposal, and more importantly, one that you can afford.

Regards

Richard

sanfrancisco

richard - you are a star. i am touched by how helpful you are. keep up the good work.

op - you are getting some great advice on this thread. stick around. i hope things improve for you. you can also post on debt free wannabee board for advice as well. might help.

jdavanport

Hi,
they can only take assets in your husbands name. not yours. I went bankrupt and they didnt touch any of my wifes assets, as they were hers before we met.
Bankruptsy only lasts for one year anyway.
Hold your head up because 148000 went bankrupt last year and it is
claimed to increase this year so dont worry.:beer:

terrifiedhelpme wrote: »

Hi I need a little bit of advice and am hoping someone here will be able to either point me in the right direction or even be able to answer my questions.

My partner and I got married last year and at the time he'd missed a payment on our rent (agreement was in both names), our situation was that as main breadwinner he pays the rent and I cover the majority of the household bills.
He assured me everything was under control and it was all being sorted.

At Xmas our landlord turned up and I found out that we were £7,000 in rent arrears (my husband hadn't paid a penny for 6 months).
Things had been very tight as I was self employed at a local stables and during the summer months I do not earn very much money, however business didn't pick up in the winter time so he was effectively trying to support the household, me, 1 child, 2 dogs and 2 horses.
Our landlord said as long as we made an effort to catch up with the rent then he wouldn't take things any further but that we needed to find somewhere to live.
Our accomodation was a 2 bedroomed bungalow with rising damp, rats coming up from the stables, windows that wouldn't open, a toilet in my childs bedroom that kept overflowing, had electricity and gas and water supplying 2 other residences attached to it all that had arrears from previous tennants which we were paying off. Gas appliances that were never serviced and the landlord wouldn't make any neccessary repairs. And all this for the bargin price of £780 per month (now on the market for £675!!!)
Anyhow, sorry for this being long, in Feb our landlord took us to court and we ended up being evicted, despite the fact that we had paid nearly £2,000 from Jan-beginning Feb. I tried the council and every possible housing association we could think of all to no avail, there was no help around at all. In the final hour I found a private landlord and we moved out the day before the baliffs were due.
I have also found out while doing financial statements for my husband that he is actually £40,000 in debt (I knew he had some debt but he had kept it hidden from me for ages to try and protect me)

Now our ex-landlord has served papers on me under the insolvency act (I have £2,000 debt as I took out a loan to cover moving costs I also have 2 ccj's the first 1 is for Zero and should never have been listed, the 2nd one is approx £700 which I have only recently discovered and relates to an old bill which I didn't realise was outstanding as I'd moved house a few years ago.)

The only way that my husband can see out of it all is bankruptcy and I am against it.
If he does go bankrupt how will it affect me?
Will I lose my bank accounts ETC?
Will I lose my horses? (I know sounds selfish but they are my babies and I had them before I knew my husband, and they are pets and part of the family just like our dogs)
I am not too worried about material possesions as they can be replaced but animals can't.

If he does go bankrupt will I get left with the rent arrears bill? (interest is being added on @ £1.67 per day and has been since the first day of payment being missed hence such a huge bill, it is now almost £9,000 the actual cost of the arrears is £4,800.
Our exlandlord has also had a letter from his solicitor regarding the papers being served and claimed that we have been found living on a gypsy encampment (we were not in hiding, and do not live on a gypsy encampment, although we do have a travellers site in the near vaccinity) and has photocopied this and displayed it on a couple of public noticeboards in our area. My reputation and career are now in tatters!

Any advice
Please help I am terrified!

Richard_S

sanfrancisco wrote: »

richard - you are a star. i am touched by how helpful you are. keep up the good work.

op - you are getting some great advice on this thread. stick around. i hope things improve for you. you can also post on debt free wannabee board for advice as well. might help.

Hi sanfrancisco,

Thank you so much for that.

We've been through a truly horrendous couple of years and I've learnt all sorts of things that I'd rather not have done. What sticks in my mind is how lucky I've been to have a 100% supportive spouse, if we'd started playing the "blame game" between us it would have been intolerable.

It seems to me that I have a moral obligation to help when and where I can, especially where somebody is on their own. My good friends Fermi and Blind-as-a-bat make an invaluable contribution to people on this site and I feel honoured to have made their acquaintance, as I do those who no longer post on this forum.

Regards

Richard

terrifiedhelpme

Ok sorry another quick question,

This SD how do I actually tell if it fromthe court or the solicitor? It reads like its come from solicitor but have just had my BR information pack come through from National Debtline and it says it can only be issued by the courts.

Hubby spoke to CCCS last night who have said it dosen't look like he has much alternative to going BR but that I should defend my SD as they don't think it is worth us both declaring but, that an SD stays on your record anyway for 6 yrs as does BR so either way my credit is screwed, so devil and the deep blue sea really.
Is it harder to regain control if both of us are BR?

Now just need to wade through all this paperwork

Also know what you mean about the blame game Richard we had our first row about the whole thing last week and I didn't actually say it but implied it was his fault, minute I said it I regretted it as it's not true. We are in it together no matter whose names the debts are in we've both made mistake through trying to make our lives better and it's backfired, now we are both paying the penalties as a couple and I think if we can get through this together it will make us stronger. God it's so bloody scary and hard though.
Thanks to all of you though for pointing me in the right direction and just being there to talk to as I can't talk to any family or friends about this as feel like such a failure.