Bailiffs want more money- what are my rights?

mrsF_3

I got into serious debt some years ago, and ended up with bailiffs at the door, over council tax debts. I came to an agreement with them and in the past 7 years I have paid off more than £8k. I am now down to owing £400, still a lot but in comparison to before, not too bad.

I have been paying the bailiffs regularly at £10 a month, not missing payments and when I can paying a few extra quid to reduce the debt quicker.

Today I received the following letter

An arrangement has been made with you to pay £10.00 every month.

However this arrangement has been in place for a considerable time amount of time and your circumstances may have changed, please contact *company name* to review the arrangement on your account to increase the payments that are currently being made.

Payments will be accepted by cheques, postal orders or bankers draft Please quote your reference number on reverse of payment.

etc etc

HELP! I cannot afford to increase the amount, I am currently waiting for a tribunal to see if the dwp will award me dla, as I have fibromyalgia, a heart condition and a hole in my spine. We are really struggling to survive at the moment, hubby is desperately looking for work, but there are just none around that he can do.

Do I HAVE to contact them? Can I just ignore it, or will they force me to increase payments? I have a signed agreement with them to pay £10 a month, can they make me sign a new agreement? Or are they just trying to scare me into it? (Yes well done its working!)

Please please help I am so stressed and upset over this, very scared that we will have the bailiffs back at the door and I am having major palpitations because of the stress.

Thank you in advance

Ps hope I have put this in the right section, tried CAB section but won't let me post

Thank you

mrsF_3

Sorry just to add, I was paying a £90 a month in total, when I was working, and paid off six bailiff warrants, the one I am paying £10 a month on now is the final one.

Sorry just re-read my post and realised that it did not make sense !

mrsF_3

Sorry just to add, I was paying a £90 a month in total, when I was working, and paid off six bailiff warrants, the one I am paying £10 a month on now is the final one.

Sorry just re-read my post and realised that it did not make sense !

HappyMJ

Just continue paying £10 a month and ignore them.

hollydays

Who was the letter from x

mrsF_3

The letter was from the bailiff company, am I allowed to name them on here?

Fosterdog

Try not to let yourself get too stressed over this, if you have stuck to the arrangement this long and always made payments on time you have done nothing wrong. It is very common for them to ask for higher payments, usually once a year as circumstances do change. If you don't have more than £10 to pay them each month they can't take more.

At this stage you can either ignore the letter and keep paying the £10 a month or you can write back and explain that your financial situation hasn't changed so you will have to continue with the £10 payments.

It's good in a way that you've made some extra payments but to them it looks like you have more money so could be paying more each month.

This should really be in the Debt Free Wannabe board but you can ask a board guide to move it for you.

hollydays

I think it's a very badly worded way of saying, just contact us to review. Do you have an adviser dealing with your other stuff who you could get reassurance from about this matter. You can ignore but think a simple letter may put your mind at rest as above, don't worry.they can't force you.

Fosterdog

If you used to pay them £90 a month altogether plus some over payments you can understand why they would think you could/should be paying more than £10 a month now. That £80 a month extra would clear your whole debt in 5 months, or meeting them in the middle somewhere could clear it in a year instead of almost four years.

hollydays

If you could afford that that would make sense but you can't ?

mrsF_3

If I could afford more, I truly would pay them more, just because this is the last debt and I desperately want to get rid of it. Our circumstances have changed dramatically since I first made these arrangements. I am now unable to work, though I would dearly love to. Our daughter is also disabled and one of us is up to her in the night 3 or 4 times a night on average, dh lost his job and has not found another yet, we are fighting the dwp to get dla so can get help with my care needs.

We literally have just enough to feed us and pay the basic bills. We have sold our vehicle as could not afford to run it, don't drink, smoke or go out. we simply cannot afford to!

If we win my dla tribunal and get back paid, the first thing I want to do is pay off the bailiffs once and for all, so I can be free of the fear they will turn up shouting and screaming at me again.

Sorry, and thank you all for your help and advice it really is very much appreciated