A DIY DMP after problem with StepChange

Mockingjays

I was on a DMP with StepChange, but after talking to them today I've got no choice other than to go it alone. The amount they've been allocating to a CC creditor is so high that they're now adding interest plus a fee for not making the minimum payment, and the balance is just going to keep going up not down. The creditor was actually really helpful when I spoke to them, and explained the amount SC was paying was so high that my account would remain a 'regular' one. They recommended I pay a token amount so the account will be defaulted and interest etc frozen. I was happy with this ... but when I spoke to SC they said they can't/won't reduce the payment as the idea is pay debts as quickly as possible. Yes but thanks to them, the balance of one debt is increasing rather than the other way around.

It's a bit scary 'going it alone' with a DMP but I've been given a link by a kind person on here to some info. I just want to pay my debts off as soon as I can, and sadly that wasn't possible with SC.

Does anyone know if I could go with another debt charity and just leave off the debt that was causing the issue with SC? Or should I just do the whole thing alone?

Historybuff

Hi mocking jays, I think all the debt charities make you put in all the debts in fairness to all the creditors. I've just started my own DMP by contacting all the creditors myself and offering them the payments recommended by the do it yourself budget on the Moneysteps part of the National Debtline website. All of them have accepted and frozen interest and charges. If you can face talking to the creditors yourself it might be the way to go.

heatherks

i had a similar problem with CAB and my Barclaycard account CAB had allocated a high amount to them that i was paying 12.9 %

i phoned them directly and got it reduced to a more manageable amount and reduced the interest to 2%

Polk

This happened to me the first time around when Step Change were the CCCS.

My Personal circumstances changed and I moved in with someone. It meant that quite a lot of my income was freed up and CCCS wanted to use ALL of the freed up income on the debt - about an extra £600 a month. My partner wouldn't play ball since it would mean that anything over my budget she would have to pay for when it came to our life together (I should have seen the warning signs then, we're not together now)
No matter how I argued with CCCS, they refused to budge. In the end I rang my creditors and explained the situation. They all settled for a total of £200 extra split between them and I told CCCS to leave me alone.
scary as it is - your creditors can actually be more understanding than they often get credit for (pardon the pun). After all - they would prefer to get something rather than nothing.

Sazzie23

Hi Mockingjays

Yes I understand your problem, my circs are not dissimilar, and I'm considering a similar option.
I'm told that NEDCAB (North-east Debt CAB) run an easy to follow self-managed DMP scheme, many people on the DMP Mutual support thread recommend it. I hope that helps, and do call into the DMP support thread if you need more help with self managed, there are quite a few regulars on the thread who self manage too.

Aphidgirl

I cancelled my debt management plan with Baines and Ernst over the weekend and have gone self-managed. Although I didn't have any problems with their customer service, help etc. they did charge a £41 management fee every month, which I now have free to put towards the debts.

I have spoken to all my creditors and actually found them all to be really friendly and helpful, so don't be afraid! I rang them and almost all agreed on the monthly payments I suggested and could afford. One payday loan company pushed me up to a slightly higher payment but weren't too aggressive about it.

Just make sure your income and expenditure details clearly indicate that you cannot afford a higher monthly payment than what you've suggested.

Best of luck!

Stewart_78

Or just lie to stepchange and make up your budget so there is not much left. That's the way I have found to best. Give them what you can get away with (I'm currently on £1 a month per creditor). Save the rest up in a non related account for full and final settlements.

Don't tell them what you can actually afford or they'll just be trying to trap you in debt for ever. Plead poverty. Talk like an idiot. Say things like 'the gas man' and 'my motor is bust and i've got my 15th grandchild on the way'. They love that sort of stuff.

I wish I was joking. This is a game and you need to work out how to play it. Remember you are not a person to them, you are an account, with a rating.

Mockingjays

Thanks everyone for your responses. It's interesting to see that this is quite a common situation, but it's strange that these charities think it's ok that people's situations are made worse by the amount they pay creditors.

It's really helpful to know that there are quite a few other self-managed DMP folk around too. I didn't know you could do your own until recently. In fact even though I've been on a DMP, I've got interest frozen on a couple of debts due to me communicating with the creditors not StepChange, so hopefully it'll be ok.

ybbon66

Another one to confirm the do-it-yourself route works. I can't recall who we asked originally but the plan they had wasn't one we were happy with. Create a form letter to send, show all your income, all your outgoings and how much is allocated for unsecured debt.
The apportion that out so the highest creditor gets the most of the available amount etc. Send that to all your creditors or call and go through the numbers but as others have said, they can be quite helpful :j

We did ours in 2008, if we had taken a DMP we would probably have paid in full years ago, but in truth we have been able to get rid of all but one which is due to finish this year, take a few holidays, buy some furniture we needed in cash etc - basically we have been able to give ourselves some items a DMP would probably have prevented. :beer:

The only problem was Mint who kindly put a default on when none of the others did and that has hindered things for years - strictly it was a default but we actually paid them back in full years ago -just be careful and don't let them put a default on if you can persuade them not to. Although I could argue that having a default has prevented us getting any easy credit since then so not compounding the problem :rotfl:

blisteringblue

I don't see defaults as a bad thing, your six years starts ticking at the point of the default then. If they mark it with AP markers your six years starts ticking at the point it is market settled, so that could well be after the DMP is finished.

Anyway, Credit is bad, that's my new mantra. I like what somebody posted earlier we should rename it Debt rather than credit, Credit has a positive spin on it, Debt just sounds BAD

Mockingjays

blisteringblue wrote: »

I don't see defaults as a bad thing, your six years starts ticking at the point of the default then. If they mark it with AP markers your six years starts ticking at the point it is market settled, so that could well be after the DMP is finished.

Anyway, Credit is bad, that's my new mantra. I like what somebody posted earlier we should rename it Debt rather than credit, Credit has a positive spin on it, Debt just sounds BAD

I've already started thinking of credit as Debt, ie Debt card instead of credit card. This situation has really changed my thinking.