Gopher Finance??

J_brown_92

Hi All,

First time posting, so if this is in the wrong section or something SORRY!

So I recently tried checked if I was eligible for a loan, through Experian, so that I could consolidate my debt (and get out of a payday cycle ). There were no results but I got a message saying that I would be contacted.

The next day I got a call from somone at Gopher Finance, they asked me a few questions about my status and then did a soft scan of my credit report (with my approval) and found I was not eligible for a loan BUT another department could help me manage my debt.

I got transferred to another department where I spoke to a woman about a "Financial Management Plan" and how I could pay off my £5855 in 2 years by paying £357 a month.

£357 may sound a lot to some people, but to be honest if I could get my debt gone in 2 years I would happily pay this..... My concerns are the following...

- Not great reviews online
- they mention Harrington Brookes, could I just go to them direct and get a better deal?
- £357 * 24 = £8568 NOT £5955 (where is the rest of my money going?, am I missing something).

Any advise on this would be greatly appreciated, I really want to start getting my debt under control before it gets majorly out of hand.

Thanks!
J_brown_92

J_brown_92

FYI the email that I was sent after the phone call is below


[FONT=&quot]Hi ,[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Please find details of your Financial Management Proposal as discussed:[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]I have based your plan at £319 per month to clear your debts.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The estimated plan length is 24 months (2 yrs).[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Our charges I have broken down as follows:[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Based on £319 the management fee works out at £38.00[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]All payments you make are distributed within 5 working days to your creditors’ on a pro rata basis from Harrington Brooks Accountants.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The re-payment plan is completely flexible; you have the option to increase or reduce your payments at anytime providing that appropriate notice is given.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Also you have the option of requesting “Full and Final Settlement Figures” from your creditors, this may be reduced up to 50% of the actual balance of the remaining debt should you have the funds available in a lump sum to pay them, this means that your plan is terminated early and you are debt free quicker.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]I have also put the following link so you can see that Harrington Brooks are members of D.E.M.S.A for your own “Peace of Mind”.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Harrington Brooks are members of DEMSA[/FONT]


[Link Removed]
[FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The website you can look on is[/FONT]


[Link Removed]


Financial Solutions Advisor
[FONT=&quot]Gopher Money Ltd[/FONT]

longtermplanner

You are being offered a debt management plan at a cost of £38 pounds a month.

I suggest you call StepChange http://www.stepchange.org/Howwecanhelpyou.aspx or Payplan https://www.payplan.com/debt-solutions/debt-management-plans/ . They will set up a debt mangement plan for you and not charge you ANYTHING, so your creditors will get paid off faster.

There is no good reason to go to a commercial DMP comanpay. They are not better at getting interest frozen than the free DMPs.

J_brown_92

longtermplanner wrote: »

You are being offered a debt management plan at a cost of £38 pounds a month.

I suggest you call StepChange or Payplan. They will set up a debt mangement plan for you and not charge you ANYTHING, so your creditors will get paid off faster.

There is no good reason to go to a commercial DMP comanpay. They are not better at getting interest frozen than the free DMPs.

Thanks LTP. I'll try and arrange a call with them too and see what figures that propose.

I've heard that these debt plans can causes issues on your credit report (late payments, etc), will these issues leave me in a worse state or do you think it the plan outweighs the bad score I might get?

Tixy

If you haven't defaulted on your debts then by entering a DMP it is very likely that your creditors will issue defaults.

As part of a DMP you agree not to take on any more credit. And if you do receive defaults these stay visible on your credit file for 6years from when they are first entered.

Definitely speak to one of the debt advice charities, however they may suggest that a DMP is not your best option given your level of debt and the amount of repayment you can afford. Although if you are stuck with payday loans and cannot service them then it may be that they would think a DMP was a sensible option despite the relatively short pay off time.

longtermplanner

A DMP will badly impact your credit score. If you can meet the minimum payments, then you should do that and "snowball" your debt instead. If you can't, then your credit rating is going to get hammered.

If you can clear your debts in 2 or 3 years, then you will be several hundred pounds a month better off. How about living with the extra money in your pocket and planning on not borrowing any more? A revolutionary idea?

FireWyrm

J_brown_92 wrote: »

I got transferred to another department where I spoke to a woman about a "Financial Management Plan" and how I could pay off my £5855 in 2 years by paying £357 a month.

£357 may sound a lot to some people, but to be honest if I could get my debt gone in 2 years I would happily pay this..... My concerns are the following...

- Not great reviews online
- they mention Harrington Brookes, could I just go to them direct and get a better deal?
- £357 * 24 = £8568 NOT £5955 (where is the rest of my money going?, am I missing something).

They are debt repayment sharks. The additional thick end of £3K is their fee for providing you with a 'service'.

J_brown_92 wrote: »

Any advise on this would be greatly appreciated,

Dont.

J_brown_92 wrote: »

I really want to start getting my debt under control before it gets majorly out of hand.

There is no easy road and like most things in life, you have to work at it. If you are serious, post an SOA and we'll get started. Dont make a mistake and pay some outfit £3K for something you could do yourself.

J_brown_92

FireWyrm wrote: »

There is no easy road and like most things in life, you have to work at it. If you are serious, post an SOA and we'll get started. Dont make a mistake and pay some outfit £3K for something you could do yourself.

Thanks Fire

I really want to do this the bets way possible, so a DMP doesn't sound right if I'm going to default that's not really going to help me.

What's an SOA? And how do I get started!!!

J_brown_92

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet

Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 4 (Living At Home)
Number of children in household......... 1
Number of cars owned.................... 1

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 1492.8
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 1492.8

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 0
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 150
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 0
Electricity............................. 0
Gas..................................... 0
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0
Telephone (land line)................... 0
Mobile phone............................ 50
TV Licence.............................. 0
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 0
Internet Services....................... 10
Groceries etc. ......................... 225
Clothing................................ 40
Petrol/diesel........................... 300
Road tax................................ 15
Car Insurance........................... 50
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 20
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 0
Contents insurance...................... 0
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 40
Haircuts................................ 12
Entertainment........................... 200
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
Total monthly expenses.................. 1112


Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 0
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 1000
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 1000

No Secured nor Hire Purchase Debts

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Barclays Credit Card...........1082.4....62.9......29.9
Lloyds Personal Loan...........1248......92........21.1
Lloyds Overdraft...............2500......50........19.94
Quick Quid.....................741.36....248.2.....NaN
Barclays Pesonal Loan..........399.......133.......0
Total unsecured debts..........5970.76...586.1.....-


Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 1,492.8
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 1,112
Available for debt repayments........... 380.8
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 586.1
Amount short for making debt repayments. -205.3

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 1,000
Total HP & Secured debt................. -0
Total Unsecured debt.................... -5,970.76
Net Assets.............................. -4,970.76

[Deleted User]

You don't pay anything toward Council Tax, Gas, Electricity, Water Rates, TV Licence, etc. :huh:

J_brown_92

Bedsit_Bob wrote: »

You don't pay anything toward Council Tax, Gas, Electricity, Water Rates, TV Licence, etc. :huh:

living with family. My girlfriend and I pay £150 each a month