Will I ever clear these cards!

anniek42

Hello, I am after some advice please.?
I defaulted on virgin credit card and stupidly it got sent to AltiVec capital whom I pay £156 PCM to but is going to take about another 2.5 years to clear. My credit file was pretty good had a few late payments but no CCjs etc. I still have 2 credit cards with balances of £3k and £4k on and slowly they have increased the rates and I am only paying just a little over the minimum!
Of course now am unable to get any 0% deals due to credit file and am also worried as have interest only mortgage and will have to wait 6 years extra after default is paid to even think about changing mortgage.
I am a single parent, self employed and at the moment am paying bills on time but last year was unwell with prolapsed disc and am feeling that I am teetering on edge of things! I have no pension savings or anything so is it a case that I have to just plod along and pay off as much as I can from credit cards or is there anything else I can do apart from finding a sugar daddy!
Sorry for rambling on...
Any advice would be appreciated.

YorkshireBoy

anniek42 wrote: »

I still have 2 credit cards with balances of £3k and £4k on and slowly they have increased the rates





Any advice would be appreciated.

Next time they write increasing the rates, take up their offers to stay on the old rates and stop using the cards.


Why haven't you been doing this previously? That option's been around for several years now.

anniek42

I haven't used the cards for about 18 months now and I didn't think I had a choice when they wrote to tell me rate was going up?

YorkshireBoy

anniek42 wrote: »

...I didn't think I had a choice when they wrote to tell me rate was going up?

You've had that choice for 5 years now...


http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/reclaim/credit-card-interest-rate-increases

chattychappy

anniek42 wrote: »

My credit file was pretty good had a few late payments but no CCjs etc.

I don't think it could have been pretty good if you had a few late payments! But as you say, it will be difficult to get new deals right now. Presumably you tried (I think your post suggested you did)? Of course overall you don't need more credit, just cheaper credit so you can get it down faster. Obviously either spending less or earning more is also key!

anniek42 wrote: »

I didn't think I had a choice when they wrote to tell me rate was going up?

They are meant to say in the letter. This is the first priority, as YB says. Read everything they send to you, even if it is a sad reminder of your situation. You can be sure they will go on increasing your rates, so you must exercise your right to reject any further increases.

You could try the sugar daddy idea... or as an alternative try the debt-free wannabe section. http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.php?f=76 where you will find "loads" of people in similar situations. Best of luck digging yourself out.

Just one more thing whilst I think of it. You mention you are self-employed. Are you on top of your tax affairs? If your income is falling and you have previously paid tax, bear in mind a couple of things. You might be due for a refund if you made a payment on account that was more than it ultimately needed to be. Secondly, if you know your income is falling (or at least in the "next" year is going to be lower) you can reduce your payment on account or even not make one at all, provided you tell them.

[Deleted User]

anniek42 wrote: »

Hello, I am after some advice please.?
I defaulted on virgin credit card and stupidly it got sent to AltiVec capital whom I pay £156 PCM to but is going to take about another 2.5 years to clear. My credit file was pretty good had a few late payments but no CCjs etc. I still have 2 credit cards with balances of £3k and £4k on and slowly they have increased the rates and I am only paying just a little over the minimum!
Of course now am unable to get any 0% deals due to credit file and am also worried as have interest only mortgage and will have to wait 6 years extra after default is paid to even think about changing mortgage.
I am a single parent, self employed and at the moment am paying bills on time but last year was unwell with prolapsed disc and am feeling that I am teetering on edge of things! I have no pension savings or anything so is it a case that I have to just plod along and pay off as much as I can from credit cards or is there anything else I can do apart from finding a sugar daddy!
Sorry for rambling on...
Any advice would be appreciated.

If your current mortgage deal expires, you should be able to successfully apply for a new one ... but only with the current provider.

Yes, letting the matter go to default and debt collectors (have they charged fees too?) is not good. Even if you just paid the minimum monthly amout due at the time, you'd be in a mech better position credit wise. But just paying the minimum can take decades to clear the debt, not years.

Oh well. life is all ablout experiences and you've probably learned from this one. Just 6 years to wait and you can forget all abouut it ... except of course the lesson learned.

If you are still struggling with your debt, try posting your SoA over on the Debt Free Wannabe board (You'll find details of how to do that on that board). Lots of good, helpful advice dealing with debt can be found on there, once they have full details of your financial situation.

Edit: like it was suggested to you when you joined this site and first/last posted just over 2 years ago
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4065725

planteria

YorkshireBoy wrote: »

You've had that choice for 5 years now...


http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/reclaim/credit-card-interest-rate-increases

but that doesn't mean that anniek42 was aware of it.

come to think of it, i have never exercised that right either. i have never paid more than a few pounds in credit card interest, but i have never thought/bothered to prevent a card provider from increasing my rate. i have worked on the basis that i will always clear in full: be it spending or a balance transfer deal, but arguably i should have been doing so just in case.

planteria

and good advice above, anniek.. the main thing is: focus really carefully on dealing with this problem. save as much as you can and allocate to your highest rate card as soon as you possibly can. it's not insurmountable, but you have to stay calm & tackle it head on. all the best with it.:)

YorkshireBoy

planteria wrote: »

but that doesn't mean that anniek42 was aware of it.

There are two reasons why she wouldn't be aware of it:

1. The lenders (2 of them), despite financial regulation dictating they MUST make the customer aware that they can opt out of the rate increase if they close the account to new spending, somehow both forgot to inform the customer in their letters, or

2. Annie didn't read and/or understand the letters fully.

Which do you think applies?