Step Change Query.

cragger89

Morning all!

I hope the festive period and New Year has seen to all of you and we're all on a positive note.

I am on a DMP with Step Change - it was originally set up as a token payments scheme due to lack of spare cash.

I've had a letter this week asking to get in touch with them as I "expected" things to have improved by February. I am now working, so as a result, I do have some spare income and am keen to pay more than £1.00 to each creditor, but when being realistic, I still cannot afford anywhere near the amount I was originally paying.

Are Step Change going to be receptive to this, or am I likely to get a slap on the wrist?

I want to be prepared before I make the phone call so I don't end up shooting myself in the foot.

Kind regards,

Craig.

Sazzie23

cragger89 wrote: »

Morning all!

I hope the festive period and New Year has seen to all of you and we're all on a positive note.

I am on a DMP with Step Change - it was originally set up as a token payments scheme due to lack of spare cash.

I've had a letter this week asking to get in touch with them as I "expected" things to have improved by February. I am now working, so as a result, I do have some spare income and am keen to pay more than £1.00 to each creditor, but when being realistic, I still cannot afford anywhere near the amount I was originally paying.

Are Step Change going to be receptive to this, or am I likely to get a slap on the wrist?

I want to be prepared before I make the phone call so I don't end up shooting myself in the foot.

Kind regards,

Craig.

Hi Craig,

Not sure wether it would help if you tried the SC online debt remedy (you can be anonymous) this would maybe give you an idea of what payments SC would expect .

Remember to be 'generous' in the amounts you need to save for car repairs- house repairs- glasses - smoking - pets, etc as appropriate.

Hope this helps

so_very_confused

Agree totally with Sazzie don't leave yourself with nothing for emergencies. I have had several changes in income and outgoings whilst with SC consequently several reviews. They have been nothing but understanding and helpful ensuring my budget is realistic. My advice would be to ensure your budget is accurate, if your expenditure is outside their recommended levels explain why this is so. I have two areas that exceed this, no problem in fact when they realised how much I was actually paying out they put down for an increase!
Good luck

Piggy10

First and foremost , dont feel pressured to tell them amounts that you think they want to hear.
It's great to hear that you're now working and you feel in a position to pay larger installments to creditors.
You need to sit down and re calculate you finances now that your circumstances have changed. There are lots of financial advice services that can be accessed free of charge through your local citizens advice bureau.
Be brutally honest with yourself and realistic , although it is a relief to see a dent being made in your debts , dont leave yourself short for everyday living.

Best Wishes!

cragger89

Thanks.

Stuck on hold waiting to speak with someone at the moment, argh!!

I'm a bit startled as I (probably pointless as I don't think it was ever setup) just tried logging into the "OnlineDMP" portion of the website, when clicking "I've never logged in before", I supplied my reference number and email address, which resulted in a page saying "Your plan is no longer active. If you require further information please contact our Aftercare team on 08442 643 643."

Thankfully, just got off of the phone with one of their guys and the plan is still very much alive and things are going to be ok.

Really doesn't take much for my anxiety to flare up when anything to do with debt comes up in conversation, lol.

cragger89

Guys,

I've just received 2 letters from Step Change. 1 advising that the Direct Debit has been cancelled, 1 advising that the plan has been closed due to no contact.

I called back in January and discussed at length what my situation is with 2 representatives of Step Change and the outcome of that, is that we are to stay on token payments for the rest of the year (until October).

Why would Step Change close the DMP when I've not asked them to? The last time I got in touch with them was by email to advise of a new creditor I needed to add to our plan.

Anxiety is now through the roof again, am I going to have to go through all of the paperwork again because of their error?

sourcrates

cragger89 wrote: »

Guys,

I've just received 2 letters from Step Change. 1 advising that the Direct Debit has been cancelled, 1 advising that the plan has been closed due to no contact.

I called back in January and discussed at length what my situation is with 2 representatives of Step Change and the outcome of that, is that we are to stay on token payments for the rest of the year (until October).

Why would Step Change close the DMP when I've not asked them to? The last time I got in touch with them was by email to advise of a new creditor I needed to add to our plan.

Anxiety is now through the roof again, am I going to have to go through all of the paperwork again because of their error?

Panic not, nothing bad is going to happen, emails have a tendency to be lost or ignored, you should ring them first thing in the morning and enquire whats gone on.

Could be you didnt get back in touch when they asked, or some other glitch, its nothing that cant be sorted.

cragger89

It all can be sorted even if a brand new DMP had to be setup, just would be a bit of ball ache!

I did return the calls on time, I think they've just hit a wrong button. We'll have to see. Sent them a calmly worded email explaining everything and will phone from work in the morning. Least that way, I have something I can tell them to refer to.

Eeeeeek!!

Sazzie23

I know that they are very busy and perhaps made a mistake. Maybe the old payment plan has ceased now you are on a new plan with increased payments.

They have been taking 2 or 3 days to reply to my emails as they are prioritising phone calls, understandably. So don't worry if you don't get a reply back straight away.

xHannahx

cragger89 wrote: »

Guys,

I've just received 2 letters from Step Change. 1 advising that the Direct Debit has been cancelled, 1 advising that the plan has been closed due to no contact.

I called back in January and discussed at length what my situation is with 2 representatives of Step Change and the outcome of that, is that we are to stay on token payments for the rest of the year (until October).

Why would Step Change close the DMP when I've not asked them to? The last time I got in touch with them was by email to advise of a new creditor I needed to add to our plan.

Anxiety is now through the roof again, am I going to have to go through all of the paperwork again because of their error?

They threatened to cancel my policy when I advised of a new creditor. The thing was that in the same contact I'd upped my payments by £100 p/m due to a priority debt ending.