Help! Don't know what to do!

Katie_Chainsaw

We went to see a welfare / benefit and debt advisor the other day as our debts are spiralling out of controL. The gentleman suggested this to us:

- Open a new bank account and change over all direct debits / benefits / wages etc to go into this new account.

- Stop paying credit card for three months as it then goes to debt collectors and interest is stopped.

- Same as above for dealing with overdraft and bank loan.

- When it goes to debt collectors then send income / expenditure forms off to these companies and offer so much £ each month that we can pay.

This sounds like a great way for us to get back on our feet, we know it's going to destroy our credit rating but at the moment anything is better than having our wages eaten up by our overdraft / bank charges etc and essentially living just to pay these off.

What's your honest opinion about all of this?

newlywed

Personally, I would recommend contacting one of the debt charities - like https://www.cccs.co.uk - before doing this and ask for their opinion.

I am on a Debt Management Plan with CCCS and they work out your outgoings needed for life - eg rent, food, petrol, haircuts etc and then what is left is distributed evenly among the creditors so they all get a fair share of what is left of my money. This has stopped interest on most of them without it all going to Debt Collection agencies.

rayday2

I am on a DMP I use the national debthelpline but what i did was change my bank account.

Then sent letters explaining we were having difficulties and asking for a balance to work out a payment plan also asking them to suspend interest charges.

Wait 28 days then send out letters with income/expenditure sheet and a payment offer AND the payment.

Then I sent every month whether they accepted or not a payment if they had not suspended interest write again to them asking them too.

Its not wise to wait for them to send to debt collection agencies because a year into mine about half are still with the original lenders and I have so far touch wood avoided any CCJs