Debt collectors at my door!!!!

dancingfairy

It's possible the judge would order you to pay say £5 a month, in which case you'd then have to offer less to your other creditors, but they still can't have what you haven't got.
df

alastairq

IF...it all went to Court, then the OP should aim to attend. [Usually, a Court that is convenient to the OP would be used]...

The OP would need to draw up an SOA, to present to the Court.

Given that the OP is solely living on 'benefits', then..if any sort of Order is made, it will reflect the lack of any sort of surplus income.

With Bankruptcy eventually in mind [looks that way, unless an improvement in income is on the horizon?]....it is very important to not pay one creditor more than any other.

Ideally, each creditor should be paid equitably.

That means, adding up the total debt..., then working out the percentage of that total, that each creditor is owed.

This will give how much more, or less, one creditor should be paid, compared to the rest.

Very complex, and full of problems, should charges be added.

Therefore, I suggest, as Dancing Fairy suggests....paying one pound a month to each creditor...whether they like it or not.

This is a 'token' payment....and is important whilst attempting a 'holding' action.

For this reason.

If a creditor goes to Court , the fact that a token payment has regularly been made to that creditor [do it in a manner which leaves a paper trail].....shows that, whilst the OP acknowledges the debt exists, they are not trying to 'avoid payment'.

The main issue the OP will have is....if a [unsecured] creditor goes to Court to seek a Charging Order.

This has the effect of making an unsecured debt, a secured debt...the Charging Order being made on the property.

This may not occur, as it appears the level of debt a creditor holds, in this instance, won't be high enough to warrant the costs of such action....however, as time passes, so charges are added to each debt.

But, an application for a Charge to be imposed is a possibility.

So, BAnkruptcy is a course of action to be considered as early as possible.

The OP really needs to urgently consult one of the debt charities such as Stepchange , or National Debtline.

[This is important, as it will be a question a Judge considers when looking at granting a BR petition.]

Since the OP's relationship looks like falling apart, then there is a possibility that....if BR is the route taken, the OP's [ex] partner may wish to purchase the OR's interest in the property...which would sort many issues out at a stroke.

Heathenladd

I'm not sure if you noticed the OP @alastairq but i did go to step change and i am working from their original advice but they suggested £5 pm...

... so I got all the forms off today to the courts I sent the ex160a and the n245 both together with a postal order for £2.50 with an ESA statement, recorded delivery. This is all i can afford for now under my circumstances and so i will have to go with that.

Filling in the forms was a mammoth task in itself, they have made it over complicated and there is a possibility of me getting the information wrong, it being returned and my application for a remission of the £1000 court fees and appeal for a reduction in the payments denied.

The baliff will be calling again next Tuesday, apparently with the Van, I can't imagine the courts will have sorted it out by then.

I'll keep the thread updated as things progress so other people in similar circumstances can see how the court system works, it is a journey and an eye opener.

eskimo26

Heathenladd wrote: »

I'm not sure if you noticed the OP @alastairq but i did go to step change and i am working from their original advice but they suggested £5 pm...

... so I got all the forms off today to the courts I sent the ex160a and the n245 both together with a postal order for £2.50 with an ESA statement, recorded delivery. This is all i can afford for now under my circumstances and so i will have to go with that.

Filling in the forms was a mammoth task in itself, they have made it over complicated and there is a possibility of me getting the information wrong, it being returned and my application for a remission of the £1000 court fees and appeal for a reduction in the payments denied.

The baliff will be calling again next Tuesday, apparently with the Van, I can't imagine the courts will have sorted it out by then.

I'll keep the thread updated as things progress so other people in similar circumstances can see how the court system works, it is a journey and an eye opener.

Is their not a way to put the bailiffs on ice pending the court decision or is it to late at this stage? What are the OP's responsibilities to the bailiff given he is waiting on a reply from court? What is he suppose to say or do regarding the bailiffs in this situation?

I'm really just curious from a non-personal view tbh, I find the ins and outs interesting.

Heathenladd

Watch this space. Updates coming soon unless i have a brain aneurysm from all the stress.

Heathenladd

dancingfairy wrote: »

Not sure anyone suggested selling up? I think the question was more to do with whether equity was going to cause any issues if you went bankrupt.
Basically the OR has 3 years to decide what to do with any equity, obviously if it's in negative equity or very little equity it's not worth the OR doing anything. With 20k equity I presume that 10k is technically yours. There is the option of buying back the equity in the house but I'm not sure how all that works.
In terms of offering the bailiffs £5 per month, as you are on benefits, it doesn't sound like you can afford this. I'd offer £1 per month. If they don't like it they can take you to court and a judge can decide what's reasonable.
df

Undate on the baliff saga... the courts cashed my postal order i gave them for £2.50 so i'm assuming they have taken the offer also the baliff has not returned since i have taken the action, which is all good.

The bad thing is my relationship is in tatters and i have to leave my home for pastutres new which i knew was going to happen anyway, i have a joint mortgage with my ex partner to sort out that i will be seeking some advice about. I'll probably put up another thread about this one, its complicated .

Part of my plan was to get my finances sorted before i moved out so i'm on track it would seem, i don't want the money troubles following me.

I'm also at ATOS today and they will be stopping my benefits too. Ha ha, fun fun fun!!!

fierystormcloud

Can't give you any additional advice hun, but I hope you get it sorted. How unpleasant for you.