Can't make repayments :(

Mosh

I've been deferring my student loan (old mortgage style) since the 90's. Last month, courtesy of some overtime, I apparently earned enough to lose my deferrment and now owe £119 per month.

I split from my wife a couple of months ago and currently am literally living on the breadline (rent, child maintenance, etc). What comes in goes out - and I am very penny-wise, eating the basic foodstuffs, using vouchers, no TV, etc.

I complained to the SLC who sent me a form to fill in detailing my income and outgoings. I spent a good hour or so filling it in as accurately and honestly as possible and making them a reduced offer of payment. I'm already, over the course of the year, spending more than I bring in (unless I'm lucky and get some overtime here or there) so with my additional payment I'm well into the negative and on a downwards slope further into the negative.

They've just rejected my appeal and have me listed as £119 in arrears which I'm supposed to pay immediately. Short of going to someone like Wonga, I can't get the cash. What am I supposed to do now?

I can't defer again for another three months, and then only if I don't get enough overtime to take me over the base limit of earnings. If I don't get overtime then I'll struggle to pay my rent, etc.

Anyone?

Clive_Woody

Talk to one of the free Debt Charities like Step Change and they will be able to help I am sure.

Please do not borrow from Wonga or any other payday loan to pay another debt, that's a very fast downward cycle.

wiltsguy_2

got to agree with Clive Woody, please don't go to WONGA or any other PDL, as it will only help you short term and leave you in a much worse mess!

At the end of the day, you can't give them what you havent got! Seek speacalist advice as advised earlier from stepchange etc, but please dont use a PDL

Mosh

Managed to get through to them on the phone and they've accepted my reduced offer of £5 each month (would have been nice of them to ask for clarity before I rang up). Funnily enough, the lady I spoke to mentioned Step Change.

Only annoying as I'll now be accruing arrears which will a) screw my credit rating and b) prevent me writing the loan off in 2021 if I don't get things sorted beforehand.

wiltsguy_2

well for now your £114 better off or only £5 pm worse off depending at which way you look at it. Will they not freeze the interest for you?

Mosh

It was made clear to me that though they'll accept the reduced payments, as I am not paying the full amount I *should* be paying, I am accruing arrears. However, if I successfully appeal for a further deferment then they can backdate and refund up to 6 months payments (including the arrears).

However, the only way for me to stay under the threshold is to do no overtime, as I do earn only slightly under that threshold. Which makes life *very* hard indeed. Also, if I refuse overtime for three months to get under the limit then I'll almost certainly find that - in four months time - it's being offered to someone else instead.

wiltsguy_2

can you not explain this to your boss? instead of being paid for the overtime be given some extra days holidays etc?

Mosh

I'm a teacher - we don't get to choose when our holidays are

In one of my old jobs they'd have jumped at that suggestion, though. Mind you, that was because they were struggling financially themselves!