DMP & Mutual Support Thread - Part 11

floridajen

Hi wonder if anyone can help. This month I will have to miss my payment to Step change due to my car breaking. This needs to be repaired to enable me to get to work.
I called step change who were lovely and told me to miss this month ans restart next month and told me they would let creditors know but for me to let them know as well.
Barclays have put our accounts on hold f:eek:or 30 days and will resume again in October.
I am awaiting to hear from link financial and PRA group.
Does anyone have any experience on what they could do.
So worried. Not sleeping.
We have been on plan for two years without any hiccups and all interest has been stopped.
Many thanks for any advice

January2015

floridajen wrote: »

Hi wonder if anyone can help. This month I will have to miss my payment to Step change due to my car breaking. This needs to be repaired to enable me to get to work.
I called step change who were lovely and told me to miss this month ans restart next month and told me they would let creditors know but for me to let them know as well.
Barclays have put our accounts on hold f:eek:or 30 days and will resume again in October.
I am awaiting to hear from link financial and PRA group.
Does anyone have any experience on what they could do.
So worried. Not sleeping.
We have been on plan for two years without any hiccups and all interest has been stopped.
Many thanks for any advice

Your creditors won't do anything. Don't worry or panic. The worst that could happen (but probably won't) is the creditors call you. If they do, just explain what's happened. Creditors, including debt collection agencies will not worry about one month missed payments.

I haven't paid one of our creditors since January. All we've had is 3 letters asking us nicely to contact them and make payments. I have only paid BCard £1 each month since January (on two accounts...so total £2 per month). Nothing bad has happened at all. It would take months and months of no payments and no communication before creditors would take any formal sort of action. You really don't need to worry.

Hope you sort the car out :beer:

sourcrates

floridajen wrote: »

Does anyone have any experience on what they could do.
So worried. Not sleeping.
We have been on plan for two years without any hiccups and all interest has been stopped.
Many thanks for any advice

Please do not lose sleep over this.

Nothing will happen because you miss one months payment, now if you missed a few dozen payments, you might get a couple of letters, or even a phone calll.
But one payment ? They won't even notice my freind !!!

Stop panicking, get your car sorted, better still, get some sleep tonight !!!

Tiggerlou

Hello... my littlewoods, very and american express account have all been transferred to NCO for recovery... has anyone any experience of dealing with them? I have spoken to them on the phone and they seem okay but just wondered how others found them... thanks x

sourcrates

Tiggerlou wrote: »

Hello... my littlewoods, very and american express account have all been transferred to NCO for recovery... has anyone any experience of dealing with them? I have spoken to them on the phone and they seem okay but just wondered how others found them... thanks x

Hi,

It's not really advisable to talk to any DCA on the phone.

You should not really bother much about how they are to deal with, they are not your freind, you just have a Buisness relationship with them, they should treat you in accordance with FCA rules, nothing more, nothing less, you are just an account number to them, you should treat them in the same manner.

Tiggerlou

Thanks sourcrates..xx

floridajen

Thank you for your help x

Futuredebtfreecouple

Hi there,

My husband and I are new here. We've struggled with mounting debt for many many years. Not through an exotic lifestyle and fancy holidays (except for our honeymoon) but just by living independently since I left Uni. Whenever we've had things break/deposits required etc we've had to put it on the credit cards. In the past we've tried consolidation loans etc and transferring balances on credit cards so they are 0% but we have just gone around in circles. Last year, we sold our house in negative equity to be in a nicer area for schools for our toddler, so had to extend our loan to pay off the shortfall in the mortgage. We now rent and our monthly payment is double what our old mortgage payment used to be (our wages haven't increased) but we had no choice as wanted to do the best by our toddler! We've had the intention of paying off debt/saving etc but as quick as we try to pay extra off, more ends up having to go on.

So fast forward to where we are now, getting ready to begin a joint DMP on October 1st with StepChange. We have £45,000 debt which StepChange think we can pay off through a DMP over 2 years and 7 months providing all the creditors will freeze the interest, which I understand is ambitious. We filled out a budget online and we are going to ensure we stick to this by taking the cash out for everything at the beginnign of the month so that our new account is only used for our wages and direct debit. It's going to tight but I hope we can get through it. I know it will shoot our credit rating to pieces for 6 years afterwards but I just can't wait for us to be debt free. It'll be like a massive black cloud which has lingered over us for well over a decade will finally be gone.

Looking forward to any help and support as we begin this journey.

:j

I forgot to add that we've cancelled some of our DDs for this month to give us an emergency fund for car repairs etc.

Do we need to write to our creditors to tell them we are going on a DMP with stepchange or do they do that for us? SC have been great so far and so helpful but after we sent all the infor and signed the paperwork they said a member of the debt team will call us to set it up before Oct 1st... but they haven't called so hubby rang up this week and they said we can book a phone call in for 23rd Sept and that this will still mean it can be set up in time for Oct 1st. Does that sound right to you?

Thanks in advance

[Deleted User]

There's always such helpful advice freely given on this thread. I'm sure we're all extremely grateful to everyone who takes the time and trouble to post:A.


There's been a lot of talk on here recently about defaults and AP markers on credit files. I have a query of my own about them.


I have 6 debts still outstanding, all credit cards. All but one have been defaulted pretty much from the start of my DMP and will drop off my file in 3 years time:j. I'll also be debt free:dance:_party_


One of them hasn't been defaulted and probably never will be. It's showing on credit files as AP. I'm not too bothered about it as such but wonder how much notice a bank would take of it when I apply for a 'proper' bank account post DMP instead of the basic one I have now (which is all I can get:o)


I keep getting lucrative offers of higher interest savings accounts etc from my current bank but when I apply I'm rejected even though my dealings with them have been through the 'clean' basic account and a couple of savings 'pots' I set up with them at the start of my DMP. Definitely no debts with them. The accounts require holders to have one of their 'proper' bank accounts to qualify not just the basic one.


If I applied to a bank (not just my current one) once all my debts have fallen off my credit record but the AP one is still there is there any likelihood I'd get accepted for a bank account with all the bells and whistles? I don't want/need an overdraft facility though. Also, it would be nice to qualify for a switching bonus in due course too;)

[Deleted User]

:hello: Futuredebtfreecouple

Welcome to the thread. You've come to the right place for advice from people who've walked the walk (and are still plodding on with it in lots of cases including mine;)). People much more knowledgeable than me will be along to help you so anything you want/need to know just ask:). I'm still learning myself even after just over 3 years on my DMP.


I was just wondering though if you're being a bit over-optimistic aiming to pay off £45000 in two and a half years. I can appreciate that you want the debt gone asap but I hope you've cut yourself enough slack in your budget to allow yourselves to have a bearable quality of life.


I made the mistake of trying to pay off mine too quickly and even a very basic life has been incredibly hard to maintain. It wasn't SC's fault, I insisted I could manage on the budget I set but this year I have had to review it and jiggle my budget catagories to give myself a little leeway. Everything I own that could break down or 'die' did so this year, plus expensive vet's bills added to my despair. Don't forget you'll probably have no access to credit once on your DMP so all expenses for such as when things break down or need repair/replacement will have to be funded with savings.


Good Luck on your 'journey' and please keep us posted about how you are getting on:beer: