1st Credit ltd - Settlement offer - Advice needed plz

Seadogs_2010

Hello everyone
I would like some advice regarding settlement offers on one unsecured loan and a credit card please.
Basically I have an unsecured loan of £13.300 and a credit card with £5.300 on it and both of these are with 1st Credit ltd. I took the credit out when I was with Lloyds TSB but due to me losing my job and been out of work for nearly a year I fell into arrears and the accounts are with 1st credit now.
I pay £5 per month on each account and have been doing this for a around two years.
I now have a family and we want to be debt free. My parents who are now both retired have very kindly offered to give me the money to pay off my debts and start again and I pay them back x amount a month.
I am extremely lucky to have this option.
I will ring 1st Credit when i get home from work tomorrow night and ask for a settlement figure but was just wondering if anyone else has had dealings with 1st credit and also what can I realistically expect them to right off?
I have considered bankruptcy but don't know if I told them this if it would make any difference.
Thank you so much in advance for any help and advice.

sourcrates

Hi,

First off, stay off the phone to them, you should only deal with a DCA in writing.
This is mainly to do with legalities, anything said on the phone, cannot later be substanciated if one side disputes it.

National Debtline has a great template letter here :

https://www.nationaldebtline.org/EW/sampleletters/Pages/Full-and-final-settlement-offers-%28sole-name%29.aspx

You should use this.

Does the original creditor hold the correct paperwork for these accounts ?
If your accounts are from before April 2007, you should CCA 1st credit before you do anything else, if the accounts are newer, then you can skip this step, as a recon agreement can be sufficient.

How much you offer depends on age of the debt, enforcability, and how much your willing to part with.

Seadogs_2010

Thank you for your help.
I rang them tonight to offer £8000 to settle both accounts. The operative was helpful and pleasant and said he would have to email a manager and ring me back.
I will be making sure everything is in writing BEFORE i part with any money and also I will ring the National debtline again if the £8000 is accepted to make sure I have everything from them.

National_Debtline

Hi Seadogs


All the above sounds promising so far. Remember, though, that you may yet be able to get an even lower amount accepted if you try your luck, and it doesn't necessarily matter that you have already offered £8K.


Dennis
@natdebtline

Seadogs_2010

Thank you
Would you recommend I write a letter asking if 80% would be acceptable due to myself currently been unemployed and looking for work?

Seadogs_2010

Sorry
Or if not 80% a lower amount i.e £5.000?

Marktheshark

Did you request the CCA agreement ?
If they dont have it you can offer £0

National_Debtline

Seadogs_2010 wrote: »

Thank you
Would you recommend I write a letter asking if 80% would be acceptable due to myself currently been unemployed and looking for work?

Hi again


Wouldn't 80% of the debts above be a lot more than £8K? Just a misunderstanding, I assume.


Either way, I'd personally suggest that you start with as low an offer as you think you could plausibly get accepted. There's no hard and fast way of knowing what the magic figure is, but 1st Credit will have paid a good deal less than the £18,000 you owe on paper.


It might end up being the case that a few letters bounce back and forth before you reach a common ground. Remember though that you are in a reasonable bargaining position, in that you can warn 1st Credit that the 3rd party offering the money may get cold feet if the settlement isn't accepted.


I personally wouldn't identify your parents as being the ones offering the money at this stage - a creditor might hold out for more as they'll expect family to be more generous than, say, a random good Samaritan.


Dennis
@natdebtline

Seadogs_2010

I didnt to be honest no. This last 24hours have been a whirlwind to honest. Been in debt for so long and then a truly amazing gesture from my parents comes along to finally end this nightmare.
Ive been paying £5 a month on both accounts for two years. I took the loan and credit card out in 2006.
I am just trying to get the offer as low as poss to save my parents money

Seadogs_2010

Thank you Dennis for your reply and help it is much appreciated.
My maths isn't very good as you can probley tell. I will write them a letter offering £5.000 and see what response I get.

sourcrates

Just a thought, if your out of work, have you concidered a debt relief order instead ?
Save your folks some money, your debts are just under the 20 grand limit, if you don't own a home, and have £50 or less left after bills per month, you may qualify.

Info here : http://www.stepchange.org/Howwecanhelpyou/DRODebtrelieforder.aspx?WT.srch=1&WT.mc_id=200109&WT.seg_1=dro&gclid=CPrbhcTalckCFQoKwwodgEcBtA