Struggling with debt? Ask a debt adviser a question

dazzammm

Hi

Question

Ive had a credit builder credit card over the past 3 months. The credit card company has now more than doubled my credit limit. I'm never going to be tempted to use it but for the sake of my credit score is it best to accept or decline this new limit?

Dratinisaur

It's scary but I am summoning up the courage to apply for a DMP and have a question about the SOA form on the StepChange website as I want to get my ducks accurately in a row before I start.

I am married with a joint mortgage and a joint account which we contribute equally towards to service household bills, otherwise we have our separate accounts for cars, clothing, haircuts and any other "individual outgoings". I'm in debt, my partner has no debt.
When filling out the SOA forms, should I simply split any outgoings that come from our joint account in half (mortgage, energy, council tax etc) for the purposes of my monthly outlay as all the debts I'm hoping to address with a DMP are solely mine. I'd assume so but don't want to fill anything in incorrectly.

Summary - We have a £600 pm mortgage payment, we both pay equally to all household bills which come from our joint account. I'd declare my monthly mortgage outgoings as £300 in this case on my SOA form?

Former_StepChange_Linsi

Hi there

I’m sorry we’ve not been able to respond sooner but thank you for posting for the first time.

Congratulations on reducing your debt by so much in such a short period of time, it’s a great achievement.

From my understanding, under the new GDPR rules you’re entitled to all the information Lowell and CashPlus have relating to you and your personal data.

I’d recommend speaking to CashPlus directly as Lowell may not actually have your transaction history.

If CashPlus refuse your request you should make a complaint following their complaints procedure.

I hope this helps,

Linsi

Welshmanc75 wrote: »

Hi all

Long time lurker but first time poster. Over the last 3 years I've manage to reduce my debts from over £14,000 down to less than £2,000 mainly due to advice and help on this site. I have however a question that I was hoping to get some help with.

I'm being chasee by Lowell on behalf of CashPlus for approx £115. They have provided me with a balance, but I've asked for a detailed statement to account for all transactions made on this card. The reason I ask for this, is due to the fact I can only remember having a pre-paid card from CashPlus and it was never activated.

Am I entitled to a detailed breakdown of all the transactions made? Lowell are trying to tell me no and that an end balance is all I'm entitled but I need to be absolutely sure before I agree to pay this balance.

Thanks in advance

Former_StepChange_Linsi

Hello

Thanks got getting in touch, I’m sorry for the late reply.

Building up your credit limit responsibly whilst still maintaining the monthly repayments should help you to build a credit history and improve your credit file.

As we’re not financial advisors we can’t tell you to accept or decline the new limit but you may find this article from Experian helpful.

They advised that lowering your credit utilisation (what credit you use compared to what credit is available to you) will help to improve your credit score.

So from this article, if you accepted the higher limit but don’t use the new credit available to you your credit utilisation will reduce, potentially improving your credit file.

If you like more specific advice about which option is best I’d recommend speaking to a financial advisor. You can find more information about finding a financial advisor here.

All the best,

Linsi

dazzammm wrote: »

Hi

Question

Ive had a credit builder credit card over the past 3 months. The credit card company has now more than doubled my credit limit. I'm never going to be tempted to use it but for the sake of my credit score is it best to accept or decline this new limit?

Former_StepChange_Linsi

Good evening

Thanks for your post and welcome to the forum.

I know taking that first step can be scary but I'm sure you'll feel a lot better once you've got all your debts under control.

If you only need help with your debts you can list your income, your share of the living costs and your debts when creating a budget online.

If you get stuck or have any questions about the advice I'd recommend contacting us directly rather than using the MSE forum. You can find our contact details by clicking the need help button at the bottom of each page of our online tool.

I hope this helps.

Linsi

Dratinisaur wrote: »

It's scary but I am summoning up the courage to apply for a DMP and have a question about the SOA form on the StepChange website as I want to get my ducks accurately in a row before I start.

I am married with a joint mortgage and a joint account which we contribute equally towards to service household bills, otherwise we have our separate accounts for cars, clothing, haircuts and any other "individual outgoings". I'm in debt, my partner has no debt.
When filling out the SOA forms, should I simply split any outgoings that come from our joint account in half (mortgage, energy, council tax etc) for the purposes of my monthly outlay as all the debts I'm hoping to address with a DMP are solely mine. I'd assume so but don't want to fill anything in incorrectly.

Summary - We have a £600 pm mortgage payment, we both pay equally to all household bills which come from our joint account. I'd declare my monthly mortgage outgoings as £300 in this case on my SOA form?

matilda.cs

Morning,
I’m helping someone else with their finances, and need some advice...
She was declared bankrupt in May 2013 and since then has racked up £6000 on high interest credit cards.
She is paying minimum payments each month and this is within her means, but extra payments are difficult, meaning she will be an old lady by the time they’re paid off!
She really want these paid quickly, but what’s the best way?
Does she continue as she is?
Does she make cuts elsewhere? (Has already cut a lot)
Can she ask for interest relief, to allow her to make sizeable contributions to her actual debt?
Does she wait until May when the BR drops off and hope that her credit score allows her to get a loan / card at better apr?
Any other ideas?
Thanks

LittonLady

Hi
after some advise re. a payment arrangement I made with Start Up Loans.

I took a loan out on the advise of a franchise company (who's franchise I was buying into) in 2016. Unfortunately no matter how I tried I couldn't get my business to take off in the way promised by the franchisor (and I know I'm not the only one).

The whys and wherefores are not that important but suffice it to say that i NEVER earned enough to make the loan repayments in full and so entered into an arrangement with the loan company to make token payments. This is still in force 2 years later and obviously is having a major impact on my credit score.

Does anyone have any advise about how to tackle this issue?

I had to fold the franchise and am still waiting to hear what they want to try and charge me!

I also have 3 credit cards which I've relied on recently simply to cover household costs and I plan on contacting them today with a budget statement to show my current situation.

Any help/advise greatly appreciated!

Esmondo

Hi, I hope you can help. My partner is paying Capquest £10 a month in respect of a defaulted credit card that they took over from Lloyds in 2013. The debt is currently around £9,600. We had recently checked Experian online and the default wasn't showing, so we assumed that, as he has constantly paid it each month since it was taken over, it didn't count as a default. However, we applied for a mortgage and were rejected, and when we obtained the full report, it was actually there. We were stupid not to realise the online version wasn't complete, I know that. Anyway, our mortgage broker suggested offering Capquest a settlement figure. My questions are:

1. If Capquest accept the settlement, would they "remove" the default from his record, or would it still come up in credit searches (in which case I don't really see the point of doing it)?

2. Our other alternative is to apply in my sole name; how likely is it that the rejection will stop me from being successful?

Thank you for your help

SashaK

Hi,
I found out yesterday I have a CCJ given to me in July 2018, from a credit card that they claim defaulted in 2014, but it was much earlier. The credit card was with my bank at the time, and they knew my address, yet the CCJ was sent to my old address, so I wasn’t even given the chance to defend it. What are my options now? Is there any chance I can get it set aside?

The_neverists

Hi
I have some Credit card debt and a loan which total 45k, i have £350k in a pension i can now access, should i pay off the loans in one go and deplete the pension or slowly over time.

Thanks