Struggling with debt? Ask a debt adviser a question

StepChange_Allen

Bokkie10 wrote: »

Hi... I have finally admitted defeat.. I am drowning in debt. I have made my I&E sheets for each of my creditors...wrote them each a letter with an offer of payment requestion a standing order for the amount in my letter... Do i now need to cancel my direct debits even if I have not heard from any of them yet to agree to it?

Hi Bokkie

Thanks for your post.

If those payments leaving your account will leave you in financial difficulty and mean you can't pay priority household bills or essential living costs such as food and clothing, then it's best to cancel them.

Please be aware of the potential consequences of cancelling your contractual payments before cancelling them though. Details of this can be found on this page on our website, plus on further links at the bottom of this page: www.stepchange.org/debt-info/debt-collection

If you have any problems in arranging or agreeing payments with your creditors directly, you can register with us free of charge. Details of how to do this can be found here: www.stepchange.org/Contactus

I hope this is helpful.

Allen

System

Hi there
Im currently half way through my DrO
I was just wondering if i apply for another job that had training for a month my income for that month with go over the £50 limit but after that i would be doing part time hours where i would still be under the £50... will this stop my DRO?

Snurt65

Hi My husband of 25 years has recently been diagnosed as being bipolar ( only a surprise to him!) after a manic episode. During his diagnosis and treatment I found out that he has racked up debts of over £80000 (gambling and compulsive buying). We have just negotiated a remortgage ( we had very little and only 5 years left on our original and his earnings put him the higher tax bracket) and are going to pay off all the cards. I appreciate that he spent the money and we are able to earn the money to pay it off but is it worth us negotiating with the banks when paying them off. For example he has 3 with Barclaycard - do we offer them a lower amount to have them all paid off or will that affect his already poor credit rating. He is now on treatment so his compulsive spending and gambling has stopped.

Former_StepChange_Patience

Hi there

Thanks for getting in touch.

If there are any changes during the 12 month moratorium for a debt relief order (DRO) there is a risk it could be revoked (or cancelled).

What I would recommend, if you have got another job which involves this temporary change to your wages, is to speak to the Insolvency Service to see how it may impact your debt solution. You can find more information here: https://www.gov.uk/the-insolvency-service

I hope this helps.

Patience

Catlady121 wrote: »

Hi there
Im currently half way through my DrO
I was just wondering if i apply for another job that had training for a month my income for that month with go over the £50 limit but after that i would be doing part time hours where i would still be under the £50... will this stop my DRO?

DoomDebt

Hi again, still going through the data and have a few more questions if that's OK?

1. Regarding Interest/Fees/Charges for overdraft usage - is there any way to reclaim this money? Going back as far as I can on Internet banking it seems there's been over £3000 charges of the like on my partner's account (before the records cut off). Some months were incredibly expensive, with one hitting £150 (£20 arranged overdraft fee, £30 unarranged overdraft fee, £100 Paid Item/Transaction fees).
2. Regarding mis-selling of loans I'm reading conflicting information about this. I've been reading the MSE article "Reclaim payday loans for free" and it suggests a lot of ways that you can claim mis-selling of loans, but how would you prove any of it?

I've also read that some firms avoid going on your credit report which other firms use to check if you can repay. I've searched through my partner's credit file and can find no trace of 7 of the firms she used to take out loans. Would this be something I can pursue?

3. Finally, regarding PPI I think I'm onto a loser with that one. However, the Ratesetter loan features a "loan fee" of £262.50 added to the total of the loan, as well as a "service fee" which if the loan is paid monthly to completion would equal £266.18 - meaning a total of £528.68 of fees on this £3500 loan. Are these fees legitimate and uncontestable?

Wonga also charged a "transmission fee" of £5.50 for each payment made to them for the "extra cash agreement". This was paid via CPA (I think) which I've read bad things about recently. Not sure I understand this one at all though


I think I'm probably in a position to put *some* claims in maybe? But not really sure where to start.

Thanks for all of your advice so far.

StepChange_Allen

Snurt65 wrote: »

Hi My husband of 25 years has recently been diagnosed as being bipolar ( only a surprise to him!) after a manic episode. During his diagnosis and treatment I found out that he has racked up debts of over £80000 (gambling and compulsive buying). We have just negotiated a remortgage ( we had very little and only 5 years left on our original and his earnings put him the higher tax bracket) and are going to pay off all the cards. I appreciate that he spent the money and we are able to earn the money to pay it off but is it worth us negotiating with the banks when paying them off. For example he has 3 with Barclaycard - do we offer them a lower amount to have them all paid off or will that affect his already poor credit rating. He is now on treatment so his compulsive spending and gambling has stopped.

Hi there

Thanks for posting.

I'm sorry to hear that your husband isn't well and that you've now come across the gambling and compulsive spending situations. It's good to hear that he's getting help with these though.

If the minimum payments on the debts aren't affordable then it's likely that he needs some kind of debt solution, which we can help and advise on. If his credit rating isn't great already, then it may be that any effect from going into a solution may not be that big. Often the pros of getting the debts sorted and under control outweighs any possible cons of going into a debt solution.

If he'd like to register with us, free of charge, the details to get started can be found on our website: www.stepchange.org/Contactus

We look forward to helping your husband soon.

Allen

Former_StepChange_Joe

[FONT=&quot]Hello[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Thanks for posting. [/FONT][FONT=&quot]In all three cases, [/FONT][FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]you might be able to get compensation if you make a complaint. I recommend following their internal complaints procedure. If they don’t respond in eight weeks or you’re not satisfied with the outcome, the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) might accept and investigate your complaint for free. You don’t need to have concrete proof, but you need to clearly and concisely explain your problem. Gather as much important information and written proof as you can.[/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]However there are no guarantees.
[/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]Overdraft fees:[/FONT][/FONT][FONT=&quot] there’s no definitive way of claiming this money back. The interest and charges will have been applied in line with the terms and conditions of your credit agreement. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Loan fees: the fees should have been clearly explained in the original credit agreement that you signed, so it may be difficult to contest these.
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Mis-sold PPI: you’ll need to act fast - you only have until 29th August 2019 to complain about the sale of PPI.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]It's also worth bearing in mind – if you want to escalate your complaint to the FOS, there’s a time limit of six years from when you were sold the product, or three years from when you noticed something was wrong (whichever was the most recent).[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]I hope you’ve found this helpful.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Thanks[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Joe[/FONT]

DoomDebt wrote: »

Hi again, still going through the data and have a few more questions if that's OK?

1. Regarding Interest/Fees/Charges for overdraft usage - is there any way to reclaim this money? Going back as far as I can on Internet banking it seems there's been over £3000 charges of the like on my partner's account (before the records cut off). Some months were incredibly expensive, with one hitting £150 (£20 arranged overdraft fee, £30 unarranged overdraft fee, £100 Paid Item/Transaction fees).
2. Regarding mis-selling of loans I'm reading conflicting information about this. I've been reading the MSE article "Reclaim payday loans for free" and it suggests a lot of ways that you can claim mis-selling of loans, but how would you prove any of it?

I've also read that some firms avoid going on your credit report which other firms use to check if you can repay. I've searched through my partner's credit file and can find no trace of 7 of the firms she used to take out loans. Would this be something I can pursue?

3. Finally, regarding PPI I think I'm onto a loser with that one. However, the Ratesetter loan features a "loan fee" of £262.50 added to the total of the loan, as well as a "service fee" which if the loan is paid monthly to completion would equal £266.18 - meaning a total of £528.68 of fees on this £3500 loan. Are these fees legitimate and uncontestable?

Wonga also charged a "transmission fee" of £5.50 for each payment made to them for the "extra cash agreement". This was paid via CPA (I think) which I've read bad things about recently. Not sure I understand this one at all though


I think I'm probably in a position to put *some* claims in maybe? But not really sure where to start.

Thanks for all of your advice so far.

Blue_Bunny

I was given a suspended possession order for a Halifax mortgage on 2013. Since then I have paid back over £50,000 on my mortgage, I now have just under 2 years left on my mortgage, with £19,000 owing, which includes £8,000 arrears. This has been to difficult personal circumstances during the last year. Therefore I have applied for Equity Release which will pay off the mortgage and the loan. However, the Halifax have enforced the order and the solicitors have requested the bailiffs to execute the warrant. I have spoked to the Halifax to explain about the equity release but they will not stop the order unless I pay £8,000 immediately. I won't obtain the equity release before a Bailiff enforces eviction. I have a husband who has had heart surgery and the shock of eviction would be too much for him. Please could you offer any advice on what I can do to stop this eviction. Many thanks.

sourcrates

Blue_Bunny wrote: »

I was given a suspended possession order for a Halifax mortgage on 2013. Since then I have paid back over £50,000 on my mortgage, I now have just under 2 years left on my mortgage, with £19,000 owing, which includes £8,000 arrears. This has been to difficult personal circumstances during the last year. Therefore I have applied for Equity Release which will pay off the mortgage and the loan. However, the Halifax have enforced the order and the solicitors have requested the bailiffs to execute the warrant. I have spoked to the Halifax to explain about the equity release but they will not stop the order unless I pay £8,000 immediately. I won't obtain the equity release before a Bailiff enforces eviction. I have a husband who has had heart surgery and the shock of eviction would be too much for him. Please could you offer any advice on what I can do to stop this eviction. Many thanks.

Hi,

You can’t wait for this to be answered next week, give national Debtline a call in the morning, click the link in my signature to there website.

Good luck.

Blue_Bunny

Thank you. I will do that.