DMP Mutual Support Thread - Part 12

StopIt

dollydimple73 wrote: »

Can anyone offer any advice please. We been in a DMP with SC for 7 years and sold our house in June basically to get rid of the debts once and for all as we had a lot of equity. We've agreed f&f settlements with 17 of our 19 creditors, with the 18th due to be agreed any day. We've agreed settlements between 50-70% on each one apart from number 19 which also happens to be the largest debt of £8100. This is an old Halifax debt, it still belongs to them but it is being managed by Robinson Way who have only offered a 10% discount and refuse to budge. I've tried contacting Halifax as it's still their debt, but they were not interested in discussing the debt with me and referred me back to Robinson Way and they just keep saying they have their guidlines to follow. We have a maximum of 5k to pay this debt....any ideas?

Intriguing, I thought Wescot were the main debt collection managers for Halifax but there you go.


You can ask Robinson Way to give the debt back to Halifax (Unlikely to work but you lose nothing by doing so).


Failing that, you say it is an old debt, have you sent a CCA request to Robinson Way to check the debt is still actually enforceable? If not, do so immediately. If it comes back unenforceable then you will likely see a much higher willingness to settle, but at that point you would be under no legal obligation to pay as it'll be unable to be enforced at court.


Alas, with a few exceptions, managed debts, rather than sold ones typically do not get low settlements, as you're finding here. If the debt is enforceable, you'll need to up your offer or continue paying them monthly as before in your DMP.

sourcrates

dollydimple73 wrote: »

I've tried contacting Halifax as it's still their debt, but they were not interested in discussing the debt with me and referred me back to Robinson Way and they just keep saying they have their guidlines to follow. We have a maximum of 5k to pay this debt....any ideas?

As well as the good advice from stopit, you could also stop paying and wait until Halifax sell the debt on, which will eventually happen if you facilitate it.

Sold on debts are open to much larger discounts, usually the longer you leave it, the better discount is obtainable.

dollydimple73

Thank you for the replies, I'll try the CCA request route and see if we get any joy :-)

Debtfreehopeful

Can I just check that court action is the last last resort for my outstanding debts- I'm slightly anxious as I received a letter today from Santander demanding the full outstanding balance to avoid court action! I started my self-managed DMP in May this year and as from this month I have had to drop to token payments for 6 months. I then also received another letter from Santander saying about my account being defaulted- it's just the court action which is worrying me...

Sazzie23

Debtfreehopeful wrote: »

Can I just check that court action is the last last resort for my outstanding debts- I'm slightly anxious as I received a letter today from Santander demanding the full outstanding balance to avoid court action! I started my self-managed DMP in May this year and as from this month I have had to drop to token payments for 6 months. I then also received another letter from Santander saying about my account being defaulted- it's just the court action which is worrying me...

Hi debt freehopeful

Well done on making a start with the self managed DMP. I wouldn't worry, it's probably just an automated letter that creditors seem powerless to stop even if they accept your DMP and circumstances.

Court action is Defo a last resort, basically because they won't get any more out of you and it costs money to get there.

Although scarey. I think the letter you got is the pre-default notice which is required under consumer credit law before the default is activated. It should be good news, if you've git your default and maybe the debt will go to a recovery company who are often better to deal with than original creditors.

Try not to worry (so says me, awake at this time worrying about stuff:o)

Saz

[Deleted User]

Sazzie23 wrote: »

........Try not to worry (so says me, awake at this time worrying about stuff:o)

Saz

You certainly are up early:eek:. I'm not far behind you this morning , I was awake at 4.45 and I'm already on my second cup of tea of the day:rotfl: I'm not really worrying any more than usual about debts this early but the cat came in with a bird he'd caught at first light and let it go in the kitchen. The flying around and crashing noises woke me up:mad:. Bird now released and looked unharmed as it flew away but cat is in disgrace and has been temporarily shut in the dining room. No morning cuddle for him today.


I hope your debts aren't causing you to worry unduly or because of any unexpected turn of events. Keep smiling:coffee:

Debtfreehopeful

Thanks Saz, I feel a bit better now! As I'm still in the early stages of my DMP I still feel a bit on edge with things x

Suseka97

carbootcrazy wrote: »

You certainly are up early:eek:. I'm not far behind you this morning , I was awake at 4.45 and I'm already on my second cup of tea of the day:rotfl: I'm not really worrying any more than usual about debts this early but the cat came in with a bird he'd caught at first light and let it go in the kitchen. The flying around and crashing noises woke me up:mad:. Bird now released and looked unharmed as it flew away but cat is in disgrace and has been temporarily shut in the dining room. No morning cuddle for him today. I hope your debts aren't causing you to worry unduly or because of any unexpected turn of events. Keep smiling:coffee:

I joined the 'early morning risers' today - although not posting until now, have been up and about since 5.30am. Not, thank goodness, having to deal with any of my cats bringing in little gifts/playthings though

Haven't been feeling too sharp these days - think a 24hr bug is brewing also feeling a bit nervous myself with today being the first month in 4+ years I've not made my DMP payment :eek:

Whilst I know the PRA group ones are on hold (pending CCA responses) - there are two with LINK that i've had no response about and I'm expecting to get some sort of 'pay up or else' letter in the not too distant future. Of course if I do I'll just remind them of the CCA request I send weeks ago - but it still makes me a little nervous. I'm glad I've gone down the self-manage route and feel more in control, but I have had a few wobbles about it lately. I guess that's natural and I don't feel anywhere near as jittery as I did when I started the whole DMP thing.

Now time for my second cup of tea.

sourcrates

Debtfreehopeful wrote: »

Thanks Saz, I feel a bit better now! As I'm still in the early stages of my DMP I still feel a bit on edge with things x

Standard computer generated threatogram informing you of the possible consequences of non payment, does it mention your DMP ?

No ? Then it's a generic letter spurted out by some piece of apple hardware somewhere.

Just to add, court action should not be feared in any way, shape or form, you don't actually go to court unless you opt for a hearing, it's mostly done by post and online, if they are getting say £6 a month now, they won't get anymore by taking legal action, as long as your budget shows that's what you can afford.

People seem to freak out at the threat of going to court, if anything, it's good for you, as you would have a court approved payment plan, as long as you can live with a CCJ, which most people can, just don't worry about it.

henrryyyy

sourcrates wrote: »

Standard computer generated threatogram informing you of the possible consequences of non payment, does it mention your DMP ?

No ? Then it's a generic letter spurted out by some piece of apple hardware somewhere.

Just to add, court action should not be feared in any way, shape or form, you don't actually go to court unless you opt for a hearing, it's mostly done by post and online, if they are getting say £6 a month now, they won't get anymore by taking legal action, as long as your budget shows that's what you can afford.

People seem to freak out at the threat of going to court, if anything, it's good for you, as you would have a court approved payment plan, as long as you can live with a CCJ, which most people can, just don't worry about it.

One thing that worries me about the court thing, is that "if" it does happen and they get awarded in their favour, do you not have to pay legal costs and court fees?