avoiding defaults

2babyboys

Hello all,

I am £25k in debt and desperate to break free. I have been suffering with anxiety and suffered 2 big bereavements recently causing me to wake up and take charge.
I can afford my minimum payments, but am not making any headway in clearing the debts as all incur interest. I am desperate not to default though.
I want to know if any of you have contacted your creditors to ask them to freeze interest while you continue to make payments in an effort to clear the debt quicker? I want to to try and save every penny to tackle my debt but can't with all the interest and the anxiety is making me so unwell. I am also possibly facing a divorce so my situation may change financially. Having looked at my figures, again I will afford minimum payments, but only just and won't leave me much to live from.
I know I can contact debt counsellors like stepchange and have done in the past and although financially I'll be better off I scared of receiving defaults as I won't even be able to rent a house in the future, get a phone contract, a mortgage or anything for another 6 years at least.
I was hoping that if some/all of my creditors froze the interest for a year perhaps that I could clear around £10k as a start and then keep going from there.
I have such awful anxiety that I'm too scared to call my creditors. I did call Natwest, but they were quite unhelpful saying a DMP is do able, but will default me.
Anyone have any suggestions? Many thanks.

[Deleted User]

How much do you owe, on each account, and with whom?

And what type of debt are we talking about? Loans, Credit Cards etc?

[Deleted User]

Any freezing of interest or similar s going to result in defaults or arrangements. But that doesn't mean you can't rent a house or get a phone for 6 years.

Post an SoA on the DFW boards.

Candyapple

Please list:

- Annual salary
- Credit card balances and also the total credit limit for each card
- Do the same for any loans or car finance
- Any overdrafts?
- Do you have a mortgage with your ex? A joint bank account?
- Is this £25k debt all under your name? Was any of it incurred as a joint debt with your ex?

GM1880

One thing I hope may ease you anxiety is that defaults ought not (if my understanding is correct) stop you renting. Estate agents and landlords can only do a public record search on you, therefore flagging CCJs, they cannot see any defaults against your name in 99% of cases. So, as long as you don't get a CCJ (which based on what you've said you ought to be able to avoid), then the renting issue ought not be a worry.

DCFC79

Yes you may get defaults but it might not stop you from getting a phone contract, you would need to do some research on this.

You looked at your spending so you can pay more than the minimum ?

NewShadow

Pure speculation but if your accounts are relatively small individually but with a large number of creditors would you be able to do a debt consolidation - such as from a credit union - on some of the debts?

You could then theoretically set up an arrangement to pay for the larger accounts and that single amalgamated debt to incur fewer defaults.

Yes you would still defaults on your file for those account but it would be a couple, not half a dozen.

Honestly, if you think you won't be able to clear all of the debts and have enough income to live then it might be better to set up a DMP/default sooner rather than later so the 6 year clock runs out as soon as possible.

It would be horrible for you to seriously struggle for the next couple of years only to default in the end anyway because your plan was unsustainable

Ben8282

You say you can afford the minimum payments so keep making them and there will be no default or adverse credit history. If possible try to avoid the minimum payment markers on your credit files by paying very slightly more than the minimum payment.
From what you have said, although you do have balances, you don't actually have any debt problems or adverse information on your credit files. Before you make problems by asking creditors to freeze interest and contacting debt charities, have you considered trying to move some of these debts to a 0% card or card?