DMP mutual support thread part 13 !!

Enjoying_life_more

re123 wrote: »

Can I get some honest feedback from those that have gone through a DMP, I'm just seeing up , I'm going to use payplan rather than stepchange now, though believe these are similar

My plan is due to start on march 15th , I have 14 creditors, mobile phone accounts, loans and credit cards.

Am I going to get constantly hounded by phone calls? If so how long before these usually stop (will they stop once payments are accepted?) I know you can send letters saying no phone contact and from reading on here it doesn't sound like most dcas listen to that

I know I can not answer but my wife works from home childminding constant calls all day will be the end of us.

Any honest thoughts would be appreciated. To say I'm wobbling now is an understatement

Please see my response above. I forgot to link it to your post

sourcrates

re123 wrote: »

Can I get some honest feedback from those that have gone through a DMP, I'm just seeing up , I'm going to use payplan rather than stepchange now, though believe these are similar

My plan is due to start on march 15th , I have 14 creditors, mobile phone accounts, loans and credit cards.

Am I going to get constantly hounded by phone calls? If so how long before these usually stop (will they stop once payments are accepted?) I know you can send letters saying no phone contact and from reading on here it doesn't sound like most dcas listen to that

I know I can not answer but my wife works from home childminding constant calls all day will be the end of us.

Any honest thoughts would be appreciated. To say I'm wobbling now is an understatement

As long as your in arrears you may get called, it’s a simple matter of either changing your phone number, which can be done for free, or even easier, blocking the numbers on your phone, technology allows you to control who calls you, it’s easy to set up a phone to only accept callers you want to ring you, so this is a bit of a non issue these days.

re123

That's really helpful, Ive read people getting 10/20 phone calls a day and just can't go through that.

All my payments are still up to date and payplan have said it'll be around 4 weeks until the agreement is setup, as such I'm hoping that will keep phone calls to a minimum. I will do a holding letter (though payplan have said they can do this) stating not to call, but I know that's not always stuck to

Thanks again, any bit of encouragement is stopping me from cancelling it and keeping my head buried!

re123

I didn't think call blocking was that simple. I have sky and can get their talk shield product, but you have to add the numbers in you want to block, I know collections agency have a raft of numbers they call from so it's still not simple

Enjoying_life_more

re123 wrote: »

I didn't think call blocking was that simple. I have sky and can get their talk shield product, but you have to add the numbers in you want to block, I know collections agency have a raft of numbers they call from so it's still not simple

I rang all my creditors before my dmp started explaining what was going to happen and why. It wasn’t easy and I had to build myself up to it but I wanted to control the situation rather than them all trying to ring me and me being anxious every time the phone rang. As a result of letting them all know they agreed a 30 day holding period and after 30 days I rang them back with proposals for payment which they accepted. I think what I’m trying to say is if you can face ringing them it will ( in my experience) stop them chasing you ?
Like I said I know it’s not easy so you have to do what you feel is best for you.

sourcrates

re123 wrote: »

I didn't think call blocking was that simple. I have sky and can get their talk shield product, but you have to add the numbers in you want to block, I know collections agency have a raft of numbers they call from so it's still not simple

My BT phone can block 20 numbers from the handset, my telecom provider has a free call blocking feature, that blocks unlimited numbers, they also have a call screening service, also free, so you can accept or reject callers, yes you have to enter the number, nothing in life is without some degree of fuss.

In your post you seem to be panicking a little bit about it, well the solution just requires a little work on your part, calls from DCA’s are nothing to get upset about, if it bothers you that much, just turn off the phone, after all it’s there for your benefit, and should never become a source of worry.

re123

Your right, I am starting to panic as it gets closer. I know I can turn the phone off , or not answer etc, but it's not me that's home all day and even telling my wife what's happening has been pretty dreadful , for her to effectively then have to suffer while I'm out all day it's going to make things a thousand times harder

I'm more than happy to call my creditors and explain what's happening initially and hopefully that may help, otherwise I'll just put every number that calls me into the blocking software and cross my fingers

I really do appreciate the support on here, but i can't pretend I'm not tempted to bury my head again right now. I suspect alot of people feel like this at some point.

sourcrates

re123 wrote: »

Your right, I am starting to panic as it gets closer. I know I can turn the phone off , or not answer etc, but it's not me that's home all day and even telling my wife what's happening has been pretty dreadful , for her to effectively then have to suffer while I'm out all day it's going to make things a thousand times harder

I'm more than happy to call my creditors and explain what's happening initially and hopefully that may help, otherwise I'll just put every number that calls me into the blocking software and cross my fingers

I really do appreciate the support on here, but i can't pretend I'm not tempted to bury my head again right now. I suspect alot of people feel like this at some point.

Well to be honest ten years ago I was you, scared of my own shadow cause I’d never missed a debt repayment in my life, I went through the same thought process you are now, but then I thought, it’s a phone call, whats the worst that can happen ?

In those days debt collectors were completely rabid, they were out to get your money, and they didn’t care how they did it, lying, shouting at you, telling you all kinds of rubbish, this had gone on a while, and we’d really stopped answering the phone, as back then you couldn’t block numbers.

Then one day this particular DCA, 1st credit, would not stop calling, the bloke was particularly nasty, and I couldn’t get a word in edge ways, so I decided to tell him a joke, it was a good one too, stopped him dead in his tracks cause I’d disrupted him from his script, then told him I wasn’t paying, he swore at me, then hung up, they never called again.

They don’t act that way these days, the FCA crackdown a few years ago saw to that, so just think of a joke in your head, or just laugh at them, say your not paying, or you have a payment plan already, then hang up, have a laugh with them if you want, or imagine them naked in Sainsbury’s, it’s only money my friend, it’s not worth worrying about, it truly isn’t, nothing fazes me with collectors these days, as I have learnt how to deal with them, and do so on occasion for clients who are wobbly like yourself.

re123

Thank you. That genuinely helps.

I hope I can help others one day too.

Ross

debtorwithaquestion

Hi Ross,

As others have rightly said- don’t be afraid of debt collection agencies or creditors. There are always many many steps in the collection process and I remember being scared of getting a default because the very word scared me! Now, each default that comes through is like a birthday cake because I know it’s getting all my interest and charges frozen from that point.

It’s difficult to keep going when there’s lots of doubt and it’s tempting to forget all the work you’ve done and bury your head but DONT!

Once the plan is set up, and you’re a few months into your payments, it’ll feel much less of a priority and you can get on with your life- something else will become your focus.