Can I make 2019 my debt-free year?

InDebted2U_2

sourcrates wrote: »

I used to think that way, I suspect everyone does, its the fear of the unknown that's all, once your over that, things become a lot clearer.


You refer to your DMP company, who are they ? i`m suspecting your paying them for this service, am i right ?


Free DMP`s are available, and i suggest you cut that cord straight away.


Try to relax, you have come to the right place for the advice you need, making settlement offers to creditors can be a long, and time consuming business, but it has to be that way as typical creditor response time can be around 6 weeks.


As with most things in life there is a correct way to do this, and an incorrect way, i want you to follow the correct way, i`ll try and list the process in step order :


(1) Send CCA request to your creditors, applies to all accounts governed by the consumer credit act except mobile phone accounts.
Link here to information and template letter :


https://www.nationaldebtline.org/EW/sampleletters/Pages/Information-about-your-agreement-under-the-Consumer-Credit-Act-%28sole-name%29.aspx


(2) Once you have the results of the CCA requests, if you want to make offers to creditors, use this template letter found here :


https://www.nationaldebtline.org/EW/sampleletters/Pages/Full-and-final-settlement-offers-%28sole-name%29.aspx


So first step is CCA requests, get them sent and let us know what the response is, be aware, this part can take a good few months to action, during which time your accounts will be temporarily unenforceable, so you don`t have to pay them until they respond with compliant paperwork.


Good luck, think of it as an adventure.

Thanks sourcrates. Reading the first link, it says "I enclose a payment of £1". Does this mean I need to write/include a cheque for £1? I have three debts in one place now, do they need separate letters? Do they usually repond in the given 12 days or can I expect to wait longer?


As for the arrangment mentioned by someone else, this means nothing to me. My dmp company is not, and has never, charged me for their service.

sourcrates

InDebted2U wrote: »

Thanks sourcrates. Reading the first link, it says "I enclose a payment of £1". Does this mean I need to write/include a cheque for £1? I have three debts in one place now, do they need separate letters? Do they usually repond in the given 12 days or can I expect to wait longer?


As for the arrangment mentioned by someone else, this means nothing to me. My dmp company is not, and has never, charged me for their service.

That`s fine, is it stepchange or payplan ?


A lot of folk tend to not do there homework before sighing up to these plans and opt for a fee charging debt management company, when the debt charities will do one for free, obviously we don't recommend paying for a service you can get for free.


I think DannyPearce90 was wondering why you didn't choose insolvency, such as an IVA or a DRO, over a DMP, which would of been over years ago, I guess you have your reasons.


If you still have a cheque book, its a £1 statutory fee for each account, you can include multiple accounts in one letter to the same lender, make it idiot proof that you are requesting agreements for more than one account.


The 14 days are just guidelines sadly, the response you will get varies between creditors, some may acknowledge your request and say the account is on hold until its been actioned, some may just ignore you, in which case a reminder should be sent after a month.


To actually fulfill the request can take many months sometimes, so don`t expect this to be a quick process, the thing in your favor is once you send those letters, the accounts concerned will become (temporarily) unenforceable in court, until you get what you've asked for, however long that may be.

InDebted2U_2

sourcrates wrote: »

That`s fine, is it stepchange or payplan ?


A lot of folk tend to not do there homework before sighing up to these plans and opt for a fee charging debt management company, when the debt charities will do one for free, obviously we don't recommend paying for a service you can get for free.


I think DannyPearce90 was wondering why you didn't choose insolvency, such as an IVA or a DRO, over a DMP, which would of been over years ago, I guess you have your reasons.


If you still have a cheque book, its a £1 statutory fee for each account, you can include multiple accounts in one letter to the same lender, make it idiot proof that you are requesting agreements for more than one account.


The 14 days are just guidelines sadly, the response you will get varies between creditors, some may acknowledge your request and say the account is on hold until its been actioned, some may just ignore you, in which case a reminder should be sent after a month.


To actually fulfill the request can take many months sometimes, so don`t expect this to be a quick process, the thing in your favor is once you send those letters, the accounts concerned will become (temporarily) unenforceable in court, until you get what you've asked for, however long that may be.

Yes, the latter. My understanding was I couldn't have an IVA as a joint home-owner. I don't know what a DRO is.


What is the advantage in doing the CCAs rather than just getting on and making final settlement offers? I really want this to be over.

sourcrates

As already stated, non compliant or no paperwork means a debt will be unenforceable in court, so this means you can just walk away and pay nothing, or it greatly increases your chances of a lower settlement deal than they would normally agree too, this route has been highly successful for many people.