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justasimpleton

Hi.
Been having a few sleepless nights over debt.
Start of lockdown I had to move out of ex's place as she was a nurse (along with 2 others in the house) so moved back into my former room at parents (they were classed as vulnerable so it helped).
Apart from a short illness (oct 19 to Jun 20) I've continued working (pay reduced to SSP whilst I was off)

My debts are as follows:

HP - Car: 48mths 297.17 pcm left to pay 8320.76 + 5537.00 optional final payment

Loan1:   300 6mths 84.54 pcm left to pay 290.72

Loan3: 5900 47mths 172.25 pcm left to pay 7987.89

Loan2: 6500 60mths 251.21 pcm left to pay 6916.2

Credit Card - NewDay1 2900 Limit 138.68 pcm current bal 2758.54

Credit Card - NewDay2 1300 Limit 141.32 pcm current bal 1110

Credit Card - 118-118 250 Limit 20 pcm current bal 220

Credit Card - Tesco 250 Limit 18 pcm current bal 238

Credit Card - Zopa 400 Limit 25 pcm current bal 365

Credit Card - Lendable 500 Limit 25 pcm current bal 415

Shop Direct 425 Limit 25 pcm current bal 345.84

JD Williams 500 Limit 22 pcm current bal 419.42

Paypal Credit 400 Limit 17.50 pcm current bal 370.31

Mobile 28 pcm (8th month of 24mth contract)

NHS meds 11 pcm

Board/Rent 500pcm (inc Council Tax, TV, Rent, Food)

Family Debt 200 pcm

DVLA & Insurance 35 pcm

My take home after tax is £1930, however my outgoings are over £2k.

Due to the short illness, a credit card company refused to accept reduce payments (I continued paying £5pcm despite this) and defaulted my account Feb 2020 with a default balance was £282.

As I was off sick my wage reduced from £480pw to to £94pw - all creditors were understanding accept this one.
Once I was able to work again (June 20) I started clearing balances, and paid this default off in November 2020.

This default is the only negative marker on all three credit reports, prior to this I was always paying on time.
Even the other creditors didn't report anything as late or missed, just an arrange to pay.

Everything else going fine. until this year.
1st parents boiler gave up, despite mother being on enhanced PIP, we were rejected for any assistance - so I maxed out on cards to pay.
2mths after damage to the roof, again no support or grant - so took out a loan to help - due to the Default I could only go for a high interest loan.
Lastly, unfortunately my grandmother passed away whilst holidaying with a friend - my mother being the only child, I assisted and took out another loan (little bit better interest at 17.9) so we could get her back to the UK & funeral costs.

Whilst I haven't missed any payments, I am really struggling.
I'm left with nothing, I haven't left the house to meet with friends since April due to the cost.


I see all the adverts for consolidation and even on MSE it goes on about balance transfer etc - but none of this is applicable to me due to this sodding Default.
I've added a Notice of correction explaining circumstances but I don't think anyone really pays any attention to it.

I just need some advice as to what I can do.
I know the Default is the negative impact - If I could halve the monthly payment (excluding the HP for the car) I would be in a far better place than I am now.

Can you offer any advice.

StepChange_Aidan

justasimpleton said:

Hi.
Been having a few sleepless nights over debt.
Start of lockdown I had to move out of ex's place as she was a nurse (along with 2 others in the house) so moved back into my former room at parents (they were classed as vulnerable so it helped).
Apart from a short illness (oct 19 to Jun 20) I've continued working (pay reduced to SSP whilst I was off)

My debts are as follows:

HP - Car: 48mths 297.17 pcm left to pay 8320.76 + 5537.00 optional final payment

Loan1:   300 6mths 84.54 pcm left to pay 290.72

Loan3: 5900 47mths 172.25 pcm left to pay 7987.89

Loan2: 6500 60mths 251.21 pcm left to pay 6916.2

Credit Card - NewDay1 2900 Limit 138.68 pcm current bal 2758.54

Credit Card - NewDay2 1300 Limit 141.32 pcm current bal 1110

Credit Card - 118-118 250 Limit 20 pcm current bal 220

Credit Card - Tesco 250 Limit 18 pcm current bal 238

Credit Card - Zopa 400 Limit 25 pcm current bal 365

Credit Card - Lendable 500 Limit 25 pcm current bal 415

Shop Direct 425 Limit 25 pcm current bal 345.84

JD Williams 500 Limit 22 pcm current bal 419.42

Paypal Credit 400 Limit 17.50 pcm current bal 370.31

Mobile 28 pcm (8th month of 24mth contract)

NHS meds 11 pcm

Board/Rent 500pcm (inc Council Tax, TV, Rent, Food)

Family Debt 200 pcm

DVLA & Insurance 35 pcm

My take home after tax is £1930, however my outgoings are over £2k.

Due to the short illness, a credit card company refused to accept reduce payments (I continued paying £5pcm despite this) and defaulted my account Feb 2020 with a default balance was £282.

As I was off sick my wage reduced from £480pw to to £94pw - all creditors were understanding accept this one.
Once I was able to work again (June 20) I started clearing balances, and paid this default off in November 2020.

This default is the only negative marker on all three credit reports, prior to this I was always paying on time.
Even the other creditors didn't report anything as late or missed, just an arrange to pay.

Everything else going fine. until this year.
1st parents boiler gave up, despite mother being on enhanced PIP, we were rejected for any assistance - so I maxed out on cards to pay.
2mths after damage to the roof, again no support or grant - so took out a loan to help - due to the Default I could only go for a high interest loan.
Lastly, unfortunately my grandmother passed away whilst holidaying with a friend - my mother being the only child, I assisted and took out another loan (little bit better interest at 17.9) so we could get her back to the UK & funeral costs.

Whilst I haven't missed any payments, I am really struggling.
I'm left with nothing, I haven't left the house to meet with friends since April due to the cost.


I see all the adverts for consolidation and even on MSE it goes on about balance transfer etc - but none of this is applicable to me due to this sodding Default.
I've added a Notice of correction explaining circumstances but I don't think anyone really pays any attention to it.

I just need some advice as to what I can do.
I know the Default is the negative impact - If I could halve the monthly payment (excluding the HP for the car) I would be in a far better place than I am now.

Can you offer any advice.

Hi,

I’m sorry to hear that you’ve been struggling, and I hope we can help.

Debt consolidation is rarely the best solution, as it’s just moving the debt around and you’re likely to end up paying more in the long run.

Your HP agreement is a priority, as you’d need to keep making the full payments to keep the car. However, all the other debts (loans, credit cards, catalogues etc) will be unsecured. Our general advice would be to only pay what you can afford to these, as essential bills and living costs are more important

You’ve said that your monthly income is £1,930, the essential costs you’ve mentioned (which includes the HP agreement, board payment, motoring, mobile phone, prescription, and family loan) come to £1,071.17. Is this correct? Are there any other expenses that you haven’t accounted for?

If this is right, then you have £858.83 left over potentially available to offer towards the unsecured debts (or up to £1,058.83 if payments to the family debt can be reduced or put on hold).

If you’re struggling to afford the contractual payments to the debts but it’s still possible to pay them over a reasonable period of time, it may be better to look at setting up a Debt Management Plan, where you can pay one affordable amount each month which is then shared fairly among your creditors. Please be aware that creditors are still likely to record a default after a few months of missed or reduced payments.

There may be other debt solutions that are suitable for you, but I would need more details to be able to give a specific recommendation. I’d recommend putting together a complete budget, so we can fully understand your situation. If you’d like to do this with StepChange you could use the online debt advice tool on our website or give us a call to speak with an advisor.

Kind regards,

Aidan

StepChange_Allen

 nayathepsychic said:

I have a question about IVA. An elderly acquaintance of mine has offered to pay off her step daughter's IVA which was 4.5k sometime last year, now she's been told by the step daughter it's over 5k because of the interest. This doesn't sound right to me so I asked who the IVA was done through and she said "a charity". Do IVAs accrue interest like that? It's really none of my business of course but I don't want this lady to be ripped off by either the step daughter (who always seems to have her hand out for something) or a dodgy company. 

Hi there

Thanks for posting.

This is difficult to be certain of as actual workings of a live IVA, especially in the scenario of paying it off early, is something I get involved in day to day. I believe that interest can be added to an IVA if it's being paid off early but I can't understand why it would cost more now than a year or so ago; that defies logic to me.

My suggestion to someone in this scenario would be that the third party (your acquaintance) gets her step-daughter to give them authority to speak directly with the insolvency practitioner (IP). This way she can check what the settlement figure is and pay directly to them if she wishes, thereby mitigating the risk of the step-daughter either potentially keeping some of the money or not even using it for that at all; who knows.

If she won't let her speak to the IP, perhaps that's then a red flag, but obviously hard to comment further as I don't know the people involved.

I hope this is helpful.

Allen

Lemonade_budget

Hi, I'm 4 months into my DMP with Stepchange - I set it up before most of the accounts had defaults as I just wanted a resolution.

One of my largest debts have now said that as my payments are under control (paying more than the minimum payment) they'll revert to adding interest and fees again. I could only get my payments under control while interest was stopped.
 
Am I best to stop paying this debt altogether until it defaults, or do I ask Stepchange to contact them asking to stop the interest again? As I'm in Scotland, the other option I have is to go for a DPP - but it seems like the last resort for now. 

StepChange_Aidan

Lemonade_budget said:

Hi, I'm 4 months into my DMP with Stepchange - I set it up before most of the accounts had defaults as I just wanted a resolution.

One of my largest debts have now said that as my payments are under control (paying more than the minimum payment) they'll revert to adding interest and fees again. I could only get my payments under control while interest was stopped.
 
Am I best to stop paying this debt altogether until it defaults, or do I ask Stepchange to contact them asking to stop the interest again? As I'm in Scotland, the other option I have is to go for a DPP - but it seems like the last resort for now. 

Hi,

Thanks for your post.

Normally your creditors will freeze interest and charges when you’re in a DMP, but they don’t have to. If you can still technically meet the minimum payments, there’s less of an incentive for them to agree.

I’d recommend giving StepChange a call so we can review your DMP and work out the best approach to deal with this debt.

Kind regards,

Aidan

asp746

Hi, I had very good credit until I checked my score and found 2 x ccjs each for the sum of £250.  It appears that i've told dvla i've moved but not changed the logbook and so missed two parking fines.  I've found out too late to pay the amounts off in order to get the ccjs cancelled but they could have a serious impact on my employment. 

Is it worth attempting to fill a court form out to explain, i accept forgetting to update the logbook and i'm happy to pay the £257 and any fee to get the ccj cancelled.  Ironically,  a week after i contacted the court to enquire about what the ccjs were for a debt collector has been in touch (the letter doesn't tell me what I owe the money for just I owe it) but i've still not heard from the court.  

StepChange_Aidan

asp746 said:

Hi, I had very good credit until I checked my score and found 2 x ccjs each for the sum of £250.  It appears that i've told dvla i've moved but not changed the logbook and so missed two parking fines.  I've found out too late to pay the amounts off in order to get the ccjs cancelled but they could have a serious impact on my employment. 

Is it worth attempting to fill a court form out to explain, i accept forgetting to update the logbook and i'm happy to pay the £257 and any fee to get the ccj cancelled.  Ironically,  a week after i contacted the court to enquire about what the ccjs were for a debt collector has been in touch (the letter doesn't tell me what I owe the money for just I owe it) but i've still not heard from the court.  

Hi,

Thanks for posting.

If you have CCJs that you don’t agree with, it may be possible to apply to have them ‘set aside’. The court is only likely to agree to this if you have a good reason for not responding to the original forms, you will also need a defence against the claim. An application to set aside a judgement costs £275, but you may be able to apply for help with fees if you’re on a low income.

If the forms were sent to an old address, the court may not agree that this is a valid reason to set aside the judgement. Paperwork will be sent to what is believed to be your current address, for parking fines they will usually get this information from the DVLA.

There’s some more information on the set aside process here.

If you agree that you owe the debts it may be easier to come to an arrangement to repay them. The CCJs will still show on your credit file for six years, but they will show as ‘satisfied’ when they have been paid in full.

I hope this helps.

Aidan

jemima72

Hi, I have a very large debt with my current energy supplier. They say they can't set up a payment plan for any longer than 36 months unless I agree to a pre payment meter, which I am hesitant to do. I am finding it impossible to keep up with ongoing usage and the payment plan so more debt is building. If I was to apply for a debt relief order can it include debt with a current supplier? And if this is possible, could they then chase my husband for it as he lives at the same property and obviously uses the energy too? Thanks! 

StepChange_Aidan

jemima72 said:

Hi, I have a very large debt with my current energy supplier. They say they can't set up a payment plan for any longer than 36 months unless I agree to a pre payment meter, which I am hesitant to do. I am finding it impossible to keep up with ongoing usage and the payment plan so more debt is building. If I was to apply for a debt relief order can it include debt with a current supplier? And if this is possible, could they then chase my husband for it as he lives at the same property and obviously uses the energy too? Thanks! 

Hi Jemima,

Thanks for your post.

A Debt Relief Order would include arrears with your current energy supplier (the balance owed on the date of your application).

If your contract with the energy supplier is in your name only, your husband cannot be pursued for the arrears. He would still be liable to pay if it is in joint names.

I hope this helps.

Aidan

Truckered

Some quick advice please. 

Separated from partner in April and moved into rented flat. 

Got a part time job contract for 19.5 hrs a week but can work up to 30 quite easily if want. 

Just been looking at all debts ie credit cards mobile phones and such plus penalties from hmrc all in all total around £19K 
Now I’ve been looking at changing jobs and could start earning around £700 a week take home. 

So with this in mind should I go bankrupt now while on low income and stick it out for the year or start new job and take 2-3 years to clear all debts, which would probably have same outcome on my credit file but take a couple years longer by paying off over the years.