I'm in a pickle!

1971blair

First post hi all!

To say I'm in a pickle is a slight understatement!

I owe £18k on 2 personal credit cards (11k of which is company debt) (same lender)

I run a small business (Ltd) & have a business overdraft of £15k which is at its limit (NatWest tell me I have personally secured it although I can't recall signing agreeing to this when we took it out).

The company has a Van (worth £9k + vat) on finance £8.5K (personally secured)

I've not missed any payments yet.

I'm in the process of getting a divorce & our house is up for sale.

& the icing on the cake is I have to go into hospital & have an operation in a few weeks & the recovery time is upto 3 months so I'll not be able to work & in all honesty most if not all of my customers will find new suppliers in that time.

I've not missed any payments on anything yet but I'll not be able to pay anything while I'm off.

What do I do?

Sea78

It would definitely be worth contatcing the CAB about this for really solid advice regarding your business - you obviously can't leave things as they are. Sounds like a hard time in your life - hugs to you.

Sea xxx

wilkster5

Well you have come to the right place. Do you have any insurance incase of sickness etc. I'm sure people will be along to help soon!

Sus1e

Have you contacted the Loan companies and Bank to tell them that you will be unable to make any payments/only able to make reduced payments for X period due to your circumstances?

You may find that they are understanding as long as they know what is going on.

The other thing is have you got any payment protection insurance on the finance for the Van? This may kick in and cover the Van finance for this period.

barron_hard_up

Speak to your lenders, tell them exactly what is happening, and what you expect to be able to do once you are recovered from surgery. Having a plan will be a big plus in this situation.

Having experience in sales, have you thought about informing your customers of your forthcoming absence and asking them if they will forward order products from you? You could then arrange for their delivery while you recuperate - it's amazing how much you can accomplish over the phone. Also, although this would be an intitial outlay, you could employ someone to take care of the business for you for a few months, working with them from your home as you recover. This would of course put a strain on you, but it is better than losing your business.