Moving from StepChange to Self Managed DMP...

stu12345_2

step changes policy is for you to pay as much as possible to your creditors in order to be debt free as fast as possible whilst at the same time pay your essential bills and live a reasonable quality of life.

however as I stated they have a problem with their emergency fund allowance, that is where you have to be creative to suit you.

you aren't breaking any rules or laws or regulations or such, cos it's informal.
but you have to arrange the plan to "suit  you" , not stepchange or the creditors.

yes, step change want to see wage slips or proof of earnings when you start a plan with them, but they never see your gas, elec, Tesco shopping , petrol bills,etc.
that's where you have to be "creative" with your budget and plan, in order to build a good emergency fund, even if it means creditors have to be paid back  at a slower rate.so be it.

just do as others suggest, stop plan, then make your own plan to pay your creditors yourself when you are ready and prepared and organised 

sourcrates

LucyGalbo said:

Hello all 
I've been on a DMP with StepChange for three years and my debt currently stands at £2,555 and I owe to six creditors - four are with debt collection agencies and two are still with the original creditor. 
SC have been brilliant and a life saver at the start of the plan - the thing is I have been considering going self managed now as the debts are all reduced down quite a bit and I want to throw any extra money at them when I can, I also think it should be quite easy when it comes to the ones with DCAs, as they seem to have ways on the websites to set up your own payment.
A few questions if anyone can help

1) Do I just phone Stepchange and simply tell them I'm closing the plan?

2) For the two that are still currently with creditors, one is Bamboo and one is Capital One - the Bamboo website allows me to pay on there so that should be okay, but Capital One, I'm unsure of how to go about paying myself - I'm blocked out of my app and online account due to being on a DMP I guess, so how do I go about paying this?

3) Do you think they will all allow me a months breathing space to get my own plan and new budget in order?

Thank you very much 

Your debt level is now at such a low point, its not worth worrying over.

Going self managed is a brilliant idea, and one we encourage on this forum, you don`t need to do breathing space, you are not under formal contract to pay these debts, what you have is an unofficial arrangement with some debt collectors, you can make payments ad hoc, or not at all, its up to you.

With Capital one, I would wait until they sell the debt on, or it becomes statute barred, which ever is the sooner, I would not worry about that one.

Just cancel the payment to stepchange and inform them by email, then do your own thing when you are ready, nothing could be easier.

fatbelly

LucyGalbo said:

You've both been very helpful I'm just a little nervous about the start of the self managed, I know it should all be okay and I feel better now that my balances aren't exactly huge anymore. Part of me feels like phoning Stepchange and explaining I need a reduced
/no payment month, but I did this once like a year and a half ago and the advisor was quite judgey and rude and it really threw me off as I wasn't expecting it, which has now give me the fear to go on the phone to them again.

If anyone has an experience like that, they should make a written complaint.

I used to recommend Stepchange with no qualms but these days think self-managed has all the advantages.

Your stages now, if you want to bring this to a close are

Say goodbye to Stepchange
Do cca requests on all relevant debts, that is loans, credit cards, catalogues, not overdrafts, utilities, mobile phones
Save your monthly payment plus as much as you can into a fighting find
Offer full and final settlement on those that either don't need a cca or have supplied one, starting at 25%

EssexHebridean

Remember that when you go self managed you will be the one making your own rules. Stepchange can be brilliant - it sounds like they have mostly been for you until this point, but now you have the confidence to look at going self managed and that really is great. Echoing what has been said - you can cancel the Stepchange DMP, do nothing for a month or two and then start making payments to them all again, OR you can focus on just making token payments to all bar the smallest and throw everything spare at that one, then when that is clear move on to the next smallest, and so on. 

This could be a really good time to go back through your budget and make sure everything is still up to date, cast an eye for anywhere you think you might be able to make further savings or indeed anywhere that you think you need to aocate a bit extra to than what you have been allowing. 

It’s not at all surprising that you feel anxious about phoning Stepchange again when you felt that someone was being judgemental etc last time - as said, you don’t need to feel that you have to call them at all, you can just make the cancellation by email. 

Well done for getting this far, too! 

LucyGalbo

Thank you all so much, I really appreciate all the helpful replies Well I've done it! Email sent to Stepchange to confirm I'm cancelling their DMP, thanked them very much for how helpful they have been in the past few years and now it's time to brave the big bad world of debt collection by myself haha! I will start this week working out my plan to tackle it by myself but I almost feel... liberated now as I am able to call the shots. Fun fun fun haha

sourcrates

@LucyGalbo

That`s the spirit, once they stop receiving payment from stepchange, the collection companies will write to you.

It will take them a few weeks to realise payments have stopped, things move very slowly in the world of debt collection, a reflection of just how many clients these companies have on their books.

You may get the usual round of collection letters again, but there is no rush to engage with them.

fatbelly

You will get letters saying 'we may do this' and 'we may do that'.

Your debts average less than £500 each. They won't do anything.

LucyGalbo

The thought of receiving letters again is the worst part, that was the nice thing of the kind of "safety bubble" of being with SC.. I'm hoping to review my budget and update the debts with debt collectors on their websites and offer my new payment plan via their online portals in this coming month, so I'm hoping that will kinda hault the letters from them. In terms of the two that are not with DC agencies, I think I will message Bamboo and make a token payment this month and follow @sourcrates advice with Capital One and just forget about them completely for now.

sourcrates

LucyGalbo said:

The thought of receiving letters again is the worst part

Back when I was in debt, I use to stick them all on the back of a door and read them over and over again, and it occurred to me that they all said absolutely nothing, we may report to your credit file, we may ring you, we may write to you again, those letters are all computer generated and designed with just one result in mind, to get you to contact them, that`s it, debt collectors rely on your subconscious misgivings to get the better of you, don`t let them.

Rob5342

They have a set of standard letters they work through,  gradually going up in threat level. As long as you don't leave it too long there is no need to get worried about them.

I wouldn't recommend Stepchange any more, they seek to get the maximum possible amount repaid to the creditors at the expense of you financial future. As Stu mentions you sometimes have to create a budget specifically for them that's different to your actual budget, which is just extra hassle for no reason.

I went self managed and it was a very good move. I just emailed Stepchange to say I was cancelling the plan, and then set up standing orders to the creditors. I left a month between stopping Stepchange and paying directly and save that month's payment.

I'd pay them less than you can afford, out the difference into a full and final offer fund. That way you might be able to knock a few off early. Also make CCA requests as there may be some that are unenforceable that you could stop paying.