Where is the support

symesd

I have been In a DMP since Dec 2023 and I don't think I've had any support from Sttepchange really
They never reply to emails 
They never answer your questions 
So how exactly are they helping
I've never have any advice
They set up my plan 
I pay in every month 
And nothing else
I had a big bill come in Aug last year so I said I can't pay for 3 months and they said my plan will now fail.
I've been lucky enough to have  some money now and want to settle my debts 
I've sent two emails directly and two through the website to ask for help in paying off my debts but not had a reply 

Grumpelstiltskin

Well the answer is cancel your  DMP now and sort everything out yourself.

If you are not happy with Stepchange there is no problem running the DMP yourself.

enthusiasticsaver

I agree you could run the DMP yourself.  It is a free charity and they must be snowed under at the moment with lots of people unable to manage their debts. They set up your plan.  What questions did you ask them? 

Rob5342

I used them when I started my DMP. They are funded by the creditors which puts them in a tricky position where they have to advocate an approach that's geared more towards serving the creditors best interests rather than yours. Having said that, I found them helpful and approachable on the occasions that I needed to contact them.

If you are looking at making settlement offers then you really need to approach the creditors yourself to see what agreement you can come to. You certainly don't want to use Stepchange for that as they will just want you to pay everything you have available split proprtionally between all the creditors. 

dankemp

symesd said:

I have been In a DMP since Dec 2023 and I don't think I've had any support from Sttepchange really
They never reply to emails 
They never answer your questions 
So how exactly are they helping
I've never have any advice
They set up my plan 
I pay in every month 
And nothing else
I had a big bill come in Aug last year so I said I can't pay for 3 months and they said my plan will now fail.
I've been lucky enough to have  some money now and want to settle my debts 
I've sent two emails directly and two through the website to ask for help in paying off my debts but not had a reply 

I am new here but read a lot from this forum that was far better than the charities, different people need different support.  I thought all my debt was long statute barred but the vile vermin still try it on.

It seems to me that the DMP damaged your credit record and the damage will have been done to your credit record for 6 years from when it all started.  There are a lot of posts on here about how to get the best settlements, mostly based on how close to a debt being statute barred.  if you are making payments I think you are keeping the debt alive and they would only accept a low ball offer if you were paying a very small amount.

Personally, even if I won the lottery I would not want to settle any of my old debts, the industry lends irresponsibly and factors in bad debt.

To me (based on advice offered here) a DMP is not about making payments via a charity, it is about getting 60% knocked off the debt by not paying a penny and using the money saved to build up a fighting fund for eventual settlement.  I would suggest you decide whether you really want to pay off these debts at current balances or decide to start over and pay nothing until you get the 60% off settlement offers.

I am in a position where I have nothing to lose (or give) so get advice from others here, you might have a property and need a credit record improved or you might be getting a car.  If your debts have been sold it would have been for pennies in the pound, so factor that in.

sourcrates

symesd said:

I have been In a DMP since Dec 2023 and I don't think I've had any support from Sttepchange really
They never reply to emails 
They never answer your questions 
So how exactly are they helping
I've never have any advice
They set up my plan 
I pay in every month 
And nothing else
I had a big bill come in Aug last year so I said I can't pay for 3 months and they said my plan will now fail.
I've been lucky enough to have  some money now and want to settle my debts 
I've sent two emails directly and two through the website to ask for help in paying off my debts but not had a reply 

Well what is it you want to know?

Their sole role is to pay your creditors, they work out the arrangement and send on your payment, that is basically it.

They have 100`s of thousands of clients on their books they simply don`t have the time or the staff to answer every little enquiry you may have, its a basic free service they offer, if you want support, then look to this or other debt related websites as we have the time to answer questions and respond to you.

kimwp

dankemp said:

It seems to me that the DMP damaged your credit record and the damage will have been done to your credit record for 6 years from when it all started.  There are a lot of posts on here about how to get the best settlements, mostly based on how close to a debt being statute barred.  if you are making payments I think you are keeping the debt alive and they would only accept a low ball offer if you were paying a very small amount.

To me (based on advice offered here) a DMP is not about making payments via a charity, it is about getting 60% knocked off the debt by not paying a penny and using the money saved to build up a fighting fund for eventual settlement.  I would suggest you decide whether you really want to pay off these debts at current balances or decide to start over and pay nothing until you get the 60% off settlement offers.

I'm squeezed for time so will try to post later explaining, but you are mixing up a few things here.

tigergambit

symesd said:

I have been In a DMP since Dec 2023 and I don't think I've had any support from Sttepchange really
They never reply to emails 
They never answer your questions 
So how exactly are they helping
I've never have any advice
They set up my plan 
I pay in every month 
And nothing else
I had a big bill come in Aug last year so I said I can't pay for 3 months and they said my plan will now fail.
I've been lucky enough to have  some money now and want to settle my debts 
I've sent two emails directly and two through the website to ask for help in paying off my debts but not had a reply 

If you can't pay you should tell Stepchange so and get them to deal with your creditors and stop/reduce your payments. 

You are on the cusp of the time when creditors start to consider F&Fs seriously but if you are paying a token amount through Stepchange I would be inclined to continue doing so for a few months whilst planning a method of approach with the F&Fs.

You should deal directly with creditors on the F&Fs. This will mean severing ties with Stepchange but as payments are suspended once you make an offer that is irrelevant. Do not tell Stepchange or anyone else how much you have available for settlements. Prepare your paperwork, start low and keep good records. Be prepared for long negotiations and be willing to walk away from these. You can always go back.

RAS

dankemp said:

symesd said:

I have been In a DMP since Dec 2023 and I don't think I've had any support from Sttepchange really
They never reply to emails 
They never answer your questions 
So how exactly are they helping
I've never have any advice
They set up my plan 
I pay in every month 
And nothing else
I had a big bill come in Aug last year so I said I can't pay for 3 months and they said my plan will now fail.
I've been lucky enough to have  some money now and want to settle my debts 
I've sent two emails directly and two through the website to ask for help in paying off my debts but not had a reply 

I am new here but read a lot from this forum that was far better than the charities, different people need different support.  I thought all my debt was long statute barred but the vile vermin still try it on.

Stepchange is a charity, which is better than a company that sells the same service for a fee.

It seems to me that the DMP damaged your credit record and the damage will have been done to your credit record for 6 years from when it all started.  There are a lot of posts on here about how to get the best settlements, mostly based on how close to a debt being statute barred.  if you are making payments I think you are keeping the debt alive and they would only accept a low ball offer if you were paying a very small amount.

Any payment of less than the contracted sum for any reason damages your credit record.

If there is a period of 6 years after the default is issued, the debt becomes statute barred. If you are paying towards the debt, it does not become statue barred.

If a default is issued, both debts you are paying and debts that become statute barred are removed from your credit record after 6 years, whether the debt is cleared or not.

If the default is not issued because you have an arrangement to pay, AP markers can be issued for some time and damage your credit record for 6 years after the debt is paid off.

Personally, even if I won the lottery I would not want to settle any of my old debts, the industry lends irresponsibly and factors in bad debt. 

That's your choice. 

Agree that the credit industry factors in non-payment, which is why those deemed higher risk pay higher interest payments. The hope is to get the 'capital' returned before the borrower defaults. 

To me (based on advice offered here) a DMP is not about making payments via a charity, it is about getting 60% knocked off the debt by not paying a penny and using the money saved to build up a fighting fund for eventual settlement.  I would suggest you decide whether you really want to pay off these debts at current balances or decide to start over and pay nothing until you get the 60% off settlement offers.

A DMP is about making payments. It's up to the individual debtor to decide their tactics and whether they use a charity to do the leg work for all or part of the time.

Non payment after default risks legal action, particularly as the debt gets closer to being statute barred. Legal action seems less likely if payments are being made, although some creditors and some debt collectors are more aggressive about taking action.

It's also up to debtors whether they use a debt charity to negotiate full and final offers. Stepchange generally use lump sums to pay money to creditors pro rata. 

I am in a position where I have nothing to lose (or give) so get advice from others here, you might have a property and need a credit record improved or you might be getting a car.  If your debts have been sold it would have been for pennies in the pound, so factor that in.

Some comments in bold above. 

A lot of us on MSE suggest making sure debts are defaulted before making reduced payments, because it reduces the length of time your credit record is damaged. 

Some people want to hand over payments to someone else to manage and a debt charity doesn't charge a fee. Their reasons vary a lot.

Others find the opportunity and responsibility to self manage empowering.

When people have lump sums or receive good offers of discounted settlements. Debt charities may not be able to handle the process they way you want.

But even if people self manage for a while to sort out 'full and finals'/discounted settlements they still have the option of self managing going forward or asking the charity to manage again. 

fatbelly

It's much more difficult to give proper debt advice from within an FCA accredited organisation these days. Old timers may remember National Debtline employees giving excellent advice on these boards. But not now.

Stepchange do what they do within the regulatory framework. Fortunately we're not yet constrained on mse.