Self- Management DMP- Help

loconnor89

we've decided to self manage our own DMP Plan.

my main question is, what do each bank (credit card or loan) ask from us once we say we can only afford X amount each month. Is it 3 months bank statements? wage slips? or is it just an email/phone call back and too? 

any tips on what to say/do.

 And the letting all the accounts go into default, is this 100% the best thing to do??

we've always said we would like to move in a few years, we own our home. so is the default thing the best thing to do?

I feel sick to my stomach with worry over everything. 

our total debt is around 97K, we've worked out that the max we can ideally afford is £400pm, so this is essential a 20yr plan. would this be ok? 

thanks in advance 

RAS

The less information you provide your creditors the better. Unless they get CCJs, they cannot demand anything, you just tell them what they are getting.

Would suggest you just stop paying.

Have you looked at the information about affordability complaints on Debt Camel? Might be a good first move. Expect initial rejections and then some wins on appeal.

loconnor89

thank you - I will have a look at debt camel.

what does it take for it to reach a CCJ? this is all new to us.

this may sound silly Q, but do we literally go onto our bank and cancel all the direct debits? or do this through each bank

Also, from reading online, we have a joint Lloyds account, no debt with Lloyds but we have 2 Halifax Credit cards. should we switch joint accounts? As i am sure they are part of the same group. 

bazdvd

are any of the debts secured on the property?

loconnor89

No none of the debts are secured. 

Rob5342

loconnor89 said:

Also, from reading online, we have a joint Lloyds account, no debt with Lloyds but we have 2 Halifax Credit cards. should we switch joint accounts? As i am sure they are part of the same group. 

They are essentially the same thing just with a different colour scheme. You should make sure you don't have any money with banks that are part of the same group to avoid the right of set off. 

gwynlas

They all wanted me to cmplete a SOA and requested same each year.

I simply told them that I had completed one  for my own use , that there were other creditors and that I had worked out what I could comfortably afford to pay moving forward.

They all accepted payment offerred but qualified this by saying that they would keep it under review.

For the most part you are dealing with call centre staff anyway and most debts are not in the  00;s of 000;s league

ManyWays

our total debt is around 97K, we've worked out that the max we can ideally afford is £400pm, so this is essential a 20yr plan. would this be ok? 
If 400 is all you can afford, then its all you can afford. If you want us to say more, it helps to have a list of lender names and amounts.
Affordability complaints or later settlement offers could speed this up a lot. 

we've always said we would like to move in a few years, we own our home. so is the default thing the best thing to do?
if you cant pay the minimums then you will get missed payments, payment arrangements or defaults. There are no easy options that will let you pay less and protect your credit record. 
getting defaults as early as possible gets your credit record clean sooner. But getting a new mortgage "in a few years" may be tight, not because of defaults but because of any negative marks on your credit record.

loconnor89

Thank You, we will say that same, that we have completed a SOA and have worked out our budget.

we have 12 creditors in total, so this is around £25/30 per creditor we can afford to pay. as we cant really go out £400pm. 

is it best to offer less? knowing they will come back and say more, or just be firm and stick with a certain amount? 

Grumpelstiltskin

Before you start our DMP you need an emergency fund, you are not going to have access to credit and what would happen if the boiler broke down the same week as the car failed it's MOT?

You should stop all debt payments and save as much as you can into your emergency fund.

loconnor89

yes i think we are just going to go ahead and cancel everything asap,

I am also worrying because the past few month, maybe 4 months, we have been getting cash out of the credit cards, to then pay for food and bills as things have been really tight and husband is self employed so although hes usually very busy, these past few months have been hit and miss. . So i am worried about the cash withdrawals. Will they have anything negative to say about this?