DMP Mutual Support Thread (Part Three)

Marru

HI,

I just have to enter into this conversation:

I :heart2: Labradors

Mine is now 14 years old lady but was she a terror when she was a puppy!

Marru

simbalou

Hi Crysta,

I cant offer much advice apart from you've done all you can before you go away and if there is a problem then deal with it when you get back. Enjoy your holiday, try and push everything to the back of your mind.

The first letters you'll recieve are quite mild from creditors just asking to reinstate direct debits so don't worry too much. I even had a nice lady from marbles on the phone today who agreed to hold all interest and charges until they hear form cccs in due course. I'm sure they will turn sometime soon though!!!

I forgot to include some paperwork while setting up by dmp at the moment but the way I see it is that I've started down that road now and if it's delayed by a week or so it doesn't matter (I've got 16 years to pay my debts off so it's a drop in the ocean really)

Enjoy your holiday and sort the stuff out when you get home.

PS Rayday I have a lab/collie dog who's 1 year old and continues to routinely destroy everything in the house and garden. I'm only leniant with her because she's a rescue dog!!

loopylu36

Hi Crysta

YES, it does get better! I had a "moment" not so long back when I just wanted to climb into a hole and never come out again But look at my last post - pretty much eveyone has accepted DMP and wehavent had any nasty phon calls at all. Even NR were (almst) pleasant.

Enjoy your holiday - at least with money going into a new bank account you won't spend all holiday worrying about whether you are over your o/d limit or whether any dds have bounced. The worst that can happen whist you are away is that you will have some letters saying "we do not appeaf to have received last month's payment..." But those letters didn't phase me in the slightest as they are just computer generated.

I took a long time to get on the DFW/DMP train (it kept leaving without me:D ) and if I can do it then anyone can - honestly things are never as bad as you imagine them to be (except thi keyboard at the moebt which is driving menuts cos it keeps sticing and missing out letters!)


Thought for the day:

"If you always do what you've always done, you will always get what you've always got"

WhoopieDoodle

Hello everyone. I've not posted in ages so thought I would pop my head in and say hello. OH and I have been working, working, working so really busy.

To those of you just starting out on your DMP journey, everything will get better. At first the whole situation seems to encompass your whole life, you eat, drink and sleep worrying about debt. But, as time goes on the letters and phone calls will lesson, you will begin to feel in control and you will find that days start to go by and you don't even give the debt a thought.

I was pretty obsessed with it at first and worrying myself silly. However, as time goes on you realise you are doing all you can to sort the situation out and it does get easier. And, we are better off financially now as we are able to save a little for emergencies etc and we love paying cash for items instead of sticking it on a card. I managed to save up for a new pair of shoes. It took me two months, but it was lovely going shopping knowing I was paying cash and wouldn't be in debt over my purchase.

It's not a bed of roses, don't get me wrong, but you do begin to realise that there is more to life and there is a light at the end of the tunnel, no matter how faraway that may be.

Anyway, I had better stop typing now as I am beginning to fall asle .....ep zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

WhoopieDoodle

PS - 6 months in and all creditors have accepted DMP - Nasty West are still adding interest but received a nice phone call last week to say it had passed to Collections Dept. and interest will stop. We very rarely get phone calls now the only correspondence we receive are statements, nothing else. And if it kicks off again in the future, we are ready to deal with it with a much stronger frame of mind than when we began this journey.

hammertim

Hi to everyone on this thread..

I have just received my pack from cccs and I have a few questions if anyone can help me...

1. My salary goes into my first direct account on the 19th of each month, I understand that it is a good idea to open a new account with another bank and have my salary and my partners paid into that.. especially as I have a £3000 overdraft with them which is almost at the limit and a consolidation loan which is payable every month.. But how quick can a new account be opened and all my existing direct debits which need to be paid be transferred..

2. And I have a couple of credit cards which need paying before the Dmp starts do you think that sending approx 50% of the minimum payment is reasonable..

Thanks for any help
This is a great site...

Hammertim

Toffee_Penny

Hi Hammertim I am new to all this too just waiting to hear from CCCS to start up my DMP, can't wait to start living again!

As for the new account you can do this in a day, go to any bank with details about yourself e.g driving license, passport as some may ask for id when opening a new account. You will be paid on the 19th, you probably have missed the deadline for contacting the payroll department at work so I would suggest to do as I did and the very day you get paid, withdraw your wages and pay them into your new account to get money behind you for starting with CCCS.

As for transferring direct debits, obviously you need your new account set up first and then phone your priority debits e.g gas, electric, house insurance with your new account details. Most will happily take details over the phone, some may send a new mandate form out to you to complete and return.

I am with NPower, I done a runner from my old bank at the end of the month, the gas and electric were due on the 6th, obviously I had cancelled all direct debits from my old account, I called NPower and told them about my change of bank account but because the debit was due on the 6th it was too late.

Worried that I would be in trouble, the woman just said that it would automatically ask my old bank for the money but because I had cancelled it would come back unpaid, NPower will then write to me asking for my new details, it is standard practice so don't worry like me if you just miss the date. They will definitely write to you and say 'OI where's our money'?

As for making payments to your credit cards, I don't suppose it would do any harm but don't overstretch yourself, maybe you should wait to get your pack from CCCS as it includes a template to send to all your creditors explaining that you are now setting up a DMP. You can then choose to send token payments with this letter as a goodwill gesture.

Angel_Cake_3

hammertim wrote: »

Hi to everyone on this thread..

I have just received my pack from cccs and I have a few questions if anyone can help me...

1. My salary goes into my first direct account on the 19th of each month, I understand that it is a good idea to open a new account with another bank and have my salary and my partners paid into that.. especially as I have a £3000 overdraft with them which is almost at the limit and a consolidation loan which is payable every month.. But how quick can a new account be opened and all my existing direct debits which need to be paid be transferred..

2. And I have a couple of credit cards which need paying before the Dmp starts do you think that sending approx 50% of the minimum payment is reasonable..

Thanks for any help
This is a great site...

Hammertim

#

HI Hammertin, good advice from Toffe Penny there!
I have just started my DMP with Payplan, as soon as they accepted me this is what I done.....

1) Set up new bank account ( can be done immediately) Make sure your new bank is not linked to any of your creditors as they can 'arrest' any money going in.

2) Made a list of all my DDs, cancelled them straight away, and called the ones I could to give them my new bank details. Any that I could not contact just get a letter from the old bank saying the DD has been cancelled. They then contact you and ask for your bank details - easy!

3) Infomred employers and tax credits etc... of the new bank details

4) Wrote to all my creditors saying ' I am currently experiencing financial difficulties and have contacted payplan (quote ref number). I enclose a token payment in the meantime and you will be contacted by payplan ' something along those lines. The 'token' payment sent was £1 to each creditor.

That was 4 weeks ago and so far things are not too bad.

I had calls and letters initially and I just quoted my ref number. That seemed to keep creditors happy.

Payplan have now written to everyone and I am waiting now to see if they are going to accept.

Hope this helps.....

There are quite a few of us newbies on this thread and it is the best place to come for advice / help or just to get things of your chest.....

Well done for posting
Angel Cake xx

hammertim

Thanks for the advice Toffee Penny and Angel Cake been looking online at opening a new bank account and they are asking for all sorts of info such as:-

Do you have a loan
Credit hards held
Bank account no of exisiting account

Once I fill all that in are they gonna except me seeing as I am £3000 in debit and have a loan with my existing bank?

Thanks for all your help

simbalou

Hi Hammertim,

I opened a basic bank account online with the co-op and I know lloyds does one too. It just depends who your debts are with so make sure they aren't linked. I wouldn't have thought it would be a problem to open a new account because you arent asking for any more credit (ie an overdraft) you just want somewhere to put your money.

I owe lots to everyone and everywhere and didn't have a problem.

It's a great board for advice about anything, someone has always had the same problem or can offer advice.

Let us know how you get on and good luck x