Just started DMP, seem to be getting deeper in debt??

moneydesperate_x

I wonder if you good people would be able to help/advise me....

I have just started a DMP with CCCS, I have approx £37,000 of unsecured debt sadly. I had a shopping addiction, which after Counselling I am dealing with.

When I started the plan, I must admit I thought that it was my first step to me getting out of debt, I had stopped taking money from one credit card to pay another and finally starting to pay it off, even if it may be say £5 to each creditor etc. However so far I seem to be getting more debt, as all the creditors are putting on interest charges, late payment fees, admin fees etc.
I knew that Lloyds TSB, MBNA and GE money would be the worst (which they have not disappointed me) but I am now starting to get stressed as i am not spending any money, trying to sort it all out and pay it all back, but so far I am racking up about £200 extra debt per month.

I had a letter from GE money saying thanks for my budget (sent from CCCS) but they want £41.00 per month, not £30 per month! My budget is so tight i really dont have any spare money, but they seem to think I can magic it to pay them off.

Really sorry for me ranting on, Im just felling so sad as I thought I had made the first steps to getting debt free, only to find i am being charged left right and centre in interest.

Has anyone been through this and survived? How do you politely explain to creditors thats all the money I have? (By the way I dont do politely to creditors, I am avoiding talking to them on the phone as i will be really rude and horrible) so its letters only incase i upset someone enough to undo all the good CCCS have done!

Donedoingdebt

Try & hang on in there. The vast majority of us have been through this frustrating stage. Stick to your guns & keep doing exactly what CCCS advise.
Every time an awkward creditor contacts you, just tell them that CCCS are dealing with your situation & you are unable to offer any more to any one creditor as this would be unfair to the others.
Eventually, these creditors will get the message that you can't afford to pay any more to them & will usually hand the debts over to their respective DCAs. This is often the point at which charges & interest will be frozen.
Unfortunately, the debt can often increase in the early days of a DMP until things settle down.

bestmumof3

Do you have any secured debt?

Also, how much equity do you have within your property? Is a DMP the only solution?

If you stay in Scotland you could look at a Protected Trust Deed, which will clear off all your debts within 3 years. My husband had to do that.

If not in Scotland, would bankuptcy be an option?

moneydesperate_x

bestmumof3 wrote: »

Do you have any secured debt?

Also, how much equity do you have within your property? Is a DMP the only solution?

If you stay in Scotland you could look at a Protected Trust Deed, which will clear off all your debts within 3 years. My husband had to do that.

If not in Scotland, would bankuptcy be an option?

Thank you for your post.
I am in England, I own half a property, my share is mortgaged, and bankrupcy is not an option as I will lose my job and my home.
None of the debts are secured, all unsecured thank god!
I think the DMP is the way forward for me, I can pay the debts back, its just going to take me a bit longer than the companies would like!

Thank you again for your posts.

churchrat

hi
just stick at it. I know its really hard at first but the interest will stop after a while and if you just keep repeating "I don't have anymore money" they will accept it after a while. I know it sucks though--our debt went up for a few months after we started our dmp, but its seems to be ok now
good luck

System

Hey MD, remember you can claim bank charges, late payment charges even if you are on a DMP. I am sure the interest will be frozen soon enough. Contact CCCS if you have any concerns they mau have some news that will put your mind at rest.

Gemmzie

Don't worry too much, let CCCS do their stuff and keep an eye on the statements they give you. Then you might later find that you can offer a F&F settlement and use the charges to your advantage to get them to accept less.

moneydesperate_x

lennymfo wrote: »

Hey MD, remember you can claim bank charges, late payment charges even if you are on a DMP. I am sure the interest will be frozen soon enough. Contact CCCS if you have any concerns they mau have some news that will put your mind at rest.

Hi
Thanks for this, yes I should look into claiming back all the charges, it would total about 3,000 over time.
Not really sure how I go about it though, I thought they had put a stop on claiming until the court case has finished?

CCCS have been really great, its just so worrying that I may end up with lots of CCJ's against me, as I do own property, but I own the mortgaged bit!

Thanks again to you all

moneydesperate_x

Gemmzie wrote: »

Don't worry too much, let CCCS do their stuff and keep an eye on the statements they give you. Then you might later find that you can offer a F&F settlement and use the charges to your advantage to get them to accept less.

Thanks for your post.
What happens about F&F payments? As i dont have any money and cant get any credit I cant really pay any large sums to any creditors. Unless of course I claim back the charges, but Lloyds can be nasty about these Ive heard?

System

Hey MD have a look on the Bank Charges forum start here maybe http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=400981
but dont stop there look at the other threads and if you cant get your head round it, just start a thread. Lenny

moneydesperate_x

lennymfo wrote: »

Hey MD have a look on the Bank Charges forum start here maybe http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=400981
but dont stop there look at the other threads and if you cant get your head round it, just start a thread. Lenny

Thank you, I will have a look now, after taking the step to contact CCCS, then going on the DMP, i feel i cant stop there, so this will be the next thing to get my teeth into. Once Lloyds have given me my money back, I can pay them back!

Thanks again for your help, much appreciated