Getting out of debt

ssteer

I'm off to the CAB tomorrow to get this debt sorted. I'm also clearing half my final electricity bill even though I think npower have grossly overcharged me for where I was living but I think I've left it too late to question it. I just hope the CAB provide me with some useful information rather than what I already know and in fact if I had done this a year ago then I'd probably not be in the doodoo I am now. Well I'll learn from my mistakes and I have no intention whatsoever of ever getting another loan or credit card as they just aren't worth the hassle and if I really want that one thing, I'm just going to have to save for it.

ssteer

Went to the CAB with the debt pack they sent to me in the post because I didn't trust myself to send it back via post because I'd forget (memory problems are something I hate but I'm sure it'll get better) and they took it, photocopied my bank statement and told me I'd have to wait 2-3 weeks for an appointment. In the meantime if any of my creditors phone me, tell them I'm now a client of the CAB and they usually back off according to them. My interview's been changed as the person who was interviewing me is off sick and they're going to send me some stuff in the post about the organisation I want to work for.

PENNYWISE_3

ssteer wrote: »

Quick question before I sign off, I actually dispute what I owe npower as I think I was way overcharged for my electricity. I would have changed providers whilst I was living on my own but given I was only at the property 10 months and three of those were spent at my parents house during the floods I decided it wasn't worth it. Basically I had a bedsit, one room, a kitchen, a bathroom and tiny hallway and I was being charged £45 a month for that whereas my friend who has a two bedroomed house was only being charged £20 by the same company. I didn't really use a lot of electricity, turned my TV and computer off at night, never left anything on standby and I never ran a heater in the winter even though the place was freezing. Is it worth saying I dispute it or should I just pay it off and consider it over and done with?


Any help is appreciated and I thank you all for your suggestions.

wanted to say hi & hope all went well with the job interview.
sounds like u doing all the right things, although it may seem hard now you've taken a massive step fowards in acknowledging your debt and starting to sort it all out, well done.

with regards to npower bill, did you take a meter reading when you left the property & give it to npower when u left? have you advised them that you are no longer living there? Maybe they have overcharged you based on the average energy use of people who lived their before u, i know I was overcharged by about £80 on my first bill.

ssteer

I took a final meter reading when I left and submitted it to npower but the whole time I was in the property I didn't get meter readings because the meter was in the cellar and there are rats down there and I'm scared of rats. I told them I wasn't living there anymore and everything. I've already paid half of it off today so I've decided it's not worth disputing it. I know the person who lived in the flat before me was in serious debt because I found a notice from the bailiffs with the post in the main hallway so I don't know if that had anything to do with it.

ssteer

Phoned the CCCS and I have an appointment on Wednesday morning. Phoned Severn Trent on Friday (yet another bill I forgot about) and arranged to pay them £5.30 a month to clear an outstanding bill of £52.99 although I think it's a bit of a cheek that I should still pay them given that I was without water for three weeks during the floods and had to spend three months at my parents house but anyway, I know I owe that money so therefore I'm paying it.

Managed to cancel my bike insurance without a cancellation fee because some lovely vandals have smashed in my ignition rendering it useless until I have the money to get it repaired so it seemed pointless to pay for my insurance when my bike is off the road. As such, I've managed to save £80 not paying for petrol/insurance/MOT/tax so now have spare money to throw at my debts.

I''m feeling a lot more positive with getting this problem under control. But have just run out of ink for my printer so I'll have to try and find the power cable for my other one (I'm selling the one without ink to a friend for £10) which does have ink. I think I'm going to rummage around in the house and find stuff to ebay.

ssteer

I had my appointment with CCCS and they recommended a DMP to me so I'm going to do that, just waiting for all the paperwork to come. I'm definitely feeling a lot more positive

ssteer

Grr, that obnoxious man rang from 1st Credit and I told him I was going on a DMP with CCCS but he said 'it's not going to make any difference and we need to clear the balance now'. I just hung up on him, I got so frustrated.