Struggling with debt? Ask a debt adviser a question

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  • sourcrates
    sourcrates Posts: 28,717
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    Hi,
    Thanks for ur answer. Next question is how can we find out if the debt is statute barred? The bills are from eon for gas and electric. No contact has been made in over 6 years from either party.
    Thanks again
    Post in tbe general forum for help with this.
    I’m a Forum Ambassador and I support the Forum Team on the Debt free wannabe, Credit file and ratings, and Bankruptcy and living with it boards. If you need any help on these boards, do let me know. Please note that Ambassadors are not moderators. Any posts you spot in breach of the Forum Rules should be reported via the report button, or by emailing forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com. All views are my own and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.For free non-judgemental debt advice, contact either Stepchange, National Debtline, or CitizensAdviceBureaux.Link to SOA Calculator- https://www.stoozing.com/soa.php The "provit letter" is here-https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2607247/letter-when-you-know-nothing-about-about-the-debt-aka-prove-it-letter
  • Hi,
    Thanks for ur answer. Next question is how can we find out if the debt is statute barred? The bills are from eon for gas and electric. No contact has been made in over 6 years from either party.
    Thanks again

    [FONT=&quot]Hello[/FONT]

    [FONT=&quot]No problem. In answer to your second question,[/FONT][FONT=&quot] sometimes it’s not clear when the last payment or written acknowledgement to a debt happened. It might be hard to remember exact dates five or six years ago.[/FONT]

    [FONT=&quot]Your partner can check payments she's made to a debt by getting a copy of her credit file or looking through old bank statements. Alternatively are there any memorable life events that tie into the last payment or contact your partner had with the creditor? For example, moving house, changing jobs, separating from a partner?[/FONT]

    [FONT=&quot]If your partner still isn’t sure, there are two options:[/FONT]

    1. [FONT=&quot]Contact the creditor and tell them you believe the debt is statute-barred or extinguished, asking them to send proof if they believe this is not the case. If the creditor replies with proof of payment or written acknowledgment of the debt, she’ll need to start paying it.[/FONT]
    2. [FONT=&quot]Don’t contact the creditor and hope that the limitation period ends before they start court action. We don’t recommend this approach: if a creditor hasn’t been contacted or paid for a long time they may start court action just before the limitation period ends. Ignoring a debt greatly increases the chances of a CCJ, which could be avoided by getting in touch with the creditor sooner.[/FONT]

    [FONT=&quot]If the limitation period has passed, but your partner still wants to pay the debt, she can. But if there are other debts to pay which are not statute-barred or extinguished, your partner should think carefully about whether her money could be better used to pay these instead.[/FONT]

    [FONT=&quot]Hope this has been helpful.[/FONT]
    [FONT=&quot]
    [/FONT]

    [FONT=&quot]Joe
    [/FONT]
  • Hi I have around £20000 maybe a bit less of debt owing to several different companies mostly mail order companies (£4700) council tax arrears from a few years ago (£3000) overpaid tax credits again from few years ago (£6000) and a couple of credit cards
    My question is myself and my husband are self employed and really struggling at the moment to keep up with the payments, I've thought about an IVA as I think this would take the pressure off, is this a good idea, Credit rating is already pretty poor anyway


    Hello

    Thanks for your post and welcome to the forum.

    Because you're both currently self-employed, the best organisation to contact for help is the Business Debtline (BDL).

    BDL offer specialist help to the self-employed, including advice on tax implications, court proceedings and business liabilities, and will also be able to help with any personal debts.

    You can reach them on 0800 197 6026, Monday to Friday 9am - 8pm. You can visit their website at www.bdl.org.uk .

    I hope you've found this helpful and I wish you all the best.

    Thanks

    Joe
  • PintorUK
    PintorUK Posts: 18
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    Hi,

    Last year, due to personal circumstances (was victim of fraud, left my job with the promise of another one that never happened), all the accounts I had back then defaulted, in total I have nearly 6k in debt against companies like Lloyds, Thames Water, British Gas etc and 4k in personal debt from friends.

    I am finally managing to get back on track and want to start paying for these. I tried to develop a debt plan with StepChange but I don't think I should pay it the way they say (pro-rated for each creditor and ignoring the personal debts from friends). I want to pay the same figure as they suggest, possibly even more, but ideally equally split by all the creditors (10 in total). This would allow me to finish with the first creditor in 5 months and the last one in circa 3 years. Are the creditors likely to accept this or how can I put it to them in order to increase my chances of them accepting it?

    Thank you
  • StepChange_Allen
    StepChange_Allen Posts: 352
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    Organisation Representative
    PintorUK wrote: »
    Hi,

    Last year, due to personal circumstances (was victim of fraud, left my job with the promise of another one that never happened), all the accounts I had back then defaulted, in total I have nearly 6k in debt against companies like Lloyds, Thames Water, British Gas etc and 4k in personal debt from friends.

    I am finally managing to get back on track and want to start paying for these. I tried to develop a debt plan with StepChange but I don't think I should pay it the way they say (pro-rated for each creditor and ignoring the personal debts from friends). I want to pay the same figure as they suggest, possibly even more, but ideally equally split by all the creditors (10 in total). This would allow me to finish with the first creditor in 5 months and the last one in circa 3 years. Are the creditors likely to accept this or how can I put it to them in order to increase my chances of them accepting it?

    Thank you


    Hi there

    Thanks for posting.

    When there is debt outstanding to friends or family members we suggest the best way to tackle this is to make a pro-rata payment back to them as well as your creditors, not to ignore the personal debts. For example, if you owed £10,000 to a series of debts and £10,000 to a family member, we'd recommend splitting any available money for debts 50:50 between the creditors and the family member. You may see the suggested personal debt payment at the bottom of your budget.

    In terms of the other creditors, we have developed a way of distributing payments that is seen as fair and acceptable to creditors, and we believe this is the best way. There's no tangible benefit of clearing smaller debts first, so it's important to treat all creditors fairly to make them more likely to help you. We'd advise not to worry too much about how the money is distributed, and that as long as the plan works, that's the main thing.

    Of course if you aren't happy with the way that we operate our DMPs, there's no obligation at all to go ahead with our help.

    Best wishes

    Allen
    I work as a debt advisor for StepChange Debt Charity and have specific permission from Martin to post on these boards to try and help those in debt. Read more information on StepChange Debt Charity in the Debt Problems: What to do and where to get help article. If you find you're struggling with debt and you need further help try our online advice facility Debt Remedy.

    Don't be afraid of getting debt advice. We'll help you take one more step towards getting help with your debt.
  • hi there I need to do something about 2 credit cards I have had for years.


    CC1 is Barclaycard with limit of £11k and I currently have £41 remaining


    CC2 is MBNA with a limits of £8k and a few hundred remaining on it.


    I have recently received email about how after 18 months they will look at this due to persistent debt.


    What is the best way to deal with these cards?


    Any help would be fantastic


    thanks in advance.
  • StepChange_Rachael
    StepChange_Rachael Posts: 375
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    Organisation Representative
    Hi

    Thanks for your message.

    You’ll probably have read on the letter you recieved, that you’ll have been contacted due to new rules put in place by the FCA where creditors are now having to contact anyone who has outstanding debt, where there have been more interest and charges paid than has been paid towards the balance over a period of time.

    As you’ve mentioned you’ve almost maxed out the cards I’d certainly suggest exploring your options to find a solution to look at clearing the debt balances. The creditors are likely to want to see there is a manageable plan in place to start reducing the debt overall. It can be difficult to know the best way forward to do this without outside help as there are different types of debt solution and advice available depending on your overall financial position so i'm glad you found the forum.

    If you’ve not done so already I’d suggest speaking with a debt advisor to look into your options. If you’d like our help to do this you can find our contact details here. There are other debt advice services available but I’d recommend using a charity like us at StepChange that won’t charge you for the support and advice.

    Take care,
    Rachael







    hi there I need to do something about 2 credit cards I have had for years.


    CC1 is Barclaycard with limit of £11k and I currently have £41 remaining


    CC2 is MBNA with a limits of £8k and a few hundred remaining on it.


    I have recently received email about how after 18 months they will look at this due to persistent debt.


    What is the best way to deal with these cards?


    Any help would be fantastic


    thanks in advance.
  • Hi there,

    First post, so hope this is in the right place! I'm trying to get rid of my credit card debt but struggling to work out the best strategy to minimise interest and pay off quickly as possible.

    I have 3 cards

    MBNA: £5,200 (£6,000 limit) 21% APR
    MBNA: £6,150 (£6,700 limit) 28% APR
    TescoBank: £2000 (£2,000 limit) 0% for 36 months (just taken this out and transferred balance)
    Total debt: £13,350
    I took out the 0% card as want to try and make inroads into the debt, as previously only been paying off minimum/interest.

    I have around £500/month to put towards these cards.

    Should I be trying to pay off the 28% APR card first, whilst paying minimum on other two? Or paying off the 0% card off at a faster rate and funneling balance from the 28% across into the 0%? I'm confused! any help would be great, Thank you.

    Rich
  • Interesting reading, thank you everyone. I have hit rock bottom myself, I know I am in debt and at this moment it's payday loan after payday loan just to live. My salary keeps on top of payments, all loans paid in full or being paid but I cannot sustain it any more. I don't even know where to start to be honest. Do I issue complaints or do I speak to professionals? Do I continue to pay? I feel this post is my start to recovery but I really don't know where to begin. Any advice would be welcomed. ��

    Started 2019 with £22,5000 debt - March 2021 Debt free - stick with it people I did and now never felt better
  • pia06rc wrote: »
    Hi there,

    First post, so hope this is in the right place! I'm trying to get rid of my credit card debt but struggling to work out the best strategy to minimise interest and pay off quickly as possible.

    I have 3 cards

    MBNA: £5,200 (£6,000 limit) 21% APR
    MBNA: £6,150 (£6,700 limit) 28% APR
    TescoBank: £2000 (£2,000 limit) 0% for 36 months (just taken this out and transferred balance)
    Total debt: £13,350
    I took out the 0% card as want to try and make inroads into the debt, as previously only been paying off minimum/interest.

    I have around £500/month to put towards these cards.

    Should I be trying to pay off the 28% APR card first, whilst paying minimum on other two? Or paying off the 0% card off at a faster rate and funneling balance from the 28% across into the 0%? I'm confused! any help would be great, Thank you.

    Rich


    Hello Rich

    Thanks for your post and welcome to the forum.

    If done carefully, taking out a 0% credit card and doing a balance transfer can be a good way of minimising the interest you’ll pay and paying the debts off quickly. However, it's very important that you don’t spend any more on the card. If you do keep spending your situation will get worse, rather than better.

    Your 0% period ends in 36 months, so it's important to look closely at the details and make sure you won't be paying more than you need to once the offer expires, making you worse off. It's also essential that you carefully read the terms and conditions for your 0% card to ensure you're getting as good a deal as you think you are, and watch out for additional fees.

    If you’re concerned that the debts are going to be difficult to pay down in the long-term, even with the 0% period on your new card, we may be able to help. StepChange Debt Charity can build a budget with you, and if possible help you make an offer of payment that’s fair and affordable to clear the debts in full over a reasonable period of time.

    A good place to start is our anonymous online Debt Remedy tool. This is available 24 hours a day and takes about 20 minutes to complete. The tool will guide you through creating a budget and will then offer the best debt solution for your situation.

    I hope you’ve found this helpful.

    Joe
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