Mental Health and Debt Help Booklet Discussion

scrimperdave · 24 February 2011 at 1:47AM

The Mental Health and Debt guide is a worthy piece of work, but my experience with Barclaycard and the Financial Ombudsman was absolutely demoralising, and bears no relation to what is in the guide regarding lender and ombudsman's responsibilities to borrowers in difficulties.

6 months ago Barclaycard bullied me and harrassed me to the point I made a formal complaint to them about their conduct. I'd told them I had mental Health Problems and was living on benefits, at their request my GP wrote to them confirming their behaviour was having a seriously detrimental effect on my well-being (I was becoming suicidal).

Barclaycard wrote one of those phoney apologies (sorry you feel that way, not "Sorry for our conduct") and said "That is our final response." Nothing changed except I told them I would no longer accept telephone calls and they had to put every communication in writing.

When I rang the Financial Ombudsman about how to make a complaint about Barclaycard, I was made to feel like pond-life by a supercilious man who (in addition to lecturing me about bad credit references being important to most people) said they don't consider any complaint unless financial loss has been suffered.

I was so demoralised I just crawled back into my shell, made the payments I could afford (about half what Barclaycard would agree to on a formal basis) and have just been served with a default notice from Mercers Debt Collections Limited.

I have felt sick to my stomach for 6 days now, having nightmares and anxiety-themed dreams. I've been taking such a high dose of antidepressant for the last few months that I struggle to think clearly, and still am depressed.

What really upsets me is that Barclaycard bought my debt from Goldfish, with whom I had an affordable repayment plan. I swore I'd never do business with Barclaycard after they drove me to a suicide attempt in 1985 that I barely survived. They are aware of that.

They don't give a damn, and neither does the Financial Ombudsman.

scrimperdave · 24 February 2011 at 2:06AM

mazybel wrote: »

why is" mental health debt" any different from any other debt ? I maybe cynical but i witness every day people using their disability to there advantage .

I'm sorry, but I think you've stated your own position quite well and you may well be too cynical. Of course people with disabilities will take advantage of the few crumbs of equality thrown to them by the so-called able.

Or are you perhaps thinking of the perfectly able who exploit and abuse the concessions made to the disabled? Blue Badges - I watched a young Asian woman in a business suit park her BMW saloon car on double yellow lines in Birmingham's legal district and walk briskly away from it carrying her briefcase, but leaving a blue badge in the windscreen.

There are so many people willing to pass judgement on others whose lives and circumstances they know nothing about.

clarekneebone · 24 February 2011 at 9:30AM

thankyou martin...last week I spent 3 hours researching what financial information is around for people with schizophrenia. It was a hopeless quagmire of information and I gave up!!! My husband and I are from australia, but have returned to the UK to help our ageing parents. We left in australia our 24 yr old son who has schizophrenia to complete his degree. He wants to come over here when he is finished (at the end of this year), but is getting a disability allowance there and is worried that he may not get it here. (He has dual citizenship, but has barely worked there and not here at all).
So I ended up in tears after 3 hours...being reminded during the fruitless research about all the trauma we went through while he was very ill, and now feeling distressed that he wont get the support here he needs. So thankyou so much for the guide...I am going to forward it to him, and examine it closely myself.
I am very grateful...thanks again.

raymond_carter · 24 February 2011 at 10:03PM

thank you Martin for your mental health guide . did you know that at least two of the organizations that helped you draw up the guide are due to close in march 2011 due to govenment cuts ..they are Rethink and some mind day centers. both do a great job with the mental health problems At rethink we can grow our own fruit and veg . at Mind i can get a good meal three times a week and a warm and friendly place to visit

1maia · 25 February 2011 at 1:03AM

I have a friend, a checkout girl, who after years of numeracy lessons has finally grasped what 'average' means - 'i thought it meant you were thick! but it means normal!'etc - who is drowning in debt because she was given a credit card about five years ago and now owes -well, put it this way, she can't grasp the difference between the loan and the interest, in fact she can't grasp what interest is. She has spare income of £35 a month after bills, which is never enough for bus fares and food, she lives on end-of-line 10p crap from her supermarket (ie foul rotting stale junk) and still can't manage. By my calculations, if she gives up eating and drinking and buses, she could clear her debt in five years, provided she continues to get overtime at the current rate. My personal opinion is the credit card company were criminal to sign her up - there must be some responsibility to check people understand. The problem is, her social skills are amazing - she just seems working class (limited vocabulary, bit loud) (look, how can i express anything here and remain pc? I know i'm being super-sketchy) but she actually has very limited vocabulary and is barely numerate - she can add and subtract simple sums, that's it. So she would appear capable but if you asked her if she knew what compound interest was she would be like 'you're goin' over my head love'. Nonetheless, she was statemented at school, clearly, and hasn't a single gcse at any grade to her name, and is in receipt of some benefit related to her disability (she's secretive about it so that's all i know) so it must have been obvious if they'd done any digging. I didn't mean to go on, but it's disgusting to me. I know worse has happened, people committing suicide and stuff, she's protected by her not understanding it from worrying more than a little. (I didn't tell her my calculations.) But i still feel it's wrong, got carried away. Thanks, maia
glisteringsea@gmail.com

MSE_Martin · 25 February 2011 at 8:32PM

1maia wrote: »

I have a friend, a checkout girl, who after years of numeracy lessons has finally grasped what 'average' means - 'i thought it meant you were thick! but it means normal!'etc - who is drowning in debt because she was given a credit card about five years ago and now owes -well, put it this way, she can't grasp the difference between the loan and the interest, in fact she can't grasp what interest is. She has spare income of £35 a month after bills, which is never enough for bus fares and food, she lives on end-of-line 10p crap from her supermarket (ie foul rotting stale junk) and still can't manage. By my calculations, if she gives up eating and drinking and buses, she could clear her debt in five years, provided she continues to get overtime at the current rate. My personal opinion is the credit card company were criminal to sign her up - there must be some responsibility to check people understand. The problem is, her social skills are amazing - she just seems working class (limited vocabulary, bit loud) (look, how can i express anything here and remain pc? I know i'm being super-sketchy) but she actually has very limited vocabulary and is barely numerate - she can add and subtract simple sums, that's it. So she would appear capable but if you asked her if she knew what compound interest was she would be like 'you're goin' over my head love'. Nonetheless, she was statemented at school, clearly, and hasn't a single gcse at any grade to her name, and is in receipt of some benefit related to her disability (she's secretive about it so that's all i know) so it must have been obvious if they'd done any digging. I didn't mean to go on, but it's disgusting to me. I know worse has happened, people committing suicide and stuff, she's protected by her not understanding it from worrying more than a little. (I didn't tell her my calculations.) But i still feel it's wrong, got carried away. Thanks, maia
[EMAIL="glisteringsea@gmail.com"]glisteringsea@gmail.com[/EMAIL]

IF you look in the guide there is information about the mental capacity act - which may be able to help in this case - though definitions are not easy.

brendayorkshirelass · 26 February 2011 at 2:30PM

Dear Martin and co-authors,

thank you very much for a job brilliantly done. :beer:
I have ben receiving the weekly e-mail for a couple of years, but hardly ever post comments. You have touched here on a very important topic which, as you say, does not get nearly enough attention. This deserves as wide a readership as possible.

I really like the style and approach you have taken, and the way that you have bridged the two worlds of healthcare and finance in a way I have not seen before. I love the green and red box stories too.

As well as the personal support I have gained to my own money management, I will also be able to use this in my work and will signpost your excellent guide.

WELL DONE:T:T:T:money:

MiaowMiaow · 26 February 2011 at 7:15PM

Fantastic work!
I can completely relate to the booklet and feel more normal with these taboo subjects being discussed. Back to work Monday after 4 months off with depression :-)

poppyears · 27 February 2011 at 12:22AM

This booklet is fantastic.

A big thank you to all those that have made this booklet possible.

I could relate to so many parts of the booklet. My hubby has mental health issues after being very ill and I also suffer from depression due to the strain of life. People are always ashamed to confess to mental health issues but the effect that it has on a family is massive. It effects every tiny part of your life and family. I no longer hide my depression. It is contoled and part of me.

I know this booklet will help a lot of people, even if to to prove to them they are not alone dealing with mental health and debt.

Thank-you.

Matt_Watkinson · 28 February 2011 at 10:41PM

I suffered severe depression and anxiety, in no small part due to my own poor financial planning. I became ill for some 6 years and lost my job. I was a journalist working for a well known broadcasting organisation. My financial rubbishness cost me £10,000 in charges that I couldn't get back because...well, you know the way the Supreme Court judgement finally went. I got a job locally with MIND, recruiting volunteers to support people with mental health difficulties and at the same time, used my journalistic skills to help a good friend set up a credit union, which eventually amalgamated with the established York group. I learnt a lot about the reprehensible tactics of pawn brokers, loan sharks and even "reputable" companies like Provident. I've since written/updated a guide to mental health services in Scarborough, Whitby and Ryedale. Sadly, Santander, with which I bank, despite being made aware of my anxiety and depression, continue to harass me , with calls up to 3 times a day from their collection team louts in Newcastle. I even got a letter from Santander's Chief Executive's department assuring me they'd been told to stop. So instead, I got 8 calls while on holiday, plus a "token of our good will - £30 in your account." I'm awaiting their explanation. I'm pretty much strong enough now to tackle the b'lighters, but many are not. Well done, Martin & Co

Mental Health and Debt Help Booklet Discussion

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