Struggling with debt? Ask a debt adviser a question

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  • Former_StepChange_Linsi
    Former_StepChange_Linsi Posts: 160 Forumite
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    Good morning,

    Thanks for your post and welcome to the forum.

    I’m sorry to hear L&C weren’t able to help you remortgage. If you’d like more advice about mortgages and refinancing your debts I’d recommend speaking to our Financial Solutions team. You can find more information about our Financial Solutions team here on our website, along with their contact details.

    Alternatively, you can use our Debt Remedy tool if you’d like to find a debt solution to help you deal with your credit cards without using further credit. The online tool helps you to create a budget and then recommends a debt solution on the last page. Here’s the link.

    Both services are free to use and our Debt Remedy tool is anonymous.

    I hope this helps,

    Linsi





    lecy2503 wrote: »
    Advice please

    I have approx £25k credit card debt

    I have tried to re-mortgage with out success through L&C

    Current Mortgage is £80k outstanding, house value is £175,000

    any advice would be appreciated
  • Iwillbedebtfree
    Iwillbedebtfree Posts: 18 Forumite
    Name Dropper First Anniversary First Post
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    Hi

    I’m on a DMP and approached all of my creditors to arrange F & Fs. I sent them all letters using the national debtline template. My offer was refused. I called Capital 1, who agreed a 40% discount to settle. I asked for it in writing. This arrived today but I’m not sure about the wording. Obviously I want them to write off the balance, not chase it, not sell it on etc... Can you please advise if this wording gives me that protection?

    The account defaulted over 6 years ago so it’s already fallen off my credit report.

    Dear x, Thank you for contacting us about the outstanding balance on your Capital 1 cc account. We are writing to confirm the settlement arrangement that has been agreed.
    To settle your account a payment of x will need to be received by 1st August 2018. Once we receive the payment your account will be closed.

    How will this impact your credit file?
    If you pay your full outstanding balance this will show as satisfied
    If you pay less than your outstanding balance this will show as satisfied with a zero balance and an additional flag of ‘partial settlement’. We must also inform you that we reserve the right to set off the unpaid balance against any subsequent claim you may bring against us.

    Your original payment history will remain on your credit file. If we have recorded a default the amount and date of your default will not be removed but the status will be amended to reflect that your account has been fully or partially settled. This information will remain on your credit file for six years from the date your default was recorded.


    Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks
  • jools1985
    jools1985 Posts: 327 Forumite
    Name Dropper Debt-free and Proud! First Post First Anniversary
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    Hi,

    I'm really hoping for some help and direction with my spiraling debts which are all to credit cards.

    I have done the step change remedy tool which recommends a DMP. It also states I could sell my home to release capital and pay off my debts. I also noticed it said to consider moving to interest only on my mortgage for a while.

    I have 24 months left to pay on my mortgage and the interest this month was £58. The full mortgage payment is £768 per month. I have never had any mortgage arrears. I took it out 8 years ago when I was 51 and the term was for 10 years.

    feel if I could pay interest only of £58 for say 12 months then I could put the balance of the full mortgage payment against my debts. This would throw an additional £710 per month to reduce my debts. Is it just a case of phoning my mortgage company and asking them? I am really quite scared of contacting any organisation I owe money too.

    I worry constantly about how to pay my debts and am very anxious all of the time.

    Please help me.
  • Former_StepChange_Joe
    Former_StepChange_Joe Posts: 56 Forumite
    Options
    Hello

    Thanks for your message and welcome to the forum.

    The wording in the letter below seems to guarantee that you wouldn’t be pursued for the debt once your settlement has been paid, as they’ve said they’ll close your account. It would be unfair of them to agree to write off a portion of your debt, only to sell this balance one to a collections agency.

    If you’re on a DMP, I’d advise against settling just one of your debts. I appreciate you’ve already tried to settle each of them, but your other creditors may view clearing one of your debts as preferential treatment. This means they may be more likely to take collections action and add interest and charges. I recommend getting in touch with your DMP provider for further advise on how to best to deal with your debts going forward.

    I hope you’ve found this helpful.

    Thanks

    Joe
    Iwillbedebtfree wrote: »
    Hi

    I’m on a DMP and approached all of my creditors to arrange F & Fs. I sent them all letters using the national debtline template. My offer was refused. I called Capital 1, who agreed a 40% discount to settle. I asked for it in writing. This arrived today but I’m not sure about the wording. Obviously I want them to write off the balance, not chase it, not sell it on etc... Can you please advise if this wording gives me that protection?

    The account defaulted over 6 years ago so it’s already fallen off my credit report.

    Dear x, Thank you for contacting us about the outstanding balance on your Capital 1 cc account. We are writing to confirm the settlement arrangement that has been agreed.
    To settle your account a payment of x will need to be received by 1st August 2018. Once we receive the payment your account will be closed.

    How will this impact your credit file?
    If you pay your full outstanding balance this will show as satisfied
    If you pay less than your outstanding balance this will show as satisfied with a zero balance and an additional flag of ‘partial settlement’. We must also inform you that we reserve the right to set off the unpaid balance against any subsequent claim you may bring against us.

    Your original payment history will remain on your credit file. If we have recorded a default the amount and date of your default will not be removed but the status will be amended to reflect that your account has been fully or partially settled. This information will remain on your credit file for six years from the date your default was recorded.


    Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks
  • JPoultz
    JPoultz Posts: 5 Forumite
    Options
    Hi All


    Around a year ago I received a car parking ticket from a private company for overstaying in a supermarket car park.

    I have been ignoring the letters that have been coming through the post as the cost of the fine kept on rising. I have now received a letter from DCBL which reads:

    "Your overdue amount of £185 due to vehicle control services Ltd in relation to County Court judgement number _______ has now been passed to DCBL to recover the debt on their behalf. A further £75 +VAT administration and recovery fee has now been accrued therefore the total amount now due is £275.

    To ensure no further action will take place please make immediate payment by one of the following methods: phone our 24-hour payment line using reference number ______ or by postal order/cheque

    Failure to adress within 14 days of the date of this letter will result in your case is being reviewed for legal recovery and such costs being added to the debt for recovery"


    Before this letter I did receive a letter that looked to be from a county court whislt I was away on holiday.

    Do you have any advice on how to act on this? Any advice at all is greatly appreciated!
  • Former_StepChange_Joe
    Former_StepChange_Joe Posts: 56 Forumite
    Options
    Hello

    Thanks for your message and welcome to the forum. I’m sorry to hear you’ve been struggling with your debts, I’ll do everything I can to help you with this.

    Feeling anxious a lot of the time certainly isn’t uncommon when you’re worried about your debts. Debt can make feelings of anxiety more severe. Equally, feelings of anxiety can make the debts themselves harder to deal with.

    If you haven’t already, I’d recommend getting in touch with your GP for some further support with this. There’s also a really useful article on money worries and mental health on the Mind website

    To answer your question about interest-only payments, this is something that you could call your bank to discuss in more detail. You may even be able to book a face-to-face appointment with an advisor in your local branch.

    However, I’d think carefully before going ahead with an interest-only period. While this can be a good way of freeing up money to clear your unsecured debts quicker, it will mean taking longer to pay off your remaining mortgage balance. It could also mean higher interest payments once the interest-only period ends. Also, when your mortgage finishes in 2 years’ time, you’ll have a spare £768 to offer to the creditors, so you could make smaller affordable payments to your creditors until this happens.

    If you’ve completed the Debt Remedy online self-help tool and accessed your advice, but have some further questions about this, please don’t hesitate to contact the Digital Support team on the contact number on page 2 of your personal action plan.

    I hope you’ve found this helpful.

    Thanks

    Joe

    jools1985 wrote: »
    Hi,

    I'm really hoping for some help and direction with my spiraling debts which are all to credit cards.

    I have done the step change remedy tool which recommends a DMP. It also states I could sell my home to release capital and pay off my debts. I also noticed it said to consider moving to interest only on my mortgage for a while.

    I have 24 months left to pay on my mortgage and the interest this month was £58. The full mortgage payment is £768 per month. I have never had any mortgage arrears. I took it out 8 years ago when I was 51 and the term was for 10 years.

    feel if I could pay interest only of £58 for say 12 months then I could put the balance of the full mortgage payment against my debts. This would throw an additional £710 per month to reduce my debts. Is it just a case of phoning my mortgage company and asking them? I am really quite scared of contacting any organisation I owe money too.

    I worry constantly about how to pay my debts and am very anxious all of the time.

    Please help me.
  • Former_StepChange_Joe
    Former_StepChange_Joe Posts: 56 Forumite
    Options
    Hello

    Thanks for posting and welcome to the forum.

    First of all, I recommend double-checking the letter you received before the letter from DCBL. Contact the county court named on this letter, quoting your claim number, to confirm whether or not the claim is genuine. If it isn’t a genuine claim, I recommend making a complaint to the company that issued the ticket.

    If the CCJ is genuine, then DCBL are able to enforce it they’ve successfully applied for a warrant of control from the court. If they’ve done this, you should have received a notice of enforcement from the court informing you that a warrant has been issued and giving a date after which an enforcement agent will visit, giving you at least seven clear days’ notice.

    However, the wording in the letter you’ve received leads me to believe that they haven’t got a warrant of control. They’ve asked for payment, but they haven’t mentioned visiting you to take payment or try to seize your goods. In this case, DCBL are more than likely acting as debt collectors, not enforcement agents. There’s a useful article about the difference between the two on the StepChange website here.

    If DCBL are simply trying to collect the debt, you should be able to make a payment arrangement with them that’s affordable and realistic. If they’re enforcing the debt with a warrant of control, then you’ll need some advice on how to deal with enforcement agents, and how to get a payment towards this debt set at a fair amount.

    In either case, StepChange can give you some free, impartial and tailored debt advice on how best to deal with this debt. You can use StepChange’s anonymous online Debt Remedy tool to create a budget. The tool is available 24 hours a day, and will offer the best debt solution for your situation once you’ve completed your budget.

    I hope you’ve found this helpful


    Thanks

    Joe
    JPoultz wrote: »
    Hi All


    Around a year ago I received a car parking ticket from a private company for overstaying in a supermarket car park.

    I have been ignoring the letters that have been coming through the post as the cost of the fine kept on rising. I have now received a letter from DCBL which reads:

    "Your overdue amount of £185 due to vehicle control services Ltd in relation to County Court judgement number _______ has now been passed to DCBL to recover the debt on their behalf. A further £75 +VAT administration and recovery fee has now been accrued therefore the total amount now due is £275.

    To ensure no further action will take place please make immediate payment by one of the following methods: phone our 24-hour payment line using reference number ______ or by postal order/cheque

    Failure to adress within 14 days of the date of this letter will result in your case is being reviewed for legal recovery and such costs being added to the debt for recovery"


    Before this letter I did receive a letter that looked to be from a county court whislt I was away on holiday.

    Do you have any advice on how to act on this? Any advice at all is greatly appreciated!
  • JPoultz
    JPoultz Posts: 5 Forumite
    Options
    Hi Joe

    Thanks for replying.

    I!!!8217;ll phone the court up tomorrow and ask them if the claim is genuine

    I did notice on the reverse of the letter sent from !!!8216;DCBL!!!8217; a statement that read: !!!8220;This case is not subject to High Court or Baliff action!!!8221; - could this relate to your point of the claim not being genuine?

    Ill double check with them tomorrow as they are currently closed

    Thanks again!
  • Anoneemoose
    Anoneemoose Posts: 2,258 Forumite
    First Anniversary Name Dropper First Post I've been Money Tipped!
    Options
    Hi.

    I just wondered if there was any know help for compulsive/emotional spending? I know there is loads of help on how to get in touch woth creditors etc, but I haven’t seen anything for addressing the actual spending issues in the first place.

    We have debt, which is on 0% for a long time and we’re not increasing it, however we’re not decreasing it much either and a lot of it is because we just spend without thinking. Particularly me. I don’t work because I have chronic illnesses and also because of that, I don’t have many friends. As such, I often fill in my time by spending. Not always massive amounts, but it all adds up

    We use YNAB to record everything, but instead of looking at the budget amounts before spending, we just spend and then move around categories.

    We have a decent income with reasonable fixed expenses, so on paper we should be fine..but we’re just cycling debt.

    Any ideas would be welcome!
  • Former_StepChange_Joe
    Former_StepChange_Joe Posts: 56 Forumite
    Options
    [FONT=&quot]Hello[/FONT]

    [FONT=&quot]You’re welcome, I’m glad you found this helpful.[/FONT]

    [FONT=&quot]It sounds like the claim you received before may not be genuine. I’d definitely get in touch with the court to get confirmation, and make a complaint to the private parking company if you were sent a fake claim form.[/FONT]

    [FONT=&quot]The good news is that DCBL are definitely acting as debt collectors in this case. I recommend getting in touch with to set up a payment arrangement with them. This will avoid any further action, for example a genuine County Court claim being served on you.[/FONT]

    [FONT=&quot]Take care[/FONT]

    [FONT=&quot]Joe[/FONT]

    [FONT=&quot]
    JPoultz wrote: »
    Hi Joe

    Thanks for replying.

    I!!!8217;ll phone the court up tomorrow and ask them if the claim is genuine

    I did notice on the reverse of the letter sent from !!!8216;DCBL!!!8217; a statement that read: !!!8220;This case is not subject to High Court or Baliff action!!!8221; - could this relate to your point of the claim not being genuine?

    Ill double check with them tomorrow as they are currently closed

    Thanks again!
    [/FONT]
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