Some general advice for a confused soul

[Spiff500]

Hi everyone . . .

I'm not sure why now, but enough is enough I guess! I don't really know where else to turn. But here is my situation.

I have probably the second worst credit rating in the UK I would guess, all of it about 8 years old when the world got really tricky and I basically stopped paying a lot of stuff - loans, credit cards, council tax, you name it. These debts all fell to debt collectors and from 2000-2004 I made regular monthly payments. Nothing changed though - couldn't get a £1 overdraft or delta card - just ATM cards and hand to mouth living.

Again in 2004 I was made redundant, at one point the entire money paid to me by the DSS was taken in bank charges by the friendly Nationwide. But seeing as though they are about the only bank in the Uk who will give me an account - no choice right?

So, from late 05 onwards I have been 'mostly' paying these debts off - which I would honestly guess to total about £4-5k ish now.

Sometime around 04/05 the inland revenue decided to slap a CCJ on me; mainly because I declared a redundancy payment in the wrong box, the computer said NO! Like an idiot and fuelled by contempt for them I pretty much ignored it. Madness really - I've been PAYE for 20 years, pay my tax at source - yet still the Tax man wants more.

Anyway - I have been lucky throughout this and had good jobs that paid enough to support a hand to mouth existence. Pay as you go credit cards and burying my head in the sand have all helped.

Furthermore, out of curiosity, I applied for a loan with some dodgy loan company who will remain nameless who promise to help anyone, even they said I was only one level above the worse they would even consider!

What shocked me the most was when the guy at the loan company was checking out my credit report on the phone, he said it was full of defaults. Most of the debts he mentioned were about 6k, I know for a fact that these are all down to say 2k or so and being regularly paid off to debt collectors. They did still offer me a loan however at the very reasonable rate of 64.4% APR

So, I guess it's safe to assume that debt collectors dont care about updating records much?

After all that can i ask a few questions of you all please? For someone who has literally had enough of all of this and can't bear the weight and worry anymore - I've already lost about 10 years of my life.

1 - Assuming I am paying everything regularly, surely my credit report shouldn;t have any defaults on it? Should I just get equifax/experian to fix it?
2 - If I really work at it, how long would it take for me to have something resembling ok credit? Like being able to get a credit card or an overdraft say?
3 - Without an overdraft the occasional direct debit still bounces, but most companies try again - I guess this isn't helping? But at least they are getting paid?
4 - What should I do next - get credit file, request updates? talk to the tax man and try and resolve the CCJ . . . just not sure of the exact path?

Any advice at all would be gratefully received - thanks.

[Sparklez30]

If you defaulted 8 years ago why are the debts still on your credit record, they should fall off after 6. Were you defaulted 8 years ago? If I were you I'd get a copy of all your credit records just so you know where you stand.

Might be worth talking to the tax man if it was truly a mistake but I have no idea how successful that would be I'm affraid.

I can't help much as I just don't know enough but I'm sure someone more knowledgable than me will pop along soon

[Spiff500]

bad debts disappear after 6 years?

Maybe because they were created in 2000, but I was made redundant in 2004, so they defaulted again after 4 years. I've only just tapped into this source of information.

I'll be applying for my credit records next week

[Sparklez30]

well they don't dissapear but they should be gone from your credit record after 6 years of receiving the default

[sallysas]

I'll have to go look for it (or someone else might remember) but banks are not allowed to touch your state benefits (JSA or IS) as this is public money given to you by the government and is meant to cover essentials like food etc - not be taken for bank charges. Will try and find where this information and post back. All right this is some time back but Nationwide should not have done that.

[sallysas]

Claim for charges taken from benefits

Here you go. Lots of reading but it might help. All the best, Sally

[PriorityOne]

Originally Posted by Spiff500

Again in 2004 I was made redundant, at one point the entire money paid to me by the DSS was taken in bank charges by the friendly Nationwide. But seeing as though they are about the only bank in the Uk who will give me an account - no choice right? Is this one of the accounts you are currently paying back ?... or is this the account you are using now ? NatWest need an S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) in order for you to tot up these charges and reclaim them. The template for the Subject Access Request is on this site, but if you can't find it, just shout. It costs £10 to send... must go by rec. delivery.... and is a legal request. Any company that receives one has 40 days from receipt to supply you with all transactional data. Keep the receipt... as this is your proof.

Sometime around 04/05 the inland revenue decided to slap a CCJ on me; mainly because I declared a redundancy payment in the wrong box, the computer said NO! Like an idiot and fuelled by contempt for them I pretty much ignored it. Madness really - I've been PAYE for 20 years, pay my tax at source - yet still the Tax man wants more. CCJs are a priority debt and you do need to maintain payments on this one. I'm not sure about getting a set aside now... as so many years have gone by... but we may be able to look into something later. If the repayments on a CCJ are too high however, you can complete an N245 form at the court and have the amount reduced to an affordable level.

Furthermore, out of curiosity, I applied for a loan with some dodgy loan company who will remain nameless who promise to help anyone, even they said I was only one level above the worse they would even consider! Not a good idea.... especially if it's to pay off existing debts with someone else. Have you signed anything yet ?

What shocked me the most was when the guy at the loan company was checking out my credit report on the phone, he said it was full of defaults. Most of the debts he mentioned were about 6k, I know for a fact that these are all down to say 2k or so and being regularly paid off to debt collectors. Which debt collectors ? Please list them all... the amounts... what the debt is for.... if you have any CCJs. They did still offer me a loan however at the very reasonable rate of 64.4% APR Don't ! :o

So, I guess it's safe to assume that debt collectors dont care about updating records much? Debt collectors don't care much about anything other than collecting payments. Before you do anything at all, you need to challenge each company for proof of their legal right to collect anything from you at all.... which is one of the reasons why I said to hold back on signing for this dodgy new loan ! You need to list all debts with these muppets first though... as detailed above.

1 - Assuming I am paying everything regularly, surely my credit report shouldn;t have any defaults on it? Should I just get equifax/experian to fix it? Not as straightforward as that.... but things can be done if it turns out that unlawful defaults have been placed there.... which sounds about right in your case.
2 - If I really work at it, how long would it take for me to have something resembling ok credit? Like being able to get a credit card or an overdraft say? Let's sort out your current situation first....
3 - Without an overdraft the occasional direct debit still bounces, but most companies try again - I guess this isn't helping? But at least they are getting paid? That's not helping you.... and presumably, you are still being charged each time. Same NatWest account ?
4 - What should I do next - get credit file, request updates? talk to the tax man and try and resolve the CCJ . . . just not sure of the exact path?
Answer the questions detailed above and we'll go from there.

Any advice at all would be gratefully received - thanks.

[Mrs_Ryan]

All Im saying.. dont do it!

After years of getting by on an ATM card after racking up enormous debts at uni Ive now got a loan, a credit card and a store card... credit and store card maxed totally out, hours just dropped at work.... LET THIS BE A LESSON TO U!! Really, you dont want any more debt, promise.