First thing is first, try not to panic. Debts often get passed to collection agencies once you have defaulted so this is nothing to worry about it. Collection agencies can put pressure on by trying to entertain their payment demands which are often more than you can afford. You can only give any of your creditors what you can afford which means you don't have to give them what they want each time. Collection agencies can't physically take you to court over the debts, the only thing that they can do is to apply for a CCJ if they feel your offer of payment is not signficant enough. A CCJ is where you have to complete a financial statment of affairs with an offer of payment on a court paper which will eventually be sent to your local county court. If you can show that your offer of payment is fair based on your circumstances then the judge can set your offer of payment as a legally binding arrangement. In other words you would simply make a payment through the court each month to pay the debt, and the collection agency would not be able to contact you any further about the debt. I wouldn't suggest taking out further loans to pay Moorcroft off as you will be taking out further debt which in the long run isn't really solving the problem. As an advisor for the CCCS, it maybe beneficial to have a look at your circumstances in more detail to look at helping you overcome the problem you have. Whist we cannot advise you fully on your financial situation via this forum we do have an online advice facility called Debt Remedy where you can complete a financial statement and be provided with advice on the best way to deal with your situation. If you go to our website www.cccs.co.uk and click on Debt Remedy you can access our virtual counselling service. Hope this helps CCCS

Hi Lusky, I think after reading your situation you definitely need to be looking at all the options available for you. You've mentioned that you've contacted someone about an IVA - I would be wary as there are lot of companies out there that will charge you money even if your IVA proposal is not accepted. We would be more than happy to discuss your circumstances to see whether an IVA would be a possibility and also discuss bankruptcy with you as well. I obviously can't give you too much advice here without knowing your whole situation, but have you spoke to your mortgage lender about the arrears? Is there anything you could put towards the arrears to make and arrangement to stop legal proceedings? Obviously you are looking to get something sorted as soon as possible, you can certainly give us a call on our helpline on 0800 138 11 11 and we will be more than happy to give you free, confidential, non-judgemental advice Take care CCCS

Just wanted to mention that the orignal poster had mentioned she is using PayPlan rather than ourselves

Glad to know our service are widely appreciated round here!

Hi there, Don't dispair, you are right in thinking that HSBC are simply trying to get you to commit to paying the debt over a longer period thus allowing them to gain more interest. If you are issued a default notice it is not really going to cause you much of a problem, it simply allows HSBC to sell the debt on to another company such as a collection agency to take care of the debt. If that happens, I'm sure PayPlan will allow you to make payments to the collection agency. Collection agencies have no more legal power than HSBC, so I would strongly advise you not to entertain HSBC's offer! Hope this helps, CCCS

Hi there, The reason we suggest we suggest you need to look at sorting priority debts is because they are likely to have the biggest affect on your life. Once your in a situation where you have enough money to cover your living costs, then we can certainly look at your long term options with the creditors. Bankruptcy could be one of the options at a later date but is not possible until you have enough money to cover living costs as a judge would consider yourself to be in a situation where you need credit to survive and would advise you to be able to cover these before going bankrupt I cannot give you specific advise regarding your appointment as is it would be breaking Data Protection Act, but you can always call us as many times as needed to ask questions or discuss the advice. Any other non-specific questions however and I will be more than happy to answer Take Care CCCS

Hi Fred, I've just sent you a PM Regards, CCCS

If you've got up to date figures of the creditors you owe it will ensure that the advise is best based on your circumstances. You always have the ability to change any information at a later date if needs be. Obviously if you have a couple of creditors which you've not spoke to for a while you can just put in the last amount you were aware of owing. It's completly up to you whether you would prefer to complete as an individual or as a couple, and it's a really easy system to use. If you have any problems whilst doing it there is a number you can call and one of our counsellors can answer any of your questions. Hope this helps, any more questions feel free to ask Regards, CCCS

Hi there, First things first, you've taken a big step to recognising that there is a problem and you are certainly doing the right thing by looking at your options at this stage. With this in mind I think you would benefit from some professional advice to see what kind of options you have at this stage. I work as a Debt Counsellor for the debt advice charity Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS). Obviously it is difficult for me to give you in depth advice via this forum. We do however have an online electronic facility called Debt Remedy where you can complete a financial statement and be provided with advice on the best way to deal with your situation. If you go to our website www.cccs.co.uk and click on Debt Remedy you can access our virtual counselling service. CCCS is a registered charity, and there is no charge whatsoever for any of the services we provide to our clients. We take great pride in offering first class help and advice, but we only offer this where we have been able to fully explore and understand your circumstances with you. We want to help you understand these choices and their possible implications but not make them for you. Regards, CCCS

Hi there, I'm a Debt Counsellor that works for the Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS). You've mentioned about posting an SOA which is always the first step of seeing what kind of options are available to make things easier for you. As a free debt advise charity this is certainly something we can help you with. Whist we cannot advise you fully on your financial situation via this forum we do have an online electronic facility called Debt Remedy where you can complete a financial statement and be provided with advice on the best way to deal with your situation. If you go to our website www.cccs.co.uk and click on Debt Remedy you can access our virtual counselling service. CCCS is a registered charity, and there is no charge whatsoever for any of the services we provide to our clients. We take great pride in offering first class help and advice, but we only offer this where we have been able to fully explore and understand your circumstances with you. We want to help you understand these choices and their possible implications but not make them for you. Regards, CCCS