Hi all

I was hoping to get some advice on what the best course of action would be for the debt that is on the verge of being unmanageable.

It's a combination of an unsecured loan & credit cards (approx £34k). At this moment all the payments are being made on time. But there is no wiggle room left & with the interest the amount I can afford to pay each month means I'm stretched to the limit.

I'm self-employed & the amount I earn each month varies & is not at all predictable. I took out the loan & maxed out the cards to get a business up & running last year but it has not worked out as planned (c'est la vie) & now I'm treading water.

I've been reading through the forums to try & get an idea of what direction I should take but it's left me unsure. So I thought by posting there may be someone who can advise of any options available.

I live with my girlfriend (rented) & she's worried if I go down the route of debt payment plan then her income will be taken into account too. Is this likely?

First port of call is to contact your creditors and inform them of your circumstances. A lot of them can and usually do stop interest and charges accruing for a few months so you can just pay off the amount without penalty.

If the debts arent in your girlfriends name, then they cant touch her, and they have no right to any info from her.

Who are your debts with?

Thanks for the reply - that's reassuring.

The loan & 1 card is with Santander.

3 other cards - Capital One, Barclaycard & Tesco.

All the above in my name.

Ok. Then they cant touch your GF or anything to do with her. Give them a ring, tell them you ar ein financial difficulty and if the loands are unsecured, provide a simply budget summary. Theyre usually pretty good at giving you a payment break at the least,