Yet Another Suicide through Debt. We're going to fight back NOW!!!

[Mrs E Blackadder]

My concern would be that the poor woman is under so much stress that Koo Stark will just tell us to bog off - and rightly so! That could just be because that is probably how I would react though

 

However, it could be that if approached in the right way, she might appreciate the support that we could give her, just as much as the support she could give us. I think that overall it is a good idea, but we have to be sensitive about her situation - after all we have all been there and even though she is famous she is still entitled to her respect.

 

I would be happy to help you write a letter or draft an email if my input would be of any use.

 

Would also love to come and support you Nunny but as I have problems with agrophobia I would struggle to get to you. If there is any other support I can offer, then I will do so.

[Desperate Daniella]

Hi Mrs E,

 

Rest assured I would be very, very sensitive. I actually thought of writing to her last year when I read the first article. It was around the time I joined CAG, maybe just before, and at that time I too was absolutely terrified to open the post.

 

I saw her once at Ascot many years ago just after Andrew had dumped her. She was dressed in dark blue, very understated and with friends and it would have been easy to miss her in the crowd. She looked absolutely beautiful, very gentle and sweet, and I thought he must have been mad.

 

Let's see what the others say and if they think it's a good idea we can draft the letter.

 

All support is valuable and you are offering it to us here.

 

DD

[Desperate Daniella]

Good for you, Sillygirl

[nunnyrose]

I think you are right Mrs E. somebody, anybody who is suffering through debt could be reluctant to shout about it, especially a celeb. What I think we need is a celeb. who isn't quite so aware of the effect that debt can have - to tell the stories to.

 

Agrophobia - just realised I haven't been out of the house for 3 weeks and quite honestly I think I'm scared to.

[Desperate Daniella]

From the Mail July 2008. Actually ages before I found CAG.

 

"But today she is a struggling single mother, trying to bring up 11-year-old daughter while fighting her way back to health and on the brink of bankruptcy with debts of £200,000.

 

Where once her doormat was littered with invitations to glitzy parties in heavy, expensive-looking envelopes, she now dreads the arrival of another brown envelope with a bill inside.

 

She files them, unopened, in a heap under her sofa because she has no way of paying them. Koo has had to resort to hiding from bailiffs refusing to open the door - her money having been eaten up in lawyers' fees following the acrimonious collapse of her relationship with her daughter's father."

 

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1031998/Koo-Stark-My-battle-breast-cancer--Im-hiding-bailiffs.html#ixzz0VQd2VbQi

 

The world already knows about it. She probably won't have many friends in her situation, if any. I feel very sorry for her.

 

Agree with you as well nunnyrose, we need to shock someone with what life is really like for so many of us now.

 

DD

[rebel11]

There are quite a few Celebs, John Barnes, Anita Harris, Anthea Turner etc

[Mrs E Blackadder]

The world already knows about it. She probably won't have many friends in her situation, if any. I feel very sorry for her.

 

 

Aint that the truth - you certainly find out who your friends are.

 

There is also a woman who is on Grumpy Old Women (I think it might be India Knight, but I stand to be corrected) who has readily admitted that she was on the verge of bankruptcy. So, it shows that it happens to the best of us.

[Desperate Daniella]

Girls,

 

Are you on one of the threads which reported that Five Year Block on Repossession? Apparently it was on the BBC news yesterday.

 

DDx

[Desperate Daniella]

India Knight?

 

Now that's an idea.

[AA99]

Ooooh, subbing with extra-large increased interest rates:D Behind you all the way girls!

[Desperate Daniella]

[Mrs E Blackadder]

Yes, it always seems to be 'the girls' who get things done

[Desperate Daniella]

My mum said tonight that we should take to the streets over petrol prices going up again, and I said we were hoping to do more than that. She's nearly 80 and would be happy to go out and protest.

 

Hopefully our new thread title should get more people on this thread. Let's just treat it as a brainstorming thread, and get something going soon.

 

The good thing is that if we do take to the streets we can almost guarantee a peaceful march. Who would clash with people who just want to break the stranglehold of banks and credit cards?

 

:D Having just posed that question I had sudden visions of employees of all the DCAs coming along to clash with us. :D

[Desperate Daniella]

Look how many people took to the streets in support of fox-hunting. There have to be loads more people worried about debt than foxes!

 

(I like foxes.)

[MARTIN3030]

Some good points and ideas.

I recall a protest in London in CAGS earlier days (I think theres something about it on Utube)

Anything that draws attention to the issues being discussed is going to be a good thing-remembering of course that the effectiveness relies on it being driven home to those in a position to do something.

I agree with the points raised about temp letters-MPs and others do take more notice of individual complaints.

CAGs diverse member locations provide unique opportunity to lobby local MPs as well as Government ministers.

Both the Cons and LDP have shown an interest in pursuing unfairness in Banking and it looks like both will be including these in their election campaigns.

Insofar as press and media are concerned,as many will know,CAG has proved a first choice in many investigations and documentaries-some of which are ongoing.

We encourage Journalists and programmers to look at injustices and learn from the site.

Sometimes they will do research before they do a direct approach.

In other instances,Caggers themselves have initiated an investigation by contacting a prog maker or Journo-It helps if CAG is in the loop with things as it can offer guidance and assistance where this is requested.

It is essential therefore that people work together.

 

It is good to see a wide range of suggestions being made-some will be viable some will not-but evaluation can come and I guess theres more.

[Desperate Daniella]

Thank you, Martin, for joining this thread.

 

If we decided to go to the streets do you think CAG would want it to be a CAG march or a something-else march. We all love CAG either way. It's saved so many lives, including mine.

 

DDxxxxx

[MARTIN3030]

I will alert Marc to it:)

[Desperate Daniella]

Thank you, Martin.

 

I just can't believe how she could sit down in front of a train and die like that. Can't stop thinking about it. This and the lady who killed her child because of debt. Oh My God, no-one should be driven to this by banks or credit card companies, or DCAs.

 

Unless you are lucky enough to find CAG and know how to deal with these banks/DCAs you are totally lost. If it hadn't been for the Panorama programme about the Rankines I would never have googled "unenforceable credit agreements" and I just don't want to even think where I would be tonight without CAG.

 

DDxxxx

[MARTIN3030]

Yes its one of the things I often think about when reading of those stories about Capquest,Mercers,Ist Credit and the rest.Its bad to know that there are 1000s of people who are being hounded and who have little or no knowledge of their rights or their protection...or more importantly those responsibilities of firms who should be following codes of conduct and regulations.

CAB and debt advisors are woefully understretched and underfunded.

 

We saw the documentaries about the woman whose ill father was hounded and eventually died....not too long ago there was the Lancashire man who dropped dead after being driven to a cash machine by the bailiff to pay him...these stories continue to make the news but little appears to change.

 

The FSAs taking over of regulation from the BBA,stricter lending criteria as well as collection,and things like the 2008 CPUT and other initiatives have gone (or should go) somewhere towards making some change.

 

I personally believe that there needs to be a heightened awareness for people to know and understand what recourse is open to them,and also make more challenges to those who abuse their responsibilities-whether that be through the Courts or the regulators-it seems the only way the offenders take any notice.

 

Its no use the regulators or the politicians making changes unless people are willing to enforce them using the protection available.

 

I know that sadly,this will not prevent people from throwing themselves under trains-no one can know what thoughts or state of turmoil can bring a person to do this-but we have to start somewhere-and education has got to be a greater part of it.

[pedross]

Good post Martin and good points. I think the problem is the feeling of being alone with no one to turn to and the belief it is only you in the world with the problem.

 

CAG makes a big difference to people because you get advice and more importantly support.

 

If only people realised that you come into this world with nothing, go out with nothing and the worst thing that can happen to you in between is that at times you can have nothing. This life makes it easy to correct the situation if you find you have less than nothing and owe more than you own.

 

The problem is that too many of us put too much value on personal belongings which are in fact so easy to replace that the importance is misplaced. United we stand and life is too important to waste with worry and certainly too important and valuable to throw away cheaply.

 

On a lighter note I'm with DD - Koo Stark sounds good to me:)

 

Pedross

[MARTIN3030]

Agreed Pedross-Its media and consumer driven targetting that has created this lifestyle and a belief that we are what we are by what we have.

Of course much comes from how you was brought up-the older generation will always remember their own teachings.I refuse to buy a new plasma screen TV because my 10 year old FST still works perfect.My 15 year old car still does the job and so does my Pc bought on the car boot for 30 quid.

I would sooner buy an 8 year old Technics amp than a new Daewoo made in Korea...the old stuff was made to last.

Keeping up with the Jones'es has its price-sadly its not always possible to pay for afterwards.

I have been to some of the poorest places in Romania Russia and Ukraine-where grandma digs up potatos at 6 in the morning in her garden-yet they are happy-when you see that it does make you stand back.

While theres an emphasis on posessions - theres also a good example of just how crazy things have been....you can go down to my local car boot sale on a Sunday and buy a 2 year old DVD player for a fiver.

I saw one guy selling a 28" silver TV for £20 ...one Polish guy asked if he would take £15 ?

The guy said....ok for £25 I will throw in a Phillips Video and A matsui Dvd.

 

I think that just about sums things up.

[DeRichleau]

I have been involved in pressure groups in the past in my misspent youth and I found as soon as the group began to shake the corridoors of power, the first way they fought back was to attack your funding.I assume this site relies on individual donations,but if there is any other funding it must be made bombproof, if members of the site become more militant.. (Excuse my impertinance,and assumptions, I mean no offence or criticism of the site or site team)

[MARTIN3030]

The site certainly does rely on donations.

Since 2006 there have been many who would rather CAG were not around.

All the more reasons that the site remains within the law and gives no grounds for such a scenario.

Perhaps the word Militant can have an undesirable slant-and indeed attract the wrong kinds of attentions.

Campaigners or Consumer realists would be more suitable.....although CAG has been referred to as many things from Activists to Agent Provocateurs....by those who have been worried.

Edited October 31, 2009 by MARTIN3030

[nunnyrose]

another suggestion.

What If we were all to deliver individual letters to our local MP's on the same day (postal strike aside) telling our individual stories. Maybe we can all help each other write the letters, maybe a general template which we can all personalise - I think for it to have an impact though it would rely on everybody doing it, it needs to be well orchestrated and a press copy from caggers to all the newspapers. It could be a starting point, but I think it would turn into something huge.

I for 1 cannot sit back and not do anything. But alone I am nothing.

[MARTIN3030]

Heres some links;

 

BBC NEWS | Business | Protests grow over overdraft fees

 

 

And heres Marc himself on the job !!

 

 

 

Link to Cag London/OFT protest thread;

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/campaign/28380-oft-london-protest-rally.html

Edited October 31, 2009 by MARTIN3030