Lots of debts - scotland

[CA8]

Hi,

 

Really hope someone will be able to offer some advice.

 

I have debts totalling £110k They are broken down as follows:

 

6 Credit Cards = £21k

2 Personal Unsecured Loans = £13k

1 Mortgage = £76k (Approximately £10k Equity)

 

My monthly outgoings on Debts alone amount to: £1150

 

Like so many other people due to the Credit Crunch my company has recently reduced my salary by 7.5% so my annual salary is now £23k with my monthly take home pay being £1450.

 

For the past few months I've been juggling to make ends meet by withdrawing funds from one card to pay others. I'm now at my credit limit with most cards and realise that I've been digging a deep hole for myself.

 

Last month, I had to get pay day loans to enable me to pay everyone. Since then I've tried to get unsecured, then secured loans from two companies and my bank - all were declined.

 

The loans were for £25k and would have allowed me to pay off my credit cards and reduce my monthly outgoings. I think I may have had too many recent searches as all payments are up to date, I have no arrears and have not missed any payments.

 

I'm due to be paid again at the end of the month and just can't pay everyone as I have insufficiant funds and now it seems ..... no options available to me to obtain monies from elsewhere.

 

This is where I'm at and I don't know what to do first, never mind next.

 

I'm already having nightmares of people on the phone, at my door and selling the contents of my house and even them making me homeless have started and I'm truely worried sick.

 

I'd really appreciate it if someone could highlight any options I may have.

 

Thanks in advance.

[silverfox1961]

Hi,

Your mortgage and essential outgoings take priority over everything else.

Your credit cards and loans are not essential outgoings so I would recommend that you stop using them and write to the credit/loan companies with one of the letters from this link:

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/general-debt-issues/20758-creditors-dcas-letter-templates.html

 

I recommend letter B or C for starters.

 

There is also the option of checking whether any of the agreements are enforceable or not. If you send letter 8 here:

 

The Consumer Forums - Debt collectors

 

If any come back and are missing any of the key terms then it would put you in a stronger position in negotiating a settlement.

 

I do have to warn you that by going the enforceable route, the creditors are likely to screw with your credit file, making it very hard for you to get credit for the following 6 years (although I don't see that as a problem for you at the moment)

 

Hope that helps for starters.

 

fox

[CA8]

Thanks I'll have a look at those. I have payments due in the next week or so. How soon before the payment due date should the letters be received by the creditors?

 

Thanks again.

[silverfox1961]

Thanks I'll have a look at those. I have payments due in the next week or so. How soon before the payment due date should the letters be received by the creditors?

 

Thanks again.

 

 

As soon as possible. If you can pay this month, that will keep the wolves at bay until you have a response as they can take a few weeks to respond.

I would send the letters by recorded delivery too. Some creditors ignore letters and unless you can prove they got it and if it went to complaint level, they will deny ever receiving letters. banks and credit card companies are your best friend while the going is good but once you get into difficulties, they will suddenly treat you like a pariah. Forewarned is forearmed and all that

[IdaInFife]

Thanks I'll have a look at those. I have payments due in the next week or so. How soon before the payment due date should the letters be received by the creditors?

 

Thanks again.

 

 

If you try and do and income and expenditure sheet for yourself allowing enough to cover priorites like mortgage/gas/electric and essentials for food etc and them work out what you can afford to each and send the reduced amount with the offer of payment this month if you cannot make the full payment.

[CA8]

Hi,

 

I am looking for some help and advice. I have got myself into a bit of a mess. I'll briefly try and explain my situation.

 

Towards the end of last year I found myself begin to struggle to pay all of my creditors due to reduced hours and then a 7.5% paycut. I had tried as best I could to continue and pay my borrowing from credit cards to pay others. Probably stupid but at the time I didn't know what else to do. Anyway in November I tried to get a loan to consolidate all my credit cards and was actually promised one by one company who turned out to be a broker (it took a while to discover this and finally found out that I would actually be able to get a loan) at that point all my payments were up to date and I took out a payday loan to try and keep it that way. This is where part of the problem started. I have got into a viscious circle with this taking out another and another to try and pay the existing ones when I should probably have said enough months ago and defaulted. Last month actually my bank honoured a lot of the payments so this has put me £1,000 overdrawn with them.

 

I have now at the end of June defaulted on all my payday loans. I just can't pay them and don't know what to say to them.

 

With regard to my other creditors (credit cards and loans), with most of them I have agreed a reduced payment and had interest frozen.

 

I don't know what to do now. When I agreed with other creditors to make reduced payments, I made no mention of the payday loans because I thought that I could get rid of them (well that was the intention but instead I've got into a real mess). My main problem was that I didn't want to let anyone down and not pay. This is probably the same with the credit cards. I should have stopped/reduced payments a year ago but I didn't realise that it would be (relatively easy, with some) to agree reduced payments.

 

Anyway, my question now is what to do I do, where do I go for advice? If I was to become sequestrated what would happen to my house. I have a mortgage and all payments on time and up to date. I am scared I would lose it. I am probably more than likely in negative equity. My mortgage payments are about to reduce by around £150 per month from next month and If i were to lose my house and have to rent there is no way it would be near as cheap as the mortgage.

 

I just need some advice on what to do next.

 

I am sorry, this hasn't really been all that brief.

 

Hope someone has some advice.

 

Thanks in advance

[rebel11]

Hi CA8

 

Don't worry others with more experience will be along to advise so you can regain control.

 

If you've got any penalty charges on your credit cards you can claim them back with interest. Charges going back 6 years plus.

[IdaInFife]

so at the moment it is just the payday loans you are struggling with yes?

[CA8]

The main issue at the moment is the payday loans. I have defaulted on all but don't know what I am supposed to say to these companies as I just can't pay. I am continuing to make the token payments to my other creditors (even those that haven't agreed, though I am worried that those that haven't agreed will take further action soon).

 

I've made an appointment at my local CAB but the first available time is 15 July. I just don't know what do to in the meantime.

 

Any advice/experiences greatly received.

 

Many thanks.

[IdaInFife]

maybe at the moment - offering the min of £1 per month

 

there is alos a forum for payday loans

 

PayDay loans - The Consumer Forums

 

most of these companies have your direct debit and credit/debit card details

 

if this is the case then cancel the dd and get a new card

 

ida x

[CA8]

Hi

I need some advice I’ve got myself in a mess with payday loans. Rolling over and re-loaning to repay the rollover. Anyway at the end of June I have defaulted on just about all.

The problem I have is that at the end of May my bank honoured most of the debit card payments/cheques. I am now approx £1,300 over my overdraft. I have 2 cheques which were due to be banked yesterday. They aren’t showing up yet as having come out my account I expect if they are to be honoured they will come out tomorrow.

The thing is I don’t know whether I should be contacting my bank and asking them not to honour any more cheques. The problem with this is that I have the overdraft amount due to them plus I have also missed the last 2 months credit card payments to them. I haven’t been in touch and don’t know what to say to them.

I have an appointment with my local CAB on Thursday morning to try and sort everything out (I have other creditors some of whom I have made payment arrangements with but the payday loan situation has got me into a real mess. I took the first one out with the intention of repaying but wasn’t able to and so the cycle continued).

I wanted to see what CAB advised before contacting the bank but at the same time I don’t want to make things any worse with the bank if cheques keep being paid out or will the bank now just not honour (which is what I hope they will do). I was thinking that I could maybe send a message to them today through internet banking and ask that they don’t honour any more cheques.

Anybody any thoughts/advice on what I should do?

[jellycubes]

Ok first of all cancel your debit card, report it as stolen. Go to CAB and they will advice you on what to do about your financial situation. Call your bank and explain whats happened and what they can do to help. keep updating

[jellycubes]

I would call the bank before, to see what they can do as you might be able to avoid a deepening unauthorised overdraft

[Jamie Kingston]

hi, firstly i dont think CAB i going to be too helpful - in my opinion they are really not much use. You'll get more advice on this website!!

Secondly, who are the current payday loans with? - you are going to need to arrange payments with them otherwise the situation will spirral out of control for no good reason.

Thirdly, change your bank account if you can. Get a standard account if you can and never give the details to anyone. Make sure none of your cheque are honored.