swift sterling -

[thorntondog]

Im in a big mess but I am making positive steps to get out of it. I am on a debt management plan with cccs but unbeknown to them I also have 4 payday loans. I have made arrangements to settle three of them with WDA, LENDING STREAM, POUNDS2DAY, I stupidly got PDL out after DMP was set up.

but My problem is I have still got a payday loan with swift sterling and havent missed a payment. I have been keeping it going for nearly a year and feel as though I rely on it to pay basic bills now. I am a lone parent with two teenage sons and literally I spend £30 a week on food which is ridiculous. Its pizzas and loads of pasta. I feel so bad that I cant provide properly.

 

I have made a plan that I will have finished three of my payday loans by May 2011 which is just a breath away, but when you are living every day with your stomach in a knot and then going to work trying to be normal it is not easy. I am so tempted to default on my swift sterling loan but I don't want to be hassled at work as I will be so humiliated and I haven;t told anyone. There is a phone in a small staff room and in the past I nearly died when financial plus left messages for me. I was so nervous at work as sometimes if theres a message, a collegeuge will just play it out loud as its usually an internal business message. I caught a couple of messages for my debts in the past and in the end I had to repot Financial plus to the financial ombusdman for harrassment, I dont want to experience that agin with swift sterling who are based in malta I believe although loan agreement says loan is taken out under english law.

 

Any advice will be gratefully recieved, Thank You

[rebel11]

Hi thorn

 

Welcome to CAG

The guys will advise as soon as they are available.

[Erica11 - Swift]

Contact Swift Sterling if you feel that you cannot pay and explain your situation. Swift Sterling is obliged to restrict calls to your employer if you request so as long as you constant communication with them (example: email).

[brownstone]

Hi,

 

Did you manage to sort out some arrangement with Swift Sterling. I'm now in more or less the same boat, I made a few loans witht them since January and always paid it in full, June I suffered heavy financial set backs, which led me to default on my loan, I have however notified Swift Sterling a few weeks before it was due that I will not be able to pay the full amount and if they could set up an arrangement to have it paid off on a month basis.

 

They didn't accept, but I still paid £100 in June and another £100 last month, the amount I lend from them was £650. Their debt collectors called on Saturday and said I must pay over £800 in full else legal action will be taken where I will be liable for all costs. I was so upsed when I heard this despite trying to pay it up I told the rud agent to proceed. My daughter has Chicken Pox and I'm so tyred from work and studies which is why I told them to proceed cause there's nothing I can do.

 

I still wanted to explain to him about my situation and he said he wasn't interested and hung up. I had another loan with txt loan, but they happily agreed to accept £50 per month, I'm currently paying £60 per month.

 

What can I do please, what can I do.

 

Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks!

[thorntondog]

Hello,

 

Well I didnt settle three payday loans by may which I had stupidly thought I could. I now pay my payday loans £5 per month by standing order.

 

Swift sterling passed my debt to clarity- Do not speak to them on the phone, they are so rude and talk to you like a piece of ****. If clarity call me, I will not confirm my personal details then they cant go any further.

 

A woman at clarity told me if I didnt pay in full there and then a warrent of execution will be issued. I explained that she is lying because that can only be issued if you default on a county court judgement then she accused me of saying I was refusing to pay.

 

I continue to pay £5 a month to swift sterling direct and emailed clarity to tell them what I was doing- haven't heard from them since. IGNORE clarity threats of doorstep collectors and warrents of execution- just pay what you can afford to swift sterling- that's all you can do.

 

Good luck

[thorntondog]

It is very upsetting to be spoken to without consuideration by phone , therefore never talk on phone, always email, then you have proof of trying to resolve your debt.

 

The people who phone are not interested in your personal circumstances or the stress you are under, they think they can bully you into paying. They have no idea that you may be sitting there with no electric or food. Look after yourself and family first.

 

Set up a standing order to swift sterling and pay something small every month, ignore all phone calls and politely reply to letters by email.

 

Swift sterling bank details are

 

Account no: 00744802

sort code; 30-00-09

reference- important- your personal loan number- 8 digits long

[ksmiggy]

they don't want to agree to anything other than full payment on the phone.

[brownstone]

Thank you for the information, I will let the debt collectors know by e-mail that I'm paying towards my debt and will be setting up a standing order starting at the end of August. One last question though, what will happen if they issue a CCJ against me, even though I'm paying it off?

[thorntondog]

You are unlikely to get a CCJ simply because you are not refusing to pay. If you did get a CCJ , you fill in a form stating your offer of e.g £5 per month, then the court accepts it. you then make your payment to a solicitor and carry on. It is not a criminal offence to be in debt but a civil offence. Pay day loans are unsecured debts so they are not a priority in the eyes of the court.

 

Payday loan companoes dont usually pursue a ccj because their interest rates are unjustifiable. Never pay more than the original loan + one months interest- swift sterling add £59 defult fee to that then it never goes up. I got a loan for £620, interest was £185 then they added £59 fee. My total balance was £864. I now owe £815.

 

You probably already know this but Cancel your debit card- report it lost otherwise they will take your money.

 

Good luck

[sillygirl1]

If they do try and issue a CCJ it can be defended because you ARE paying and HAVE made payments, they will be stuffed in court should they care to try.

[thorntondog]

I agree , well said

[thorntondog]

Brownstone,

 

One last thought. If your original loan was £650 and you have made two payments of £100. You do not owe more than £800 as the phone call told you. Just keep track of your balance and dont pay a penny more. they are trying it on.

 

So it is £650( original loan) + interest + £59 default fee, minus £200.(you paid) - keep a written record of payments made and it will also appear on your bank statement.

[josie1]

Hi I am slowly escaping from payday hell With my banks support I have cancelled my old debit card and have a new one and all but the odd transaction are now rejected when my old card is used. I have not let the many payday loan companies \i owe money to know my new card number and the ones I have agreed payment plans with have agreed to let me pay by direct transfer. It has not been easy I have had obnoxious phone conversations and annoying numbers of calls .Empowered by information on this forum i decided to stop the hold these loans had on my life.

There are two companies who will not budge on repayment plans, SWIFT STERLING and CAPITAL FINANCE ONE. These have threatened doorstep collectors court judgements, attachment of earnings etc all intimidation. My file for swift sterling has been passed to a DCA and have heard from them today. They refused any kind of payment plan and went quiet at the mention of a part payment. Apparently I have 34 days to pay in full before my case is passed back to swift sterling for a county court judgement. Didnt like their attitude but I was firm and said I would not be able to pay in full. This will be the last time I talk to them on the phone it will all be done by phone. I now have swift sterlings bank details and will keep paying them small amounts.

The situation I hav got myself into has been hell and I still have bad dayswhere i suffer self doubt and panic. I do now feel that I am in control of my own situation and no longer care about my credit rating the last thing I need is more credit. Thanks for all the advice I have received its been a lifesaver. Ill keep you posted.

[thorntondog]

I think it is safer to set up a standing order NOT a direct debit as I think they can change the amount payable with a direct debit.

 

If you answer phone, dont clarify 'security' details then they cant go any further. Clarity DCA phoned me the other day (tuesday) and I explained that I would like to correspond by email only. I expalined I had sent an email on saturday and clarity had not yet responded to it.

 

The man on the phone said to me 'all the more reason that I talk to you now" and I replied 'no, all the more reason you respond to my email" they still havent responded despite saying they will respond in 2-3 working days, 5 working days have now passed. Thats how urgent it is.

 

Dont be bullied by phone calls and continue to pay what you can afford by standing order. Even when they wont agree to payment offers and they wont set up a repayment plan, they cant refuse your payment so keep paying. - You are in control- not them. !

 

Good luck, it is a great relief to take control. I am in it with you.

[thorntondog]

Sorry I misread your thread Josie, I think direct transfer is ok.

[sillygirl1]

Swift Sterling will have problems if they go for a County Court Judgement, if you do get court paperwork let us know and you can acknowledge online (they will probably use Norhampton bulk court) and I can draft a defence.

 

They are NOT automatically granted these CCJs (contrary to popular belief amongst their staff) and are very easily defended with a straightforward common sense defence - they have very little to move on legally and this can be spelt out to the judge, but as long as you have been trying to come to an arrangement they can be beaten.

[josie1]

Hil

Thanks for the reply and encouragement. The DCA i have been allocared are credit resource solutions I think this is because they are local to me. The guy just didnt seem to want to talk about anything other than full paymentand I pointed out that had that been possible we wouldnt have even needed to know of each others existence. I dont yet have an email address for these people but I apparently have a letter coming to me. As I said earlier I am going to regularly pay what I can afford direct to Swift Sterling . I dont understand why a debt collection agency would be handed the file for 34 days and then it is passed back , presumably to scare and harrass you into payment. When I didnt appear ruffled by threats of court, awful credit ratingds,attachment of earnings he kind of ran out of steam.

Can anyone explain what happens when you receive a county court summons, I have never needed to know before I stupidly let myself enter the payday loan nightmare?

[sillygirl1]

If you get a 'summons' it will be some paperwork (usually from Nothampton Bulk Court) and you acknowledge it online, defending all of the claim... then get back to us with the particulars of claim (this will be what they base their argument on and is in a little box on the left hand side at the bottom of the form).

 

We then help with a defence which is free, the defence is lodged with the court and then it is transferred to your local court for a hearing. Sometimes they transfer it to a local court to you before you file the defence but this seems to be rare now... once you file the defence they have to reply with their allocation questionnaire (AQ) and pay money to the court (you don't do this when you file yours) and usually at that stage they run away (discontinue) or the court asks for mediation.

 

In the mediation hearing the companies have caved in as they cannot explain how they get £150 or £300 up to £1.700 (yes, I've seen it go as high as that with 'daily interest, daily default interest, statutory daily default interest and multiple charges including £35 per letter sent - allegedly 12 but none were ever received and they couldn't produce them for evidence).

 

Keep all your emails to them and log any phone calls, as it can be used in evidence, as can a list of all monies paid to them to date.

 

They have usually relied on getting judgement by default through the defendants ignorance in how to defend but these days it is becoming rarer as people google and come up with this site and others.

[thorntondog]

Just a little update for you. I defaulted with swift sterling in March, I have been paying £5 a month by standing order since, even though they wouldnt set up a repayment plan.

 

Today I recieved a letter from clarity accepting my offer of £5 per month on my balance of approcx £800. So stick to your guns on whta you can afford.

[josie1]

Hi thanks for that reply I am just about to email swift sterling and consumer resource solutions the DCA to say I am paying £10 a month by direct transfer to swift sterling direct. I take it that you didnt get a court summons? Were you threatened with this? My Dca have said that in 34 days the case will go back to swift sterlings to go to court. It is very encouraging that they have accepted your repayment plan.

Has anyone actually been taken to court by swift sterling? I only defaulted in June ( the end of the month.) Thanks for all this advice and helpful hints just goes to show a problem shared is more than halved.

[thorntondog]

I was threatened with doorstep collectors and court action, it's their usual bullying tactics to make you pay- but if you can't afford it there's nothing they can do. It is upsetting and worrying when they keep hassling you but don't be intimidated by them as it will pass.

 

Dont talk on the phone and just keep paying small amounts by standing order, if you are paying something you are taking responsibility for your debt so they are unlikely to take court action. So many people are struggling to repay their payday loans, it is a huge mission to take eveyone to court and dont forget they are ripping us off in the first place with extortionet interest rates.

 

If they ring dont verify your personal details but just say you will email them. If you email them ,keep saying the same thing. I told them I was in financial difficulty and I will be paying £5 a month to swift sterling direct. I said I take full responsibility for my debt and I will clear it in full but I can't commit to a time limit on this. I will be paying £5 for the forseeable future.

 

I didnt expect them to ever agree to it. Then I got the letter confirming a repayment plan of £5 a month. The hard bit is getting through the initial bullying threats from them.

 

Im not sure if they have taken any one to court but if they have I would assume it was a non payer.

 

Good luck - keep plodding on.

[josie1]

Thank you for your reply the information and advice you have given me has been great, I now have regained my courage and will sleep better tonight.

Thank you.

[thorntondog]

Im so pleased I could help and that you feel less worried.

 

'knowledge is power'

 

sweet dreams!!

[josie1]

Hi

Thank you for posting bank details for swift sterling . Do you know which bank this is with ? Also how did you get your loan ref no because when I log into the site I cannot access my loan information anymore?

Thanks

Josie1

 

It is very upsetting to be spoken to without consuideration by phone , therefore never talk on phone, always email, then you have proof of trying to resolve your debt.

 

The people who phone are not interested in your personal circumstances or the stress you are under, they think they can bully you into paying. They have no idea that you may be sitting there with no electric or food. Look after yourself and family first.

 

Set up a standing order to swift sterling and pay something small every month, ignore all phone calls and politely reply to letters by email.

 

Swift sterling bank details are

 

Account no: 00744802

sort code; 30-00-09

reference- important- your personal loan number- 8 digits long

[ksmiggy]

it will be on the aggreement or email they sent when you took it out.