Do I need a Consumer Credit License for Self Help DMP?

[scottybhoy]

Tingy - I wish it would make me millions LOL! Realistically a couple of thousand to clear the rest of my Debts would be nice, a headache for the DCA's and Creditors that use bullying tactics would be nice too. I have used it in a "live" environment i.e. mine and my partners debt and it does help - makes keeping on top of things a bit easier. Have ran it past some possible investors (whom I know personally too), who in turn ran the projections past their financial advisers and got positive feedback from that, so it's not really my money going into it now - unless they pull out!

 

Have shown some close friends the first phase of the software and they thought it was good. Would be good to get some people with more experience than myself to test it, like you/Seq, but that would be "canvassing" which I really want to avoid and as it is commercial kind of goes against the forum rules a bit - and I don't want to pi** off CAG and the moderators as what they do is priceless and I have a lot of respect for that - as well as others who contribute.

 

Not worried about you "stealing" the idea - it's all protected externally and I have measures in place that allows people to view and test it. All the code is encrypted too. Plus you would need to give it away for free as I intend to ask for very little for it haha!

 

I could show you it via Go2Meeting or something - will "white-label" it so that you don't know what it's called, then I suppose that isn't really canvassing - right!?

[sequenci]

Wow £702 is a fair amount of money.

 

Prior to moving this forward I assume you've seen the other tools out there that do a similar thing, e.g. Debt Remedy, My Money Steps and iMoneyManager?? (to name but three)

[scottybhoy]

Hi Seq, oh yes, mine is different!

[sequenci]

I'm assuming that it uses the same basic principles, e.g. pro-rata payments and all that stuff

[scottybhoy]

Absolutely, as if it did not it would be useless I think . There are some other parts to it mind, that set it apart from the rest of the other tools available. Don't want to give too much away on an open forum though. I think it's great - but I'm biased.

 

Just need this darn CCL sorted out! Mind you - if that fails, I will probably just do it for free, but that isn't going to sort out my debts!

[scottybhoy]

Apologies for this rant - been a tough old week with fee charging DMC's promising the world and refusing to put it in writing, treating you as if you know nothing and just general door slammed shut in my face from Orgs that should be helping IMO.

 

OK, have met some resistance in doing this properly. Money Advice Trust do not want to help by issuing my CFS license (apparently it would be in conflict with their My Money Steps) - so what is the point of them offering it!? Maybe it is because it is supposed to be a commercial project - I don't know.

 

Attempting to get on a Money Advice Course is almost impossible unless you are a involved with CAB, CCCS, ridiculous fee charging DMC's or you have money to burn by giving up full time employment and entering into a full time course and paying the ridiculous educational fees in place. (I'm still paying my bloody student loan from doing my degree 8 years ago).

 

Basically, what I have learnt these past few months is that you either half -heartedly help someone or help them with your financial interests in mind. I am not going to apologise for these strong comments as what I have learnt this week especially ****es me off a little bit.

 

Protected Trust Deed, typically creditors will accept 10p in the pound. The Org administering this pretty much also takes 10p in the pound in fees (well maybe a penny or two less!). So why not offer to settle the debtors debts at 30p in the pound and not take action against them (yes everybody would do it, but no, they wouldn't their Credit rating would be badly damaged!).

 

The debt industry is more corrupt than I thought. I shouldn't be surprised, but I am disgusted. I sat this week and was told that when calculated, my debt would be 30K, when in fact it is 20K with 10k due to be written off due to some technicality. Honestly, when I was shown what a fee charging company makes from someone being in debt I was disgusted.

 

It seems that you only get anywhere if you provide a plan that benefits the Creditors, i.e. PayPlan, CCCS, CAB (this is not an attack on the genuinely helpful people at these Orgs who I have the utmost respect for- it is higher up you have to look!). You can also get somewhere if you want to (in my opinion) shaft people out of more money by providing a fee charging service.

 

Anyway, way off here on a rant as I have been annoyed this week. What has this got to do with this thread, well, the CCL I have given up with, my program is going to be made free - so no need for one. I have lost 5k of my personal money that I could have put towards my debts. You know it doesn't really bother me, what bothers me is that people who are in genuine distress are (most of the time) taken advantage of. People like jellycubes, honestly, should not be in the predicament she is being forced into by her Creditors - she has a young kid for god sake.

 

I don't want to be compared to these cretins in the slightest who charge money. Not going that route any more, my project will be free (but I'm still not naming it here, that's not what I'm about). Money is nothing if you don't have family, friends and make peoples life a misery. How can you sleep at night in the knowledge that you have a woman with a young kid who hiding from you - utter disgrace.

 

I have seen first hand what it is like to have someone trying to take their life over debt - not nice, not nice at all. THIS SHOULD NOT HAPPEN IN THIS DAY AND AGE SO THAT THE RICH GET RICHER BY INSTILLING FEAR INTO THE POOR AND FRAGILE. Debt is debt, I'm pretty certain you are insured against losses!

 

Sorry, rant over, feel better though. And to all the people who work for these Orgs, I don't blame you for trying to make a living for your family by doing what you do - you may not sleep at night, but your bosses will.

[Tingy]

Hey Scott,

 

Just read your rant and totally understand how you feel. You know my comments about your program as I've been fortunate enough to see it. If you're offering it for free if I were you I would maybe try to come to some agreement with this site whereby perhaps it is made available free by downloading it from this site. If people find it useful then a voluntary donation should be made to CAG. At least that way if any money is made from it, it may not go to solving your personal debt, but at least it will be reinvested towards helping loads of other people get help solving their debts.

 

If you do find a place to host it, let me know and I'd be very happy to put a link on my website to it.

[scottybhoy]

Thanks Tingy, I have the whole website in development and I am hosting the software there (My webdev is all done by myself and my hosting is VERY cheap!). I am putting a donation button on my site to help with the costs and I am setting up a little community to help give feedback and improve it.

 

I did contact CAG (are you reading CAG ), but didn't get a response after 3 emails. I appreciate (CAG) you probably get thousands of emails and I am very grateful for the help I have received on this site by you providing the means. Just been hard going these past few weeks. But same goes for you with the link etc, Would be grateful for that and I can put a link to your site on mine - would help us both as I have some interesting people working on the SEO and all that technical stuff to help get the site noticed (which in turn would help yours too).

 

I am 100% sure I am not going to charge for it now and it will be free. Once it is all up I will let you have a look at it and you can decide if you want to put a link to it as I don't want it to do more harm that good - its just another option for people to try.

 

A comment you made to me during the week kind of made my mind up about doing it for free. Thanks Tingy!

[sequenci]

Scotty, who did you contact at CAG?

[scottybhoy]

First the admin account, then alan. Probably never got back to me because it was going to be commercial, which is fair enough.

[scottybhoy]

I meant to sat CAG did help me in the past with my British gas site (now offline) so they have helped me in the past for which I am grateful

[Tingy]

Seq - I don't know what kind of input you have as a member of the Site Team, but I've seen this program working and in my honest opinion while it is not for everyone, it is very user friendly, well thought out and developed and if free people could download it and see whether or not they would find it useful. I don't believe it is something that most would use entirely by itself, but in conjunction with advice offered on these forums it would be a very valuable tool for many, if not only for keeping track of exactly what they've done and when they've done it. It does also however have a good range of letters (though Scott knows I feel it is missing quite a few).

 

For what it's worth in my opinion something offered for free that would pull more members into the site must be a good thing. Certainly it would be worth the powers that be having a look at it for evaluation - they'd only need half an hour or so.

[sequenci]

I'll certainly try and help out for sure. Will need to be in a couple of weeks time, once I've finished my exams!

[scottybhoy]

Thanks Seq and Tingy. It will def be free too much red tape to make it commercial!!!

 

Good luck with your exams.

[sequenci]

 

Good luck with your exams.

 

Thanks sir, appreciate the support

[victoria_siempre]

HELLO boys

 

We have a punter who wants to make some money out of debt management software; I for one ain't going to get my knickers in a twist either way: surely we have better things to do?

 

x

v

[Nick Pearson]

Hi

 

If you don't charge you don't need a licence; if you do charge, our CAG line would be why pay for something that CAG provides for free. You could try Dragons' Den.

 

best wishes

 

vic

 

You need a CCL whether you charge for debt advice or any sort or if you provide it for free. If you're a free service the licencne is cheaper.

[victoria_siempre]

Hi Nick

 

I'm not sure that CAG has a licence; what is the penalty for talking to folk about alleged debt without one? Why are we wasting our time on wanna bees?

 

x

 

v

 

PS

OccupationDirector of External Affairs, Paymex GroupAnd Mr Hart?

[Nick Pearson]

Hi Nick

 

I'm not sure that CAG has a licence; what is the penalty for talking to folk about alleged debt without one? Why are we wasting our time on wanna bees?

 

x

 

v

 

PS

OccupationDirector of External Affairs, Paymex GroupAnd Mr Hart?

Its a criminal offence to give debt advice, free or commercially, (what debt advice is is not really defined in detail by OFT) without a CCL. Not sure if its fine/prision or both.

Who is Mr Hart by the way???

[victoria_siempre]

Hi Nick

 

Could you point me to statute?

 

v

[Nick Pearson]

Hi Nick

 

Could you point me to statute?

 

v

 

See http://www.oft.gov.uk/shared_oft/business_leaflets/credit_licences/oft147.pdf

[victoria_siempre]

Statute darling?

 

v

[Nick Pearson]

Statute darling?

 

v

 

Victoria, you need to get a researcher! Its all there in the 74 Act as amended. Have a read you may learn something of interest.

[victoria_siempre]

Hi Nick

 

And the criminal penalties for non-compliance...?

 

v

[Nick Pearson]

Hi Nick

 

And the criminal penalties for non-compliance...?

 

v

 

You're boring me now V. Its all there if you're willing to look but in extreme cases the OFT can have you pelted with Rice Krispies until you wimper like a lost child.