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Living in Oz - Struggling with payments to UK already...


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Hi guys,

I have been looking at a number of threads and am interested in some advice if at all possible. My family and I (fiance and 3 year old child) moved to Australia about 4 and half months ago.

 

We have been wanting to make the move for a number of years, and it took us literally 3 years to get here...so we didnt want to / couldnt give up the chance.

 

The problem I have is I currently still owe a lot of money to the UK, roughly around the following:

 

15k bank loan (unsecured - never had a mortgage, etc.)

about 18k on cards

 

Up until this month, I have managed to send money back to cover MINIMUM payment amounts...but even after 3 months it is financially hitting me. Up until now I have literally worked in AU to pay UK payments, and with international transfer costs, etc. I loose x amount each transfer.

 

I have already notified (by letter) my bank, and credit card companies of my change of address in AU - I have already had one letter through from RBS demanding payment after missing 1 payment!

 

My question is....I realisticly cant continue to pay my UK debts. If i continue to not making payments, what will happen and on what sort of average time scale? Is there anyway that it can effect my credit rating or credit checks in Oz? (sorry that is more than one question!)

 

I have no wish to apply for any credit in Oz, the whole idea is that we do things right this time. I am no way saying or blaming anyone other than me for what I have ran up, but part of me does hold blame with the actual lending companies I owe to.

 

In the UK, our monthly income was £2k....pre credit crunch I was literally getting credit thrown at me hence the reason the debts are at the level that they are. I am now 30 years old, but when the firms were lending me the money I was a single young to mid 20's....I'm sure someone there should have thought hold on a second! I have never had a mortgage in my own name, so any loan or credit card I have ever had has never been "secured".

 

I really hope you guys can give me some sound advice; as things stand, I wont financially be able to afford to send any money back to cover payments for September either, and things will probably carry on for October too. Its not what I wanted to do, it really wasnt, but the thing is western australia is an expensive place to live with a single income - we have / had no future in the uk, so have no intentions what so ever of moving back there.

 

Any help and advice will be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks guys

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Could always stop paying as they would never chase you for it. Although your credit record would be decimated in the UK.

 

They wont chase it because they would have to contest jurisdiction and it would cost them a fortune to do so and to retrieve it.

 

Im not advocating debt avoidance by any means, im just posting facts. Have a good read of this forum. There are a number of people with situations just like yours. Perhaps you can get some info from those threads.

Any advice i give is my own and is based solely on personal experience. If in any doubt about a situation , please contact a certified legal representative or debt counsellor..

 

 

If my advice helps you, click the star icon at the bottom of my post and feel free to say thanks

:D

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Hello Avenger in Oz.

 

The miles makes not a scrap of difference, you are still the boss not them. Your choice is to continue paying or to stop. Stopping payments is no guarantee that you will not be chased for the next six years or that they have some friendly company down there they could get together with somehow to still chase you.

 

The second choice, if you would like to continue payments, is to reduce the amount down to one you can afford. This will, of course, mean the debt will never become statute barred.

Whichever way you choose, they could go for a court judgement which means it never becomes statute barred, so if you returned to the UK it would be here waiting for you.

That doesn't mean on any visits etc but the taking up of permanent residence again.

 

If you decide to reduce the payments, you should write to them and 'tell' them what you can afford, taking into account any emergencies that could happen, (or the odd xxx). You would say that is all you can afford at this time and will review it in six months time.

This won't be a request, this will be a statement to them.

 

Try an email to CCCS which is a charity home here that sets up debt management programmes for the likes of you and me.

 

http://www.cccs.co.uk/?WT.srch=1&WT.mc_id=200001&gclid=CKS_sai1prICFUdvfAodzVsA4Q

 

Will you come back and let us know what they say and how you get on please as we have an increasing number of overseas visitors with the same or similar problems.

Edited by Conniff
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Regarding the Court judgement, they would find it hard to get one if the Op's only address is in Australia. I'm pretty sure that a basic requirement to start a claim is that the Defendant must live in England or wales for the claim to proceed.

Any advice i give is my own and is based solely on personal experience. If in any doubt about a situation , please contact a certified legal representative or debt counsellor..

 

 

If my advice helps you, click the star icon at the bottom of my post and feel free to say thanks

:D

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Thanks for the replies guys, just to give you an update on status, etc....

 

I have actually made a payment to barclays this month for my loan...it wasnt by my choice the direct debit kicked in before i could cancel it - it used my overdraft facility. I am about to send them a letter once again confirming my change of address and country, and have also put on there that i have cancelled the direct debit and cannot make any payments at present.

 

RBS and Capital One seem to have updated my address on their systems, Barclaycard however must have ignored my letter as they still have me down in the uk so i am resending them another letter to confirm the change of address once again, and also confirming to them that i am in no current state to make any payments to them.

 

I have also stressed the point on the letters that the previous uk address they had on record for me is now of no use to them - do you think they will really take any notice of this? i.e. will they still send people to knock on the door, etc?

 

Thanks once again for the pointers guys - its people like you that give us stressed out people a glimmer of hope :)

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