DMP Advice and What Next?

[aliensonline]

Hi,

I don’t ever remember joining CAG but stumbled upon it again recently – wish I’d known about it years ago, the information and support I’ve seen here are amazing.

 

I’m looking for some debt and DMP help, and would really appreciate people’s ideas and advice on my position. It’s grown pretty long but wanted to get down everything, so to anyone who reads it all a BIG THANKS!

 

I have had a DMP since 2007 and would like to get these debts cleared off because they’re such a drain, but haven’t been able to contribute that much so the total is still big. I did try for an IVA originally, but that was rejected in June 2007, if it had gone ahead I’d be sorted by now.

 

These are the details:

1. Abbey Loan, started in September 2006, now with Apex £25,000 outstanding.

 

2. MBNA Credit Card, opened in 1999, now with Link Financial £13,500 outstanding.

 

3. Co-op Credit Card, opened in 1989, now with Frederickson £10,200 outstanding.

 

4. HFC Loan, started in September 2004 still with them £3,800 outstanding.

 

5. Unsecured loan with NRAM, about £13,000 outstanding. Our mortgage was taken out in 2006 with Northern Rock, now with NRAM, and includes this unsecured part. They’ve stopped the interest on this part, but I’ve tried to keep up the full payments separate from the DMP because I was worried about its association with our mortgage.

 

The Co-op CC has now come off my credit report, the others are due to by about May 2014, (except NRAM which is not listed as defaulted but a month in arrears) so that’s starting to improve. I haven’t paid for PPI on any of them.

 

Here are a few questions.

A. Abbey gave us a £25,000 loan but applied all of the interest right at the start instead of on an annual basis, making the initial balance £31685. So even though I’d paid £2,400 the default amount was £29,038. I haven’t seen this way of applying the interest before and if it had been applied monthly or annually I’d have defaulted on less. Is there anything I can do about this, like claim back interest that applied after the default? They didn’t apply any other charges.

 

B. Is there any possibility of reclaiming any interest (on purchases) that is applied before the creditors accept a repayment offer and freeze interest? I’m not exactly sure when that officially happened, but the Co-op CC appears to have stopped after November 2007 and MBNA CC after December 2007. However the IVA application for example was in June 2007 and between then and November there was thousands in interest on the two CCs. Is there any possibility of reclaiming any of that extra interest?

 

C. Because I stopped making minimum payments MBNA and Co-op started charging late fees at £12 per month and then when the balance went over limit due to the accruing interest, overlimit fees of £12 per month started. Total fees are about £100 each. Am I right in thinking it may be possible to get these refunded? (Although they are drops in the ocean!)

 

D. I’ve read of people applying to see the original, signed CA. Some of mine were taken out a long time ago so they may not be able to produce the CA. Have I anything to lose by requesting them and if they can’t what does that mean for me?

 

E. Many of these questions are a bit hopeful really, it’s just that I haven’t been able to save anything for a full and final payment and I worked out it would take another 27 years to repay all of these at the current rate! So really the main thing is any advice/ideas on anything I can do to avoid being saddled with these debts forever?

 

Thank you for reading all this. It’s a lot, but I wanted to get all the important stuff in together.

 

Many, many thanks in advance for your time and advice.

J

Edited June 30, 2013 by aliensonline
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[DuffNCustard]

I'm sure you will have read on these forums about making sure that you reclaim any mis-sold PPI. With regard to the £12 late payment fees you may have some joy there but £12 is accepted as being not unreasonable.

 

By all means send in a CCA request but it I wouldn't rate your chances of this being a route to making your debt unenforceable.

 

The only solution I know for getting shot of this lot is to go bankrupt.

 

Another approach successfully used by some is to make full and final offers but you need a reasonable warchest to go about this.

 

You ask about the Abbey Loan, if this was a personal loan then that's how they work. You borrow 25k, the interest is added to it and you sign the agreement for the principal plus interest with a fixed repayment period. The interest is the first part of the loan that gets paid back so all the payments for the first couple of years pay off the interest. its not like a credit card.

 

So with total debts of around 65k even getting some charges off lets say reduces it to 60k and thats a long shot then its bankruptcy or you slog you way on paying it off. Presumably you spent it? I've been there mysef but my debts were 90k plus - now all paid off it was tough but now being debt free makes all the years I lived on beans worthwhile

[aliensonline]

Thanks for the quick reply,

Unfortunately it's spent, got to the stage of using one to pay off another and it quickly mounted up. Some is in our house, but we bought just before the slump and it hasn't gone up much. Also I work in the public sector and like many have had no pay rise for most of the last five years.

Thanks again,

J

[renegadeimp]

If link and freds have your accounts, then 90% of the time, it's a bad debt and theres something wrong with it. Also, all those late fee's and charges on your credit cards are penalty fee's and can be reclaimed.

 

You should start by dropping all your low priority debts to token payments and send off those CCA requests to each company that is chasing you. If they cant provide a CCA that complies with requirements, then it means they don't get a penny out of you. Ever.

[dx100uk]

1. Abbey Loan, started in September 2006, now with Apex £25,000 outstanding. - CCA them

2. MBNA Credit Card, opened in 1999, now with Link Financial £13,500 outstanding. - very def CCA them, link are know fleecers

 

3. Co-op Credit Card, opened in 1989, now with Frederickson £10,200 outstanding. - CCA them,

 

4. HFC Loan, started in September 2004 still with them £3,800 outstanding. - def CCA them I bet you have PPI & all manner of other stuff to reclaim - sar too]

adapt the following text to YOUR details.

DO NOT SIGN THE LETTER!

get a £1 BLANK Postal order

write on the back

for statutory £1 CCA FEE ONLY.

leave the payee BLANK

post the two off by 1st class post, get proof of posting from PO counter

they have 12+2 WORKING days to comply.

 

firm demanding money

 

street,

 

town,

 

county

 

postcode

 

 

 

Dear Sir/Madam

 

 

 

Re:- Account/Reference Number 12345678

 

I do not acknowledge any debt with your Company or Associates

 

This letter is a formal request pursuant to s.77/78 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974. I require you to provide me with a true copy of the credit agreement relating to the above account, together with any other documentation the Act requires you to provide, including a detailed statement of the account.

 

 

 

I expect you to comply fully and properly with this request, within the statutory time limit. You are reminded that should you fail to comply with my request, the provisions of s.77 will apply.

 

 

 

If it is your view that you are not the creditor, s.175 of the CCA 1974 applies in the case of a simple assignment, and places a duty upon you to pass this request to the creditor. In the case of an absolute assignment, you are a creditor as defined by s.189. If you contend that you purchased the rights but not the duties of any agreement, you are reminded that s.189 of the Act is clear that an assignment is of both rights and duties.

 

 

 

Your attention is drawn to ss.5(2), 3(b),6 and 7 of the Consumer Protection From Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPUTR).

 

 

 

I enclose a postal order in the sum of £1.00, which is the statutory fee. Note that these funds are not to be used for any other purpose.

 

 

 

If you are unable to comply fully and properly with this request, you should confirm this in writing at the earliest opportunity, and certainly within the statutory time limit for compliance, and return the fee.

 

 

 

We look forward to hearing from you.

 

 

 

Yours faithfully

 

Mr A N Other

[aliensonline]

Many Thanks folks,

Guess I'll send off the requests and wait and see!

[Peterbard]

Totally agree about the CCA requests and looking forward to reading your responses from the various creditors.

[aliensonline]

It has now reached the 12+2 days (I posted the letters on 02/07/13) and here are the responses:

 

1. Apex wrote on 04/07/13

"Thank you for your letter, in which you have requested all documentation under the Consumer Credit Act 1974 (the Act) with regards to your above noted account. We can confirm that your request is being processed and your account will be placed on hold pending its fulfilment. We will write to you again with an update of our progress or on completion of the required documentation being supplied in line with the Act. Yours sincerely ..."

Nothing since.

 

2. Link: no response

 

3. Fredrickson wrote on 15/7/13:

"We have referred the matter to our client and will revert to you as soon as we are in receipt of instructions. In the meantime, we confirm that we have placed the account on hold."

Followed by a letter from Cabot (I didn't know they were involved):

"Thank you for your request for information under the Consumer Credit Act 1974. Cabot Financial currently does not have this information on file However, we have requested the relevant information under section 77 and/or 78 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 from the original lender. We anticipate that we will be able to provide this information within 40 days. In the event we are unlikely to obtain this information within those time limits, we will write to you again."

 

4. HFC: no response.

 

So I'll stop paying and hope that they don't find the agreements.

Any views and comments very welcome.

 

Many Thanks,

J

[dx100uk]

send them each this as they've passed the 12+2 Working days time limts

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/content.php?436-Failiure-to-provide-a-copy-of-the-agreement-within-the-prescribed-timescale

[aliensonline]

A quick update:

Link has sent me a copy of my signed MBNA credit card application form from 1999.

Thanks,

J

[dx100uk]

ok can I suggest you make a new thread for the MBNA debt

in the MBNA forum off the main forum tab top left of the page

 

dx