Debt advice

[Strokes]

1 hour ago, ROB-THE-BLUE said:

Thank you all so much.

 

Firstly for all the sensible ideas and approaches. I've sat on it for today and read all of the replies and private messages. Secondly, for so much goodwill and no negativity at all, which at the minute means a hell of a lot.

 

I'm going to follow up with a few of these ideas over the next few days and hopefully get some kind of plan in place. Still very open to more advice if anyone else has any thoughts.

 

Thank you again x

Don’t be hard on yourself, many of us live on a financial knife edge.

A few changes in circumstances or a run of bad luck could land many people in a not dissimilar situation. 
The important thing is dealing with it and not hiding away, which you seem to be doing. Best of luck.

[Vlad the Fox]

5 hours ago, ramboacdc said:

I once nearly went under when I had 2 credit cards maxxed out and Stepchange recommended banrkupcy. Instead I called both CC companies and said I couldn't pay. They hit me with a default, went through everything with me (income, outgoings etc) and agreed a new payment plan. I had one at a tenner a month on a £16k debt at the time. 7 year default saved bankruptcy. 

 

Talking to Stepchange is always a good option. My advice from being in this situation before:

1. make a list of debts in interest order (highest first). When you can pay stuff back, focus on paying off the debt with the highest interest or what will be the highest interest once an offer expires.

2. If you have car finance or whatever, get the car sold, pay off the finance and find a run around you can pay for outright. Not always possible I know, but if possible, it gets rid of what may be a large monthly repayment. 

3. Reach out and talk to people like you have. I commend you for it. 

4. Don't feel bad or guilty about any of it. You are doing the right thing in talking to people and sometimes these things can't be helped. 

5. Look at MoneySavingExpert, I used a lot of his Boost your income recommendations. None will clear your problems overnight, but some may get a few extra quid in. 

6. I told my employer about it, but I know that may not be a good move in some cases. 

7. Write everything down, income and outgoings and check your DD's and Standing Orders for stuff you may not realise you are still paying for. I was paying for shit like cats protection and political party memberships when I went through mine that I didn't even know I was paying. I am happy to help you with things like that, even down to switching electric/gas companies to get a cheaper deal, same with Internet etc. Heck, I would share Netflix with you if it helped in some way.

 

Keep talking. That was the best thing you could have done. 

Similar with me, never spoke to stepchange but did the credit card companies, defaulted and paid what I could afford each month, they would want an annual review to check if I could pay more but I’d usually swerve that by being too busy to speak on the phone and as long as I kept up with the DD they were happy. As that was now interest free and cheap I could pay off other stuff. 
 

Despite the default it didn’t seem to affect my credit rating too much as once things got better I managed to remortgage which then saved me even more money. 
 

 

[Dreadnought]

15 hours ago, ROB-THE-BLUE said:

Thank you all so much.

 

Firstly for all the sensible ideas and approaches. I've sat on it for today and read all of the replies and private messages. Secondly, for so much goodwill and no negativity at all, which at the minute means a hell of a lot.

 

I'm going to follow up with a few of these ideas over the next few days and hopefully get some kind of plan in place. Still very open to more advice if anyone else has any thoughts.

 

Thank you again x

I have worked in the credit industry for 27 years. All of the advice previously mentioned is absolutely bang on. If you want me to give you a detailed plan on what the best solution for you might be, feel free to message me your email address. I can take some details, have a look at your credit file and see how you should proceed👍

[ramboacdc]

13 hours ago, Vlad the Fox said:

Similar with me, never spoke to stepchange but did the credit card companies, defaulted and paid what I could afford each month, they would want an annual review to check if I could pay more but I’d usually swerve that by being too busy to speak on the phone and as long as I kept up with the DD they were happy. As that was now interest free and cheap I could pay off other stuff. 
 

Despite the default it didn’t seem to affect my credit rating too much as once things got better I managed to remortgage which then saved me even more money. 
 

 

I took a hit on the credit rating but used the whole 7 years to become debt indepenant. They sold the debts to debt collectors, but as you say you can keep paying what you agreed before and swerve the reviews. Even after 30 minutes of giving them the income and outgoings they will say "you should be able to afford xxx a month now to repay" you can just say you want to stay at what you were at and they have to accept it as long as it's reasonable, and since you were already paying a certain amount, it's reasonable to accept you will keep paying it. 

I now have 1 Credit Card that I use to put all my subscriptions on and then pay it off in full at the end of the month to boost the credit score a bit. Also helps me see how much I am paying a month in total for streaming services