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Hi,
Firstly, thank you to everyone within this community for the information that you share and for the constructive approach that you all take. As I'll explain, I've been reading the forums here for some months and they have been incredibly helpful. Before outlining my (or, more appropriately, "our") diary, I'd like to wish you all the best of luck with your own journeys.
So here goes:
A relative has been struggling with debt for some time. It had been having an impact upon their mental health for some years, causing a high level of stress and anxiety. Despite this, they had continued to work ridiculous hours to pay the minimum repayments on their cards. In reality, there was no prospect of the cards being repaid in full.
The situation was such that they were unable to talk to the credit card companies, or even to family members, about finding a solution. Finally, late last year, we persuaded them to open up about the scale of the problem and suggested that we would take on the task of attempting to resolve it for them.
Our primary concern in this, frankly, is their wellbeing.
Initially, we contacted Step Change, who reviewed the situation. They suggested that the situation was so bad that bankrupty was the only realistic option. Our relative couldn't bear the thought of going down this route. The scale of the debt and the age of our relative means that a repayment plan was not an option.
So we decided to put together some money and approached each of the companies that were claiming money from them with an offer for a full and final settlement. As you'll see from the individual entries below, we offered each company the same proportion: around 20% of the claimed amount.
At the same time, we requested CCAs from each of these companies. We did this primarily in the hope of improving our negotiating position. We realised that, even if debts were UE, companies (and those that they might sell the debt on to) might still pursue these amounts. Our relative would find this extremely stressful, meaning that we'd still prefer to settle (if possible) to bring the situation to an end.
Anyway, below is a snapshot of where we are at. As you'll see, we only have two companies left to deal with (Next and Barclaycard), who have both responded to CCA requests. I'll be sending that documentation across to Niddy, so that we can get an informed opinion on whether or not they are enforceable.
Thank you all for your time reading.
1. Debt - Capital One credit card
Account opened: Nov 1997
Approx balance: £4,000
Date last paid: Nov 2018
Status: F&F settlement offer of around 20% was made and accepted. This account is now closed.
2. Debt- Lloyds credit card
Account opened: Aug 2013
Approx balance: £2,900
Date last paid: Nov 2018
Status: F&F settlement offer of around 20% was made and accepted. This account is now closed.
3. Debt - HSBC credit card
Account opened: Around 2009
Approx balance: £7,000
Date last paid: Nov 2018
Status: F&F settlement offer of around 20% was made and accepted. This account is now closed.
4. Debt- M&S credit card
Account opened: Nov 1986 (as a store card, we believe)
Approx balance: £9,500
Date last paid: Nov 2018
Status: F&F settlement offer of around 20% was made and accepted. This account is now closed.
5. Debt - M&S Reserve Account
Account opened: June 1999
Approx balance: £5,000
Date last paid: Nov 2018
Status: F&F settlement offer of around 20% was made and accepted. This account is now closed.
6. Debt - Next Store Card
Account opened: July 2009
Approx balance: £1,000 (and rising)
Date last paid: Nov 2018
Status: F&F settlement offer of around 20% was made and has been rejected
Account owner: Still with Next and no default notice has been issued as yet
7. Debt - Barclaycard credit card
Account opened: July 1999
Approx balance: £7,500
Date last paid: Nov 2018
Status: F&F settlement offer of around 20% was made and has been rejected
Account owner: Still with Barclaycard. Default notice was issued a couple of months ago. Account status is currently "on hold"
Firstly, thank you to everyone within this community for the information that you share and for the constructive approach that you all take. As I'll explain, I've been reading the forums here for some months and they have been incredibly helpful. Before outlining my (or, more appropriately, "our") diary, I'd like to wish you all the best of luck with your own journeys.
So here goes:
A relative has been struggling with debt for some time. It had been having an impact upon their mental health for some years, causing a high level of stress and anxiety. Despite this, they had continued to work ridiculous hours to pay the minimum repayments on their cards. In reality, there was no prospect of the cards being repaid in full.
The situation was such that they were unable to talk to the credit card companies, or even to family members, about finding a solution. Finally, late last year, we persuaded them to open up about the scale of the problem and suggested that we would take on the task of attempting to resolve it for them.
Our primary concern in this, frankly, is their wellbeing.
Initially, we contacted Step Change, who reviewed the situation. They suggested that the situation was so bad that bankrupty was the only realistic option. Our relative couldn't bear the thought of going down this route. The scale of the debt and the age of our relative means that a repayment plan was not an option.
So we decided to put together some money and approached each of the companies that were claiming money from them with an offer for a full and final settlement. As you'll see from the individual entries below, we offered each company the same proportion: around 20% of the claimed amount.
At the same time, we requested CCAs from each of these companies. We did this primarily in the hope of improving our negotiating position. We realised that, even if debts were UE, companies (and those that they might sell the debt on to) might still pursue these amounts. Our relative would find this extremely stressful, meaning that we'd still prefer to settle (if possible) to bring the situation to an end.
Anyway, below is a snapshot of where we are at. As you'll see, we only have two companies left to deal with (Next and Barclaycard), who have both responded to CCA requests. I'll be sending that documentation across to Niddy, so that we can get an informed opinion on whether or not they are enforceable.
Thank you all for your time reading.
1. Debt - Capital One credit card
Account opened: Nov 1997
Approx balance: £4,000
Date last paid: Nov 2018
Status: F&F settlement offer of around 20% was made and accepted. This account is now closed.
2. Debt- Lloyds credit card
Account opened: Aug 2013
Approx balance: £2,900
Date last paid: Nov 2018
Status: F&F settlement offer of around 20% was made and accepted. This account is now closed.
3. Debt - HSBC credit card
Account opened: Around 2009
Approx balance: £7,000
Date last paid: Nov 2018
Status: F&F settlement offer of around 20% was made and accepted. This account is now closed.
4. Debt- M&S credit card
Account opened: Nov 1986 (as a store card, we believe)
Approx balance: £9,500
Date last paid: Nov 2018
Status: F&F settlement offer of around 20% was made and accepted. This account is now closed.
5. Debt - M&S Reserve Account
Account opened: June 1999
Approx balance: £5,000
Date last paid: Nov 2018
Status: F&F settlement offer of around 20% was made and accepted. This account is now closed.
6. Debt - Next Store Card
Account opened: July 2009
Approx balance: £1,000 (and rising)
Date last paid: Nov 2018
Status: F&F settlement offer of around 20% was made and has been rejected
Account owner: Still with Next and no default notice has been issued as yet
7. Debt - Barclaycard credit card
Account opened: July 1999
Approx balance: £7,500
Date last paid: Nov 2018
Status: F&F settlement offer of around 20% was made and has been rejected
Account owner: Still with Barclaycard. Default notice was issued a couple of months ago. Account status is currently "on hold"