[Iccz]

Hi guys, i'm looking for anyone who has possible experience with a debt consolidation company for, let's say a considerable amount of money (under £50,000)

Basically need a reputable company and will do quite a large amount.
if you've experience with them it's obviously a lot more helpful and reliable

I don't know much on the subject and i've not been told the exact amount but it's under £50,000 and over £25,000, i'm just looking for possibilites to suggest.

Any information will be appreciated.

If more details are needed I can try find out more.


Thanks

[Setenza]

Head over to the "Money Saving Expert" forum.

They have a wealth of FAQ's and experienced members whose brain you can pick.

[Londondecca]

I would highly recommend CCCS who are a charity and offer a first rate service www.cccs.co.uk. We have used these people and unlike most commercial firms they do not charge you any money. They also seem to be respected and paid for by the banks and this can make a big difference

Also have a look at http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/loans/debt-help-plan &
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/loans/secured-loans

[Iccz]

Originally Posted by Londondecca

I would highly recommend CCCS who are a charity and offer a first rate service www.cccs.co.uk. We have used these people and unlike most commercial firms they do not charge you any money. They also seem to be respected and paid for by the banks and this can make a big difference

Also have a look at http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/loans/debt-help-plan &
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/loans/secured-loans

the money saving expert site seems to be very helpful, I saw the CCCS among 4 helpful places, I will suggest looking at these rather than a commercial company like those advertised on TV

Many thanks folks !

[zAndy1]

Another very helpful forum here:-

http://www.debtquestions.co.uk/debt_forum/

Would second the CCCS recommendation, they're free and well respected

[gavan]

Seconded on the MSE advice. They have some very good tips on how to best go about clearing your debt with commonsense measures.

Regarding debt consolidation, think very carefully. You are converting unsecured debt into secured debt against your property so unless you can really afford the new repayments you stand to lose your home on top of everything else.


I would look at IVAs before even considering debt consolidation.

[Goooner]

Another recommendation for the CCCS, very helpful indeed.

[Setenza]

CCCS are good. I speak from experience. They put me in touch with "Debt Free Me" which then led to my dealings with "Bridgestones".

Re: IVAs. The criteria for these will be tighter in the month to come. The economic climate is causing a higher level of defaults.The lenders will simply not settle for 25p in the pound. Some are already only taking 30p. I can see it being 40% of total debt in a years time.

Offenders are MBNA and HSBC so far. they seem to be taking a harder line than other banks.

IVAs are settled by a pro rate vote by creditors. You have to have 75% of your crediters agree.

They also add allsorts of caveats, such as yearly reviews of your income and clearly defined earning thresholds. If exceeded, they ant 50% of any surplus.

Not that I know

[paulyoung666]

Originally Posted by Xusia Of Delos

Not that I know

i do know and it wasnt a pleasant experience , i think it was 3 or 4 years into the 5 and i ended up remortgaging to payback a chunk extra of the money !!!! , ok so i did owe the money butit has set me back years as regards to my mortgage being paid off , better off not getting into debt in the first place , i know that doesnt help the OP though

[Chrisoldinho]

CCCS, Citizens Advice basically what others have mentioned before.

Or alternatively if your happy with playing the system, switch the house into your partner/wife's name, make sure you have no assets (if that means switching the car into her name so be it), then declare yourself bankrupt. The government have adjusted the laws surrounding Bankruptcy to reduce the stigma, so basically 1 year after you've been declared bankrupt you can start to re-apply for credit if needed and more importantly you can switch the house back into both names etc.

Not much point in paying £50k back if you can get away with it, just go bankrupt.

And i'll point out at this stage I have never done this but having worked in Commercial Litigation, Consumer Debt Recoveries on Credit Cards, Unsecured Loans and Mortgages I saw several instances of this every day.

Oh and just so you don't feel alone in this situation, in my current business we have an average of 120m of of Debt outstanding on credit cards alone every 3 months...

Chris.

[Ultima]

Originally Posted by Chrisoldinho

Or alternatively if your happy with playing the system, switch the house into your partner/wife's name, make sure you have no assets (if that means switching the car into her name so be it), then declare yourself bankrupt. The government have adjusted the laws surrounding Bankruptcy to reduce the stigma, so basically 1 year after you've been declared bankrupt you can start to re-apply for credit if needed and more importantly you can switch the house back into both names etc.

Not much point in paying £50k back if you can get away with it, just go bankrupt.

and you don't take any responsibility for your actions and deny your creditors cash that's rightly theirs.

[Goooner]

Does seem a bit dodgy doesn't it?

I got myself in a big heap of financial bother, could have gone the bankruptcy route, but it didn't seem right.

I've enjoyed the things that all the debts bought over the years, I feel it's only right that I should pay it all back.

It's not easy and it's certainly going to take a while, but it'd just feel wrong to use the system to take the "easy" way out.

The CCCS have been great at dealing with all my creditors, I now get no hassling phone calls or letters, just one statement from them once a month with my (slowly) shrinking debt.

If circumstances change, for better or for worse, you can phone them and they do a review and either increase or decrease your payments to them and then negiote the change with the creditors accordingly.

As mentioned above HSBC and MBNA definitely seem the worse to deal with and will try to get as much out of you as they can. Thing is, I'd say that it was these two in particular, who were the worst culprits at "throwing" money at me over the years, without any proper checks to see if I could afford to pay it back, OK, so they didn't force me to take it, but I have little sympathy for making them wait for their money.

[stepneg]

I would recommend a company called payplan, they will advise you on the best way to go for free and come recommend by the MSE forum

[gavan]

Bankruptcy can be a very sensible option depending on your situation and it is necessary to safeguard people from becoming total 'debt slaves'.

However, if it is abused (as I suspect it will be in the coming years) you can expect changes in the law to make it a lot tougher on the individual.


To be honest, there has been so much absolutely reckless lending over the last decade that some of these lenders positively deserve to have their debts defaulted on. Maybe these cretins will think twice before giving out credit to anyone who can fog a glass.

[dan1979]

Originally Posted by Chrisoldinho

The government have adjusted the laws surrounding Bankruptcy to reduce the stigma, so basically 1 year after you've been declared bankrupt you can start to re-apply for credit if needed and more importantly you can switch the house back into both names etc.

Now that sub-prime has died on its arse good luck finding a mortgage lender that will lend to a discharged bankrupt unless it was at least three years ago and that's the generous ones, most are six years.

Any credit you apply for, and some jobs, will ask if you've ever been made bankrupt - you can't just do it then brush it under the carpet.

[Goooner]

Originally Posted by gavan

To be honest, there has been so much absolutely reckless lending over the last decade that some of these lenders positively deserve to have their debts defaulted on. Maybe these cretins will think twice before giving out credit to anyone who can fog a glass.

Prime example, I knew when I started getting in trouble, went in for a chat at my bank, to see if they could give me any help to sort myself out, explained my situation to them, 20 minutes later, they'd printed out a form off their computer, gave it to me to sign and off I go with £10,000 in my bank account

If that's not irresponsible lending, then I don't know what is. Went in to try and get out of the debt mess I'd got myself into, the last thing I needed was another loan, they knew I was getting in over my head, as for one, I'd told them, and for two from all the direct debits etc... they'd been refusing to pay over the last few months, so what do they do? Give me more money

Lenders like that deserve all that's coming to them.