Should I take out a DRO?

[Debtadviceneeded]

I'm in at least 15k worth of debt and am struggling to keep my head above water.
I have looked into a DRO and that seems like it could be my only option.

Has anyone had one? If so could you tell me what your experiences were either negative or positive.

I took out a drop years ago and it's the best thing I ever did, its a fresh start. Yes you won't be able to get credit for a few years but surely your credit can't get any worse than it currently is? That's what I was told and slowly but surely my debt is gone and my credit rating is slowly building, I suggest the cab op they are fantastic. Best of luck

Meant dro, bloody autocorrect!

My credit is pretty low so no it wouldn't really worry me.
I take out small loan from my credit union every Christmas, which is usually around £400-£500 Do you think that it would affect me getting that?

Also I'm 32 so it would be on my credit file until I'm 38, which I just find really embarrassing, like I've failed at life

No definitely not credit union approved loans based on your saving habits nothing to do with your credit ratings, save regular amounts and when you get loans off them they will watch how you pay it off so if you are reliable in paying off your loan there's a great chance of getting another off them

Oh and I was in my 20's when I got my dro , I can sleep at night not worrying about ballifs knocking on my door or not answering the phones etc 😊

I got one after breaking up with my DS's Dad. He got me in a shit load of debt, and had no intention of paying it back. The lovely advisor at the CAB said I could either pay back £1 a week, or get a DRO and wipe it all. Getting the DRO changed my life. I was finally able to sleep.

Don't be embarrassed, you certainly haven't failed at life. You're sorting it out.

I definitely agree with that statement, being able to sleep @pickledparsnip

Oh sleep would be lovely right about now, every morning I wake up wondering if my car is going to be there

I will try to get an appointment with cab this week, I have to do something.

I got one in my mid 20s. It was uni debt and just not managing money well. It was really stressful at the time but worth it. It was a fresh start and tbh I don't feel ethically bad about writing off debt to banks and credit card companies. I know not everyone may agree with that. Mine will drop off next march. I haven't had credit but have had more career success in the past few years so I've been ok. I think it's worth it to end the cycle. Don't feel like you've failed. Also you don't need to tell people!

If you're subject to a DRO you need to let anyone you're trying to borrow £500 or more know about it, regardless of their criteria for lending. So if you're borrowing up to £499 it's fine not to disclose it.

However if your credit union credit check they'll find out anyway, worth checking.

There are surplus income and asset value limits for DROs, do you meet those? £50 or less surplus income (against their criteria, not your own) and less than £1000?

Sorry just yo add I did mine all over the phone. So I didn't need to go in to see anyone. But not with Cab I think it was national debt helpline.

Yes I'm definitely under the £50 threshold, I will be applying for my Christmas loan tomorrow so informing them won't affect me this year and hopefully by this time next year I won't even need it.

Where do I find out how much my total debt is?
I've tried looking on my credit file but it isn't very clear, how much I owe and who I owe it to.