Debt consolidation

[bumblebee39]

What's the best way to go about it? Who do I call? I don't have any of the red letters and can't even remember half the companies I've had to move and leave my filing cabinet behind. Tia xx

Depending on your circumstances, consolidation might not be the best solution, as it might make the problem worse, more expensive or take longer to get through.

You can probably get details of your accounts by signing up to the Moneysavingexpert credit club:

www.moneysavingexpert.com/creditclub

Once you know what debts you have, you need to do a budget to see what you can afford to pay. Make sure you pay for normal bills and food/essential travel and then look at what is left over to pay your debts, not the other way round (except if you have any council tax debt). Step by step advice on debts, including whether a consolidation loan is a viable solution (unlikely if you are at the missed payment/red letters stage) can be found at:

www.moneysavingexpert.com/loans/debt-help-plan/

, sounds like you're having a tough time of it - is there someone IRL who you can talk to and give you a hand hold?

I am currently consolidating my debt through a debt charity called stepchange. Give them a ring, they've been so helpful and have sorted our payments etc out so I now know when I will be clear of debt and it's free

Check your bank account to see where your direct debits go?

I'm not receiving my mail as recently moved and the debts are all attached to my old address and closed bank account. Might just have to play a waiting game...

Get yourself down to your local CAB. They can apply to all the local credit reference agencies and also look at all your options, whether it's a debt management plan or insolvency.

I'm not receiving my mail as recently moved and the debts are all attached to my old address and closed bank account. Might just have to play a waiting game...

No one is going to give you a loan if you have closed an account that your debts get paid from and are not making any payment towards them. Consolidation loans are for people paying the debts who want to try and rejuvenate them into one payment. If you haven't been paying you won't get any credit.

But, you are being a bit silly saying you will have to wait and you can't do this and that. Be pro active. Go to the bank?

I will trying making a list of the ones I know but a lot of pay day loans etc. My abusive ex partner made and I don't even know about as the bank closed the account and won't let me have the details due to it being passed to an external credit agency.

I want to get help with it but all the domestic violence people I speak to say I have more important things to worry about. Easy for them to say 🙄 it keeps me awake at night worrying I will never get a mortgage credit card car loan etc. I hate being in debt so much. I never was but my ex used my excellent credit rating to his advantage. I have tried to Persue fraud charges against him twice (in which case some of it could be written off) but to no avail. Basically been told it's tough s*#^ but if he'd scammed some old lady out of £30k they wouldn't be saying that would they?

As I said before, speak to CAB. If you have evidence of your ex taking out loans in your name or using coercion to make you take loans out then they can help you deal with it by contacting the creditors on your behalf.

Do you own property? Can you afford to pay the debts off? If the answer to both questions is no, and £30k is the debt amount, bankruptcy might be the best option. Or if you can afford to pay a reasonable sum, and have an interest in a property (eg joint property with ex) you might be best with an IVA.

If you've got lots of debt in your name and payments have been missed, then your credit rating is in bad shape anyway so the best thing to do is get on with solving the problem, because the sooner you do that, the sooner you come out the other side and are able to rebuild your credit rating and be back on with mortgages, credit cards as normal as everything drops off your credit history 6 years after settlement or formal arrangements like bankruptcy/IVA.

But you need professional advice from someone who can see the whole picture regarding your income, expenses and debts, before you can go down that route. Look online for your credit history, on the MSE credit club link I gave upthread.

I consolidated debt with stepchange and it was the best thing I ever did. I did need to know who the creditors all were and how much I owed each of them though. Maybe give them a call and see what they advise you do, they are really helpful

StepChange (www.stepchange.org) or PayPlan (www.payplan.com) as they're both free. I wouldn't recommend one of the many fee paying companies

Stepchange are a fantastic organisation but they don’t consolidate as such. Consolidate is when you borrow to pay off smaller existing debts then just make one payment which people in debt can think is the best solution, but it rarely is.

With step change you will enter a DMP, this is where they contact all the companies you owe money to and ask them to freeze the interest and you pay back what you can afford.

Give them a call OP, you will feel better for it x