Need some good advice for a friend in trouble....
Discussion
Gareth1974 said:
BoRED S2upid said:
Gareth1974 said:
BoRED S2upid said:
Turn7 said:
Lady is not working - looked at getting job, but would stand to lose more benefit than created income.....
Please say what PLP refers to as I have no clue......
Personal independence payment I presume as that replaced DLA but it’s for 16+ not applicable in this case see my first reply. Please say what PLP refers to as I have no clue......
I’m pretty sure he’d qualify if the autism has been professionally diagnosed, and has EHCP.
An IVA will not affect custody, but neither will it be a long term solution if she is spending more than she brings in.
Suggest she looks on moneysavingexoert.con, an doosts a statement of affairs on the debt free wannabe board. Th epeople there are very good at analysing where savings can be made and advising on benefits entitlements.
Suggest she looks on moneysavingexoert.con, an doosts a statement of affairs on the debt free wannabe board. Th epeople there are very good at analysing where savings can be made and advising on benefits entitlements.
Hi, I'm work for one of the uk's largest debt advice charity and have done so for a number of years. so feel well qualified to offer advice.
Firstly, personal insolvency such as an IVA or bankruptcy will have no effect on her children and there is no risk of them being taken just because she is insolvent.
Secondly, if she is struggling to feed herself or family then she should consider a local food bank. Google Trussell Trust to locate nearest one.
Regarding her debts, is she concerned abound maintaining a good credit history? (based on what you've described, she shouldn't be). If she has little in the way of assets- you mentioned the house is rented, then a DRO will be a good option. It is a form of insolvency and will affect credit for 6 years, but will write off debts and the fee is £90 much less than bankruptcy. It last for 12 months
She has to prioritise who she pays, if she hasn't been buying food because the credit card bill is due, that's not right. Non secured credit cards and loans are non priority, can pay them a £1 a month as a token if she has to. It will affect her credit history , but not much else.
Firstly, personal insolvency such as an IVA or bankruptcy will have no effect on her children and there is no risk of them being taken just because she is insolvent.
Secondly, if she is struggling to feed herself or family then she should consider a local food bank. Google Trussell Trust to locate nearest one.
Regarding her debts, is she concerned abound maintaining a good credit history? (based on what you've described, she shouldn't be). If she has little in the way of assets- you mentioned the house is rented, then a DRO will be a good option. It is a form of insolvency and will affect credit for 6 years, but will write off debts and the fee is £90 much less than bankruptcy. It last for 12 months
She has to prioritise who she pays, if she hasn't been buying food because the credit card bill is due, that's not right. Non secured credit cards and loans are non priority, can pay them a £1 a month as a token if she has to. It will affect her credit history , but not much else.
mungosdad said:
Hi, I'm work for one of the uk's largest debt advice charity and have done so for a number of years. so feel well qualified to offer advice.
Firstly, personal insolvency such as an IVA or bankruptcy will have no effect on her children and there is no risk of them being taken just because she is insolvent.
Secondly, if she is struggling to feed herself or family then she should consider a local food bank. Google Trussell Trust to locate nearest one.
Regarding her debts, is she concerned abound maintaining a good credit history? (based on what you've described, she shouldn't be). If she has little in the way of assets- you mentioned the house is rented, then a DRO will be a good option. It is a form of insolvency and will affect credit for 6 years, but will write off debts and the fee is £90 much less than bankruptcy. It last for 12 months
She has to prioritise who she pays, if she hasn't been buying food because the credit card bill is due, that's not right. Non secured credit cards and loans are non priority, can pay them a £1 a month as a token if she has to. It will affect her credit history , but not much else.
Thank you, can you provide more in depth info, ie DRO meaning, where to find info etc ...Firstly, personal insolvency such as an IVA or bankruptcy will have no effect on her children and there is no risk of them being taken just because she is insolvent.
Secondly, if she is struggling to feed herself or family then she should consider a local food bank. Google Trussell Trust to locate nearest one.
Regarding her debts, is she concerned abound maintaining a good credit history? (based on what you've described, she shouldn't be). If she has little in the way of assets- you mentioned the house is rented, then a DRO will be a good option. It is a form of insolvency and will affect credit for 6 years, but will write off debts and the fee is £90 much less than bankruptcy. It last for 12 months
She has to prioritise who she pays, if she hasn't been buying food because the credit card bill is due, that's not right. Non secured credit cards and loans are non priority, can pay them a £1 a month as a token if she has to. It will affect her credit history , but not much else.
a DRO is a debt relief order
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/getting...
https://www.nationaldebtline.org/EW/factsheets/Pag...
she will need to complete a budget and surplus has to be less than £50, but if on benefits then it will be. If she gets DLA for child, that can be disregarded and not counted as her income.
when seeking debt advice and help in this area you need to be careful. there are loads of companies out there that want to make money from you, these are the ones that will generally say there are government schemes to write of up to 85% of debts. there are referring to an IVA and fees over the 5 year term can be in the region of £5k, if only income is benefit income then an IVA will not be an option for your friend.
apply for a DRO via an charity where the only fee will be £90 that is charged by the insolvency service. i would recommend :
StepChange https://www.stepchange.org/
National debtline https://www.nationaldebtline.org
or local CAB
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/getting...
https://www.nationaldebtline.org/EW/factsheets/Pag...
she will need to complete a budget and surplus has to be less than £50, but if on benefits then it will be. If she gets DLA for child, that can be disregarded and not counted as her income.
when seeking debt advice and help in this area you need to be careful. there are loads of companies out there that want to make money from you, these are the ones that will generally say there are government schemes to write of up to 85% of debts. there are referring to an IVA and fees over the 5 year term can be in the region of £5k, if only income is benefit income then an IVA will not be an option for your friend.
apply for a DRO via an charity where the only fee will be £90 that is charged by the insolvency service. i would recommend :
StepChange https://www.stepchange.org/
National debtline https://www.nationaldebtline.org
or local CAB
Hi, by the sounds of it she isn't claiming everything she should get. Which is:
Income Support
Careers Allowance
Housing Benefit
Tax credits
DLA
Child Benefit
All that will come to around £2k a month
I also think she shouldn't have to pay any council tax. There are also in some areas some funds set up to help parents of disabled children with big purchases like ipads, washing machines.
I know this as Mrs Anon was a single parent to an autistic child when I met her and that's what she was getting.
Turn7 said:
Thanks guys, some interesting lines to follow up....
I knew you wouldnt disappoint!
You should also try and ascertain how that credit card debt was built up and over what time, how much of it is rolled over debt/penalties and generally look at what has been purchased. I knew you wouldnt disappoint!
Life is very hard at this level and adding a child with a disability can be the tipping point but so, so much is often down to poor financial management and buying that before you start the process of an IVA or similar it really is important to understand how the debt was genuinely arrived at and how to live going forward without needing it.
Arguably the best thing you could do to help is to spend an hour analysing the last 6 months of credit card spending and trying to deal with how she is overspending.
Thank you to whoever Mod cleaned that up, Im genuinely gratefull....
Donkeyapple...
We are pretty sure the debt has built over the time since d
head BF walked away (4 ish years now), and bearing in mind he is/was a despatch rider, is very likely lying about income due to cash earnings.......
I believe, following on advice from Mungosdad above, she is now investigating the DRO option...
Donkeyapple...
We are pretty sure the debt has built over the time since d
head BF walked away (4 ish years now), and bearing in mind he is/was a despatch rider, is very likely lying about income due to cash earnings.......I believe, following on advice from Mungosdad above, she is now investigating the DRO option...
As was said above, reinforce the fact that she should treat the CC and any other unsecured debt payment as lowest priority after meeting the day to day needs of herself and the kids. She needs to speak to the lender - they will have a team who deal with financial hardship - explain the circumstances (partner walking out, no income except minimal benefits, kids). If she can scrape together a few thousand pounds (I appreciate this is easier said than done in her circumstances) they may well accept a token offer of partial settlement and just close the account with only her credit rating affected.
My autistic daughter is awarded £104/week DLA which her mother (my ex-wife) collects in addition to a host of other benefits. Make sure she looks into all entitlements - free school meals, any relief on the council tax, tax credits etc. It’s surprising how they can all add up. My ex collects an obscene amount of taxpayer cash, plus gets support from me.
Does the father of the boys have a regular income? If he is self employed or on a low to average salary any payment from him via CMS is going to be menial and she is going to need to ensure she can manage without depending on him in any way - any child support is just a bonus by the sound of it.
My autistic daughter is awarded £104/week DLA which her mother (my ex-wife) collects in addition to a host of other benefits. Make sure she looks into all entitlements - free school meals, any relief on the council tax, tax credits etc. It’s surprising how they can all add up. My ex collects an obscene amount of taxpayer cash, plus gets support from me.
Does the father of the boys have a regular income? If he is self employed or on a low to average salary any payment from him via CMS is going to be menial and she is going to need to ensure she can manage without depending on him in any way - any child support is just a bonus by the sound of it.
lewisf182 said:
Contact Step change debt advice charity, they'll help her with debts & general money issues and have facilities in place to provide loans etc so she can actually eat. Also food banks as suggested above would be a great short term solution?
Definitely contact stepchange....https://www.stepchange.orgI happen across people with similar issues you describe through my work and stepchange have never failed to help.
theboss said:
She needs to speak to the lender - they will have a team who deal with financial hardship - explain the circumstances (partner walking out, no income except minimal benefits, kids). If she can scrape together a few thousand pounds (I appreciate this is easier said than done in her circumstances) they may well accept a token offer of partial settlement and just close the account with only her credit rating affected.
I know someone in not as bad circumstances who settled a £6.5k card for £400. The key is to make the story as bleak as possible, over an extended period, with regular contact. With as much evidence you can dig up.It's down as partially settled rather than full and final, but it's a £0 balance and confirmed nobody can chase at a later date. It will affect credit but let's be honest by that stage credit's usually f
ked anyway.So in theory you could get rid of £13.2k for less than a grand. Although that would be going some.
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