trying to pay bills ....... so why is it????

[lynda66]

companies are all closed at night?? i'm sure bt used to be open all the time?? and the telly licence?? water? ....... they must have been i only get urges to pay bills during the night lol

anyway i finally opened all the envelopes ...... wohooo i hear you say, (ok rob did them) went through and worked out what needed paying urgently ....... so they stop sending crappy letters and ringing, and wont send a firing squad .... he has decided to pay the urgentest stuff, to get it up to date, and i can pay him back when i get sorted (sometime next century probably) ..... the phone is finally back on, on the basic £4.50 a month ( that no one at BT has ever heard of package)

but with a different number ....... so i try to ring up, to get them to give me my number back, and set up a direct debit, but you can't talk to a real people ...... cos they all gone home and they haven't sent me an account number ....so you cant do it by the auto thing cos you have to have an account number, same as you can't do it online .... stooooopid people, and they aren't open during the night B%&$£&^%S ........ honestly don't these people want to be paid or summat???

so cos rob has had to go to a party (friend who went to uni in durham and is home for the weekend) and isn't stopping tonight after all ..... and won't be home till next friday ...... i still cant pay stuff, cos he has to be there to use his card, and i cant transfer money from his account to mine, 1 cos mines a bit too overdrawn ....... and 2 cos the stoopid bank now insist on having a pin machine at home, and he hasn't got one on his account ..... grrrrrrr and guess what ....... unless you're reporting a card stolen .......... theres no one at the bank looking after my overdraft any more

anyway ....... at least all the envelopes are open now (more stuff for the compost heap ) have a load of letters to write tomorrow (can't do them now, not really good sending official letters on the back of an envelope or cereal packet, and i haven't got any real paper) then phone calls on monday to them people that are gonna get my payments down to manageable proportions ....... hopefully

why is this trying to get out of debt thing sooooooooooo much hard work???

[bobleponge]

On the plus side Lynda, the envelopes are all open so you know what's what. The heavies have been called off so you're safe. You can write the letters and explain how things are. More so than ever now in these days of credit crunch companies are being understanding on late payments etc.
You are making the effort by getting in touch, which will be looked favourably on. There are plenty that dont.
Getting out of debt is very very hard, I'm still struggling after a few years of misery, but I am seeing light at the end of my very long tunnel. You will see the same at some stage. Keep your chin up Lynda and, if nothing else, remember you make me smile every day!!

[Two_Sheds]

why is this trying to get out of debt thing sooooooooooo much hard work???

Harder than getting into it, anyway
For goodness sake, don't be tempted to consolidate your loans into one easy monthly payment ... you'll pay over-the-odds interest.

I have been helping Mr Sheds with his debts - he never looks at bills or statements either.

We found out:
a) he was paying £14 a month for a non-existent phone, and had been for four years. That was a nice big refund when I got it back for him.

b) his credit card company set his repayments at the minimum rate, so he was only paying off the interest and not the capital ... so the debt was growing and growing

c) he continued putting purchases on his credit card, making the debt even bigger even though he had cash in the bank. It made him feel richer to have cash in the bank

d) we increased his repayments to chip away at the debt each and every month - and we also used any windfalls/winnings to pay off bigger chunks of the debt. He puts all his loose change in a pot, and I use it to pay off a little more of the debt.

e) I switched his fuel suppliers, car insurance and home insurance (online) and saved £300 in the first year alone.

f) He has now reduced his cc debt from nearly 30 grand to just over 7. It'll be paid off in 2 years, then we're going to funnel his repayment amount into a savings account to pay for household stuff and holidays.


Best of luck Lynda. x

[rustylady]

Well done Lynda! It may still be worthwhile getting the Citizen's Advice Bureau involved. They seem to be able to get companies to agree to smaller payments, and they're very good at writing letters (they don't use the backs of envelopes either). Seriously, good luck with everything and I hope things get better soon.

[willowstar]

yeah, well done you for facing it and starting to get it sorted.

[lynda66]

a) he was paying £14 a month for a non-existent phone, and had been for four years. That was a nice big refund when I got it back for him.

i know it's not funny really, but that one made me chukkle ...... at least i know everything i'm paying is stuff that i actually have ...... wish i didn't but some things you can't get out of

will get there eventually i reckon, just keeping the wolves from the door for now, cos the constant mail and phone calls haven't been helping, at least i've got some of the important ones off my case, for now, so i have time to get them to accept 20p a week between them

[tootles]

c) he continued putting purchases on his credit card, making the debt even bigger even though he had cash in the bank. It made him feel richer to have cash in the bank

Good lord I didn't realise you were married to Gordon Brown

[FROSTYFRECKLE]

Just take it one step at a time, you'll get there.

[sallym]

Good on ya Lynda. Its gonna be hard work and you are right, the constant letters and phone calls only make you feel worse, but I know I felt a whole lot better when I started to get things sorted.
I'm hoping to get my overdraft paid off by the end of the year. At least then it will be clearer to work out whats coming in and going out.
Are you warm yet??

[lynda66]

lol, i'm sort of warm ....... gone back to the extra socks and blanky ........ decided to save the gas so i can use the heating on REALLY cold days ...... can't be doing with it on all the time, it's stressing me out not letting myself look at the meter lol, and then it's too hot to sleep at night (can't win can i lol) ..... well i've rung everyone i can, got a few more calls to make tomorrow, and am half way through letter writing (got paper now .... hope andrex is ok ) ....... why did i not think when i said rob could take the printer to uni with him ....... that i now have to use a real pen i am now the proud owner of robs spare bank student overdraft lol (he only opened the account for that) , then paid it off with his loan, it's now not paid off again ...... but theres no interest on it, and it doesn't need paying back for 5 years and he doesn't need to use it any more...... so overall will work out much cheaper, than paying late fees and interest, and messing around with CAB for bills etc, and i've only got 1 thing to pay....... (ok i still have stuff to pay, but i'm not behind with most of them any more) ...... so if i can get the payments down even better ...... though i promise i will get help with the rent and council tax and stuff.

[Alice]

Lynda, it's not my business, but please go to the CAB as soon as possible.
I worked for them and know there are much better ways to sort out your financial problems than the road you are taking.
I can't advise you here but your local office does debt management advice by appointment only. You can ring them on 0161 330 2156
And no, they're not open all hours of the day and night (the work is done by volunteers). You can get their opening hours on the link.
Tameside Citizens Advice Bureau - Homepage

[lynda66]

oh thats cool ta ...... they used to only open wednesdays and fridays ....... will do, i have to make sure the rent gets sorted, just needed to give myself breathing space, i've been panicking so much about answering the phone or opening mail, or even ringing the doctors for the appointment i should have made for 2 weeks ago .... now i'm at least up to date with stuff, i can now make arrangements to pay things at a rate i can't afford, but that will be slightly more manageable, the rest on the overdraft, can then be paid as and when i can afford it ....... over the next 5 years, (it's just reduced the amount i owe in real money immediately) or if i ever manage to get the DLA sorted .(even the guy at the job centre interview the other day was gobsmacked they are still piddling about over it) ..... i've been so stressed with everything else, i've come very close to giving up that fight, and thats really not the best thing to give up xx

and maybe i haven't gone round things the right way, but then i'm not exactly known for doing anything right lol xx

[Alice]

Glad you're getting the message Lynda. But you don't have to arrange to pay at a rate you can't afford. That's the point I'm making. And maybe you're not even paying the highest priority debts (some people can do nothing, but some people you may not be worrying about can have you out on your a***.
Please ring the CAB tomorrow and get things put in motion.
They are there to help you.
You won't regret it but I think you will if you don't.
Every best wish, Alice x

[lynda66]

problem is whatever they set it at i can't afford it ....... cos if i have to pay any more out on top of the essentials like electric/gas/water/phone/telly licence/food ....... then that money has to come off the food/electric or gas ...... when you suddenly lose nearly £100 a week ..... and still have to pay the same amount out ...... it doesn't add up ...... all i can do right now is try my best ...... i have paid the essentials like water /telly licence phone etc, cos i can't not pay them (rob was worried about me not having a phone for emergencies, and wouldn't not pay it) i have no credit on my mobile, and it's cheaper to have the house phone than put credit on that ..... I have saved enough to pay the £300 + rent if they do decide i have to pay it back ....... cos they have set that figure to pay it back at £9.15 a week ....... which i haven't got spare .... the problem is if they come off weekly, then i can't afford to eat ...... and i have enough problems remembering to do that and trying to keep the house warm already lol

[m3bfs]

linda just sent you a link for some sample letters, but would second Alice to get the CAB on board, and from experience know that while some creditors will act on a letter from you, some wont, but will when exactly the same letter, with the same token amount (£1 a month) goes on CAB letterhead. Once CAB have sent the letters payment is still between you and the peeps you owe the money to, CAB doesn't get involved in that side of things.

m3bfs