BBC Investigates Debt Management Industry
The BBC has released their findings of a recent investigation they did on Debt Management Companies. They found that some companies were keeping hold of their clients’ funds and not passing it onto the creditors meaning their balances increased sinking them further into debt.
Payplan are extremely proud to be featured by the BBC as a recommended company.
We fully support the findings of the BBC, as well as the Office of Fair Trading who are constantly trying to reinforce regulations into the Debt Management sector.
If you have any concerns over the Debt Management Plan with another company then, please do not hesitate to contact Payplan.
We offer free and impartial debt advice as well as free to client Debt Management Plans, where we can guarantee that all of the money that you pay into the plan will go directly to your creditors.
Don’t forget you can find me on Twitter and Facebook
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So Who Were The Top Money Tweeters?
As you may or may not be aware, for the whole of last week we were conducting a poll to see who you thought were the best money related tweeters on Twitter. The poll created an unprecedented amount of interest and we would just like to send our sincerest thanks to everyone who contributed to the buzz on Twitter surrounding the poll, to those included in the poll for being great sports and most of all to all of you who took the time to vote.
Without further ado, it gives us great pleasure to announce the results of the poll which were very interesting and contained one or two surprises…
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The Top 5
1 – 15.43% @martynsaville – Bio: Personal finance journalist at Which? writing on credit and debt, but with a penchant for Grace Jones, Dexter and Jasper Fforde on the side. Views are my own.
2 – 12.39% @WhichAction – Bio: Nikki and Charlotte are tweeting for WhichAction. We campaign to make people’s lives fairer, simpler and safer
3 – 9.78% @Zerocredit_UK – Bio: Sharing nfp & #creditfree since June 2009. Throw us on the scrap heap & we’ll all go bust…
4 – 7.61% @Jasmine – Bio: Financial expert, TV presenter, writer, humourist. A Money Magpie helping others become one.
5 – 7.39% @IFALife – Bio: Founder of the IFA Life Social Network, author and speaker on Social Media. Pioneering the use of Social Media by CFP Financial Planners, IFAs RIAs worldwide.
The Rest
6 – @thisismoney 5.22%
7 – @MoneySavingExp 4.78%
8 – @paullewismoney 4.35%
9 – @Real_Business 4.13%
10 – @CashQuestions 3.26%
11 – @MartinSLewis 3.04%
12 – @TheEconomist 3.04%
13 – @creditaction 2.83%
14 – @MoneywiseOnline 2.61%
15 – @Savvy_Woman 2.39%
16 – @FT 2.17%
17 – @TimHarford 1.96%
18 – @msnmoney 1.52%
19 – @MoneyObserver 1.52%
20 – @Paulmasonnews 1.3%
21 – @EnergySvgTrust 1.09%
22 – @quidco 0.65%
23 – @tepilo 0.65%
24 – @DavidWorsfold 0.43%
25 – @Hmtreasury 0.43%
Don’t forget you can find me on Twitter and Facebook
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Mental Health Awareness Week
This week I would like to bring together something different for the blog. The Mental Health Foundation are this week launching an awareness campaign for Mental Health, in particular sleep disorders. In order to support the campaign we have asked them to write a guest blog for us to talk about the effects mental health and debt have on people.
I would like to thank all of those involved in the campaign and a special thank you to Chief Executive, Dr Andrew McCulloch’s for putting the blog together.
“The recession brings with it an increased risk of mental health problems for many individuals. The fear, or reality, of unemployment, insecure housing and high levels of debt are all associated with higher levels of mental health problems, such as stress, anxiety and depression.
As a nation, we already have huge amounts of personal debt; whether this is through mortgages, rent arrears, student loans, falling behind on phone, gas or electricity bills, or the use of credit cards and bank loans. The reduction in incomes and the increase in unemployment that have resulted from the recession will inevitably add to both the number of people in debt and the total amount of debt.
People can experience mental health problems whether they are high earners or low earners, or whether they are in debt or not, however there is a strong relationship between debt and mental illness; mental-ill health can lead to debt and debt can lead to mental-ill health, creating a vicious cycle. A quarter of people with a mental disorder are in debt, and a half of people in debt have a mental disorder.
We know that the outcomes of recessions – rising debt, unemployment and insecure housing – are associated with poorer mental health in individuals as well as in communities, and with poorer mental health comes poorer physical health. Prolonged experiences of stress, anxiety and depression can lead to an increased risk of diabetes, stroke and cardiovascular disease. So what can be done in this ‘time of austerity’ to reduce the impact of debt on the nation’s mental health?
The Foresight report on Mental Capital and Wellbeing (Government Office for Science, 2008) made a number of suggestions for breaking the cycle between debt and mental illness, particularly ensuring that routine mental health assessments should look at finance and debt, debt counselling should be made more accessible, and awareness needs to be raised amongst professionals as to where to refer patients with debt problems.
On an individual level, there are a number of ways that you can begin to manage the impact of debt on your mental health and the impact of your mental health on debt. Try seeking debt advice from trusted authorities they will try to help you to take action and prevent your debt from getting any worse. It could also be beneficial to make an appointment with your GP to discuss potential treatments for any mental health problems that you are experiencing, such as stress, anxiety or depression.
Every year, the Mental Health Foundation hosts Mental Health Awareness Week (MHAW), where we publicise important factors that impact on the mental wellbeing of the nation. This years’ MHAW runs from 23rd – 30th May and you find out more at: www.mentalhealth.org.uk”
Don’t forget you can find me on Twitter and Facebook
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Dealing with depression and debt
It was recently suggested by the BBC that over the last four years prescriptions for anti-depressants have risen by over 40% due to people struggling with debt and with job worries fuelled by our current economic problems.
Every year we help thousands of people as they struggle to cope with their debts with many people coming to us suffering from stress, depression or even feeling suicidal. A lot of people who are in debt often feel alone, which is why they often get these feelings.
It is very important to remember that if you are in debt, you do not have to cope alone! We help over 100,000 people each year who are in some sort of financial trouble.
If you are in debt and you are struggling to maintain payments, it is perfectly normal to feel down about it from time to time as you try to find ways to cope with your situation. Depression, however, is more that the occasional ‘blue’ day, as people who suffer can find it hard to function on a day to day basis and often feel overwhelmed by the circumstances they have found themselves in.
If you are feeling like your debts are getting on top of you, then you CAN speak to someone who will do all they can to help you.
Don’t forget you can find me on Twitter and Facebook
Filed Under Payplan, debt advice, debt help | Trackback | 2 Comments
