Help! Our children are in debt
Our Helpline team receive hundreds of calls each day from worried people struggling with debt, along with parents who are concerned for their children who are in financial difficulty. I recently spent some time observing calls and I was extremely surprised at the number of calls from concerned parents. This made me want to look at this is more detail.
When a parent calls Payplan, we can offer them basic debt advice that they can pass onto their son or daughter. However because you’re calling without their knowledge and therefore haven’t given their permission for you to act on their behalf, it can be difficult for us to give you any specific advice.
What can you do to help?
If your son or daughter is in financial difficulty it can be tricky for you to help them. I would say the first thing to do is sit down and speak to them, and find out how and why they got into debt in the first place. It always helps to understand their situation first as there could be underlying issues that they may need help with. It is important, I would say, to remain non-judgemental: if they have been keeping this to themselves, then they may be embarrassed and all they need is a bit of guidance.
If they are not up to looking for solutions to help their situation they can give permission for you to act on their behalf. At Payplan, they would need to provide verbal or written permission and then we can do all of the work with you.
If you would like to speak to one of our debt specialists about your debts then please call 0800 2802816.
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Can I change my DMP company?
People call us for several reasons: it may be that they realise they can no longer afford to manage their debt, they know their situation is about to change so they are planning ahead, or they simply decide that they can no longer ignore their debts and they must deal with them. However for some people they have already gone through this trigger point and have successfully set up a Debt Management Plan (DMP). These people may have reached a certain point in their plan and have decided that they are not happy with the service that they are receiving, feel it is time to change or realise that they are being charged a fee for the current service they are receiving.
People that come to us after being with another debt management company often have a lot of questions so hopefully I can try and answer a lot of them.
Can I change my DMP?
The simple answer is yes. Just because you are already in a DMP it doesn’t mean you have to stick with that plan that you are in. Many DMP providers will require you to give them notice to your cancellation but that shouldn’t stop you.
How do I change my DMP?
If you decide that you are not happy with your debt management company and you want to change, you need to do your research and find a company that you are happy with and one that you feel has your best interests at heart. You should then call them and go through the initial process of setting up a plan with them.
When should I stop paying into my current plan?
For this next part, everyone has different opinions as to what you should do, at Payplan we would say that you should stop paying into your DMP as soon as you can and set up payments direct with your creditors whilst your DMP is being set up. The reason why we say this is if you are currently paying a fee to the company then this should be going to your creditors. You can therefore split the fee between your creditors while your new plan is being set up and then once it is they will start receiving more funds from you.
If you would like to speak to one of our debt specialists about a DMP then please call 0800 2802816.
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Gambling & Debt
It is thought that some 68% of the UK population participate in some form of gambling activity over a one year period (survey done by British Gambling Prevalence Survey in 2007). That can be purchasing a lottery ticket, playing poker or placing bets with a bookmaker. For some, gambling may start small, but if it becomes an addiction it can spiral out of control – and people soon find themselves in trouble.
We receive many calls each week from people who have found themselves in financial difficulty by gambling – a lot of these people ignored their problem for so long in the hope of finding the winning streak that would enable them to pay off their debts. Many realise their problem, seek help for their addiction and then seek help for their finances.
Can Payplan help me?
Payplan can offer advice to anyone in debt. Your level of debt would be a major factor regarding what we can do to help. One of the first things that we would ask of you is: have you stopped gambling? The reason why this is so important is that with any kind of plan you are asked not to obtain any further credit and you are asked to pay all available income into your plan, meaning that you shouldn’t have funds to gamble. The other reason is that we would normally assume you got into your financial situation due to your gambling, and if you carry on gambling then you risk making it somewhat worse than it already is.
If you would like to speak to one of our debt specialists about a DMP then please call 0800 2802816 0800 2802816.
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A Clients Journey… Special Advice Team
Many clients that call us have very little or no cash to spare at the end of the month once all essential expenditure has been paid out. This means that, as much as we would like to, we are unable to put these clients into a plan with us. However this doesn’t mean that we will leave the client to go it alone, we have a team of people who will assist these clients in setting up their own plans with their creditors. The Special Advice Team not only assist with self-managed DMP’s but they also assist with Debt Relief Orders, moratorium cases, partners of clients who are in a plan or people who have arrears with their mortgage.
What should I expect?
The Special Advice Team are there to offer long term support to clients that do not qualify for a plan but still require help. You can expect to have someone on hand to help you learn how to deal with your creditors, how to put your budget together and get help putting correspondence together to send to your creditors.
All clients who are referred to the Special Advice Team will be sent a Self Help Pack, and many clients use this to set up a plan successfully on their own. However others prefer to have support which is where the Special Advice Team come into action.
What happens next?
It is harder to say what comes after the Special Advice Team; if your circumstances change and you have more available surplus then we would be able to look at reviewing your circumstances and seeing whether an Individual Voluntary Arrangement or a Debt Management Plan are now suitable options for you. If things change for the worse, then we assist you in considering whether Bankruptcy or even Debt Relief Orders are suitable for you. Some people’s circumstances don’t change, however the Special Advice Team will continue to support you as long as you need our help.
If you would like to speak to one of our debt specialists about a DMP then please call 0800 2802816.
Don’t forget you can find me on Twitter and Facebook
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