I haven't seen that yet Hamish, but I've heard it's well worth a watch.

Really is worth a watch TDA!
Cheers

Cracking film - I agree.

After I watched that I felt a lot better!

I hadn't heard of that film before reading this, but it sounds good - will have to check it out.

As for feeling bad - at the outset of my Trust Deed I had a tremendous amount of guilt. Having had the past 3 years to reflect upon everything however, I've come to the conclusion that I did not create the situation all on my own, and that my creditors should never have allowed it to go as far as it did.

Case in point, the first credit card I got (back in 2000) had a limit of £600. I got the card just before going on holiday, and when I came back it had been maxed out. For the next year or so, I made the minimum payment each month, which meant that it basically remained at its limit.

Then, out of the blue I received a letter stating that my credit limit had been increased to £3000. Being young, foolish and irresponsible I then proceeded to use the card like it was going out of fashion and within a couple of weeks, it was maxed out again.

Over the next few years, I obtained several consolidation loans (more than one of which were offered to me, rather than applied for) and I just kept running the card up over and over again. By mid-2008, that credit card along with everything else I'd accumulated over the years amounted to about £54k of debt...

Now obviously, no-one forced me to use the credit that was made available to me, but let's not forget that I had clearly established a pattern of irresponsible spending from the very outset. The financial institution in question really should have picked up on that, and taken steps to ensure it went no further.

Instead of doing that however, they saw fit to throw even more credit at me, for the next 8 years. Although I didn't complain at the time, with 20/20 hindsight that was pretty damned irresponsible on their part.

So, in light of all of that - I don't feel nearly as bad as I did this time three years ago!

Same here imcville, I remember just before I signed my TD nearly 6 years ago I went to Kwik Fit for a new tyre, guy tried to ghet me to sign up for a style card, declined bit a week later card arrived in post!!!! to make it even more incredible it was RBOS who so these and I already had defaulted on an RBOS card!!
Although I totally accept it was my own fault I ended up in the mess I was in I can see now that these banks etc also acted completey irresponsibly in gining me more and more credit when it was quite clear I was up to my neck!!!

All the best
Hamish

I can only blame myself for the mess I got myself into, although like many the banks were more than happy to allow me to get further and further into debt as long as I made minimal payments every month.....

I remember taking part in a survey for "MBNA" which resulted in me getting a MBNA Mastercard 2 weeks later with a £3000 credit limit, and bearing in mind I actually signed nothing..... Should have cut it up but I never and now I am where I am......

Hi Guys,

I'm feeling a weird at the moment. I'm happy and excited about the prospect of finding a solution to my problems, but at the same time I'm nervous as to what damage if any a PTD could do to my life over the next 3 years. Is this a normal feeling? I do feel bad about not paying back all my debt, but when I see the profits that banks make it doesn;t all look bad.

What the general opinion?

Banks and credit card companies did indeed hand out money like it was going out of fashion. I started with a £300 credit card, when I was in college on a part time wage, which to be fair was only used in emergencies. Once I started working, I got a loan to buy a car and clear of some stuff on the credit card. All the while, the limit on the card was creeping up and up every few months without me asking.

I went a bit overboard trying to get myself out of debt (thought I had found a holy grail gambling on the gee-gees and could make a living out of it - I did actually make about 6 grand in a few weeks before it all went pear shaped) and by the time I got round to sorting it out properly, before the trust deed was started, I had 2 loans, totalling £21k, and credit card debt of around £13k (actual limit on the cards was over £25k!!).

These days, obviously, they have cut back enormously, but back then they gave me anything I wanted, until it all got too much.