Welcome to the trust deed forum Zac.

This must have come as a shock but it's great to see that you've reacted with support by trying to find a way forwards.

Could you tell us whether you have any joint financial affairs, for example a joint current account?

It's going to be difficult to tell you which debt solution will be best via a forum. That's because much will depend upon working through your household income and expenditure to determine how much "disposable income" you have as a couple (and therefore the share of that disposable income that your fiancee could afford to offer towards her debts).

Do you have a gut feeling about how much she could afford to pay towards the debts each month after she has paid her fair share of the household costs and any other expenses that she has? This would help us to give you an indication.

If the current debt repayments are unaffordable the options will probably come down to the debt arrangement scheme, a trust deed, or bankruptcy. A DMP almost certainly will not be a good option; it works in a similar way to the debt arrangement scheme but provides none of the guarantees (of DAS) that interest will cease or that creditors cannot take legal debt recovery action.

If you could let us know a little more we'll be well positioned to tell you about the options that appear to be open, benefits and drawbacks of each, and whether there will be any affect on you (there probably will not be so don't worry about this too much).

I think the simple way of it is - we get £2000 between us a month,
we spend £1800 on all bills/debts, - £500 is to her debt, I pay £139 to my own loan of £3000

We have a joint account with her bank (one she happens to have taken a £12,000 loan with) - no direct debits or wages are paid into this.

Our disposable income at the end of a month is somewhere between £100 and £200.
She wanted to get "another" loan to pay off all the debts and start over and thinks that £300 a month is what she could afford, this whole thing has got me ruffled and I've been working on a budget to see just where all our moneys been going and where we should and could save money.
I just grudge watching £500 go to debt with nothing to show for it.

Hi Zac,

I think you may wish to work through your income and expenditure with a suitably qualified debt adviser. Money advisers at your local authority or CAB could help with this, or my colleagues here will be happy to work on that with you if you'd like to. That would give you some concrete figures to work on. However we can probably continue to put together some kind of indication here...

I can see that your bills (excluding debts for each of you) amount to £1161. What other expenses do you have on top of this figure (again excluding debts)? For example we'd want to make allowances for food, clothing etc to try to get to a total figure that would cover all of the household financial needs (once again at this point excluding the debts).

We'd then have a figure left over that you both, in total, have as being "disposable" to service debt repayments while still being able to manage financially for everything else. Some of that disposable amount would be yours (and would hopefully at least cover your own loan repayment) and some of that would be free for your fiancee to deal with her debts. As well as pointing towards applicable debt solutions, it would also produce an affordable figure to cover the cost of a new loan consolidating the existing debts. Consolidating can make sense, but it's very dangerous without understanding whether the new (and hopefully reduced) repayment is affordable.

Is there anything owed on the joint account you mention?

Nothing is owed on the joint account.

I put together a rough Budget to work out where all our spending is going and when its down on "paper" so to speak I feel embarrassed.
Essentials:-
£200 on shopping + Groceries a month (but this can vary quite a bit)
£70 on Petrol for car (me)
£54 Bus fares (her)
£13 T.v Licence
£17 Home insurance
£250 Rent
£92 Council Tax
£7 Electricity (I was way overcharged for over a year so this has been very cheap for a long time)
£80 Running cost of car - Tax/insurance per month roughly
- So thats £783 on what I consider absolute essentials
Dont know how to count for lunches at work either as this varies.

The rather stupid list now:- non essential
£180 cigarettes (she smokes,i dont)
£45 - two mobile phone bills - £10 mine, £35 hers.
£100 - Nights out (i go out once a fortnight and spend roughly £50 a night)
£55 cable tv and broadband

I dont really know how to budget for things like clothes - haircuts and other small things.

Hi Zac,

It isn't easy to run through a budget like this which is why I think you should get in touch with someone to help you work through it.

Certain types of expenditure often get forgotten. These may include haircuts, car servicing or clothing for example which are irregular but inevitable costs.

Certain areas of expenditure also have allowance "ranges" attached to them when it comes to debt solutions which can mean amendments to some part of the budget might also need to be looked at.

There's no reason to feel embarassed about any of this. Finding some help is the first (and often the hardest) part of putting things right again.

As trust deed assistant says, it is difficult to give best advice going backwards and forwards on a forum, but lookin gat the figures that you have provided I would say that your fiancee probably has more than one option open to her.

A trust deed may well be a good route I reckon, though a DAS plan would also be viable, albeit probably over a longer period. I'm sure any of the experts on this site would be happy to have a closer look if she would like some free professional advice - or as trust deed assistant says there are other agencies out there that can help.

I'm afraid damage to her credit rating is probably inevitable, but as long as you aren't applying for any credit jointly together for a while then you should be ok.

Thanks alot for the advice T.D.A & K.M

Ill need to talk to my fianc?®e about all of this and take it from there,
just dont want her worrying more about the situation or feeling guilty about messing up both our credit histories.
She has already arranged for an appointment with CAB so hopefully we can turn this aound.

You'll certainly be able to turn it around Zac.

Taking the step to get good advice is often the hardest part; people often feel a great sense of relief once they have a clear path upon which to travel afterwards.

One other thing to add Zac, I'm not sure the precise question in the title of your post has been fully answered in terms of your credit rating.

Individuals have credit ratings, not couples.

If your fiancee defaults on her debts it will affect her credit rating, but not yours.

Because you have a joint account there will be a "link" between your credit ratings. If you made an application for credit the potential lender may investigate that link and if the linked person had credit problems that may influence the outcome of their decision to lend.

Therefore there might be implications for your ability to borrow, but not for your credit rating.

On a practical level, closing the joint account and not taking on any joint financial affairs in the future should prevent such risks. You may also wish to file a "notice of disassociation" with the credit reference agencies if you take that step to remove the "link". There is more on this subject on the websites of the three main credit reference agencies (Experian, Equifax and CallCredit).

Hi Zac,

I just wanted to say that I think it's great how understanding, supportive and proactive on this situation you have been. I know it must have been a massive shock for you and with mixed emotions, but it's something that you both can face together with nothing to feel embarassed about. We all make mistakes but it the ability to recognise them and make steps to change their outcome. I was in the same situation as your partner, I hid my head in the sand for many years not telling anyone until it was no longer managable. I told my partner who supported me right from the start, without her and the support of my family i would probably still be hiding it all away. I've just started my trust deed which I think became protected today (I hope) and its the best decision I have made in a long time. There is a way forward, by coming to this site you have made the first steps. Your partner will go through a rollercoater of emotions over the next while as will you, but just be honest with each other and take the time to consider your options. I hope you find the right option for the both of you. Keep us posted 🙂