Hi Peter
Having been in a similar situation re gambling I got a real talking to from a friend which really made me see sense and I’ve self excluded and closed all my gambling accounts. If it hadn’t been for them basically threatening to wash their hands of me I would probably still be gambling. It’s not been easy to do but going forward the only thing you can do is to block all these sites and close any accounts you have.

I’ve just entered into my trust deed and made my first payment so I’ve a long 47 months to go but my trust deed is protected now and I actually have a realistic budget to work from.
I would recommend contacting step change and doing the online debt solution which will give you various options to consider. When I entered into my trust deed I had to provide them with confirmation that my gambling accounts were closed.

Good luck

Hi Peter sorry to here about your situation but iam also in the same situation as you with similar amounts of gambling debt.i honestly hate myself for putting myself in this self destructed mess.i had to end up telling my close family and my work because the stress pressure and feeling down this all caused.i started off with the odd football coupe then I discoverd online roulette which absolutely crippled me.this is a great forum for advice, I spoke to Kevin a expert on this form iam awaiting on a couple of jobs to get back to me then I will contact Kevin and hopefully get a trust deed set up.i would suggest to contact Kevin or Sharon via there contact button tomorrow trust me you will feel better once you have.have you told anybody yet,I know it's hard to do so but try and do it can make a difference on how you feel trust me I've been through it all.but please make contact with the experts tomorrow.

Good luck mate.

Hi Peter123 and welcome to the forum.

I think I asked you on another post about reaching out for debt advice.

Gambling is a huge problem and more and more people are finding themselves in debt because of it so I wouldn’t beat yourself up too much about it.

In terms of your options to deal with the approx £50,000+ of debt the positive thing is that there are plans that can help freeze interest and charges and reduce all of this into one affordable payment per month.

Do you own any assets?

When it comes to your options the most important thing is to look at your budget and what you could afford to pay per month towards a plan. That could be a Trust Deed, Sequestration or a Debt Arrangement Scheme.

I’d suggest reaching out to an expert for some advice. They can look at your budget and go over this to work out a payment and then you can look at what plan is the most suitable.

Let’s say for example you can afford to pay £150 per month. On a Debt Arrangement Scheme which is a plan whereby you pay back all your debts it would take approx 29 years.

On a Trust Deed the lenders need to be prepared to accept a proposal and payment per month. This means that you need to be able to pay a suitable payment. For a Trust Deed based on that size of debt your probably looking at a minimum payment around £185+ per month.

As I said the payment that you pay per month is based on affordability this is just to give you a rough idea.

If you find that after you have paid all of your bills and living costs that you don’t have much money left for a payment then you might need to consider Sequestration.

What assets you have will also play a part in what plans are more suitable.

I’m sure in the space of a 15-20 minute phone call you can work through all of this with an expert and have an idea of what options are suitable.

Hi all.
Thank you very much for the kind messages.
I have no assets. My wife has a mortgage in her name and would ideally like no involvement in this.

Morning Peter

If you are not financially associated with your wife then any debt solution would have no direct impact on her.

I agree with Swandog - I am sure in the space of a phone call you will be in a better position knowing what options are available to you.

Hi Peter123.

I can see you've been offered lots of good advice and guidance by others already.

Getting debt advice makes clear sense. You'll know what your options are and will begin to see a way out of this unfortunate situation.

If you haven't already, you should also seek out support for your gambling problem. Without addressing this issue the risk that you will fail to complete any debt solution will be very high.

Not owning any assets is likely to increase the number of debt solution options that you have available to you.

The following article provides additional information about Scottish trust deeds and gambling debts:

https://www.trust-deed.co.uk/gambling-debts.html

Hi Peter123

I would certainly echo Trust Deed Adviser's comments about looking for assistance to resolve the gambling issue otherwise any debt solution is likely to come a cropper before long.

There are powerful formal solutions that would undoubtedly sort out your debt situation. It would certainly be a good idea to reach out for advice about these options specific to your own circumstances, either from an expert on this forum or via a free sector money advice agency. I know from experience dealing with many people in a similar situation to yours that once something is set up then you are likely to feel the weight lift from your shoulders very quickly.