Hi Emily1234 and welcome to the forum.

First thing is well done for taking the hardest step in acknowledging the debt and that you need some help and advice to deal with it. You will find plenty of support and reassurance on the forum from the experts and also people who have been in a similar position and at this stage.

All unsecured debts must be included into a Trust Deed and all creditors treated equally. If the finance for the car is an unsecured loan then this will need to go into the Trust Deed. This then means that the car is free of finance and worth approx. £6,000. In a Trust Deed when a car is worth more than £3,000 it’s regarded as an asset and the Trustee needs to ingather the value. Most firms will discount the first £3,000 and consider either an extension of your Trust Deed at the end to pay over this amount (£3,000) or you could arrange for a third party to make monthly payments for 48 months to pay this over = £62.50. The important part is to agree with the company that will handle your Trust Deed at the outset before you sign anything exactly how this will work. Very rarely does someone lose their car so don’t worry about this.

In terms of re-mortgaging you’d really need to speak with a financial advisor about this but in my experience your current provider will offer you their own products and deals but it would be hard to change away to a new mortgage company as your credit rating would be poor.

In terms of revaluing the house, this shouldn’t happen providing you maintain all of your payments and co-operate with the Trustee. One valuation should be done at the outset and that locks in the equity. If your house is worth less than the mortgage then there would be negative equity and no real risk to the house.

The Trust Deed is reviewed on an annual basis and you simply complete an income and expenditure form along with sending back bank statements and payslips. If your situation remains relatively the same then your payments remain the same.

If you receive a regular bonus then this needs to be factored into the Trust Deed. The payment to the Trust Deed is always based on affordability so in theory if you are earning more money your payments could increase. You are meant to pay over all of your disposable income for the benefit of your creditors under the legislation. Some firms can take the regular bonus payments into account when calculating your average income so that when you receive the bonus you keep this. If you receive a one off bonus once a year then the full amount of this could be taken into your Trust Deed. Again this is something you want clarification in writing regarding so you know exactly how it will work.

When it comes to working out a payment per month we work through a very thorough income and expenditure and allowances are made for things like holidays, Christmas or birthdays, hobbies etc. We need to work with something called the Common Financial Statement which sets maximum spending limits for the following categories: Food/Housekeeping, Travel, Phone & Other Expenditure. Under the “Other Expenditure” category this has the birthday/Christmas and holidays and hobbies spending. As long as your spending for that total category does not exceed the maximum spending for the total category then you will be fine for things like holidays.

The Trust Deed I think is always about a balance. You need to pay a payment which you can afford and that the lenders will accept. There is no point in a payment which a client will struggle with and have no quality of life.

You are doing all of the right things asking loads of questions. It’s always a good idea to get advice from one or two advisors from different firms as things can vary slightly from firm to firm. The experts on the forum do a really good job helping with advice too. Also level of customer service is important and ideally you want to meet with the advisor who will handle your case from the start to the finish.

The most important thing is to take your time, do some research, speak with a couple of advisors and then make sure everything is confirmed in writing regarding exactly how everything will work. If you do that it should work out fine and you will be back on the forum in 4 years asking about life after the Trust Deed.

Hope I’ve covered everything for you but if not, fire some more questions our way.

Welcome to the forum Emily1234.

I can see you've already had a lot of good advice and information from Swandog.

As stated already, all unsecured debts will be included in your trust deed. There is no option to leave one out as explained at:

It sounds like the car is owned outright by yourself, and that it may well be viewed as an asset by your trustee because it's worth more than £3,000.

Regarding your mortgage, a trust deed might not be significant if you plan to stay with the same lender and not increase your borrowing amount. They're not taking on any additional risk so a credit search may not be carried out. This is down to the policies of individual mortgage lenders however, so we cannot give you a definitive answer.

Any equity in your assets, including your home, should be identified at the start of the trust deed. A plan to deal with that equity as part of your trust deed agreement should be put in writing.

The information you've been given about quarterly bonuses sounds quite wrong. Your trustee has a duty to collect in your disposable income for the benefit of your creditors. If you receive a bonus, your trustee is likely to require you to pay some or all of it into your trust deed. I'm surprised that you have been told this.

The information you've been given about holidays also sounds like a bit of a sales pitch. You might have a very modest budget for social activities and holidays, but the reality of trust deeds is that you will have a quite restricted budget throughout the arrangement. How you spend your allowances is a matter for you however, so you might be able to cut back on other things to help pay for holidays.

You're fine to go on holidays of course, it's just that the extent to which you'll personally have a specific budget for this will be pretty limited.

There's more information on these issues (and much more) at:

https://www.trust-deed.co.uk/scottish-protected.html

Thank you for helping answer my questions.

I have had them contact me this morning as they need all my documents today as can’t hold my details on file longer than 24 hours is this correct?

I feel a little rushed into this if I’m honest and just want to make sure it’s the right thing and that I have all the correct information.

When should I receive documents of what’s in the trust deed? After they have built MH case together?

Also who do you recommend to speak to on this matter and companies to proceed with? I want to make sure I am key the right person and don’t have any hassle with this.

Thanks

Hi Emily1234.

Good debt advisers will give their clients as much time as they need to be sure about the choices that they're making.

It's extremely important that you don't feel rushed into doing something that you're not ready for.

I don't recognize the comment about 24 hours. Never heard it before (this forum's been running for more than a decade).

This site recommends the firms represented here by Kevin and Sharon.

If you like a second opinion they'd be happy to help.

Hi

how can I get in touch with Kevin or Sharon?

Carrington Dean have said they can only hold my details for 24 hours due to new legislation?

I come from a sales background and feel like it’s more of a sale pitch than trying to help me so if I could get in touch with someone who can give me real honest advise and answers that would be great.

Thanks again

I think you need to slow down a little here.

What they have said is incorrect about only holding your details on file for 24 hours. That sounds to me like they are trying to rush you into a plan. Once you sign a Trust Deed it’s extremely difficult to get back out of it so you need to be sure.

As TDA has advised advisors should give people as much time as they need to decide to proceed. Some people can feel happy and confident about things and other needs a couple of weeks or even a couple of months. It all comes down to that individual person.

Would you feel more comfortable actually meeting an advisor face to face to discuss things and to review paperwork? That’s also an option rather than doing it all over the phone. Some people I know feel a bit better doing things that way.

In order to proceed with a Trust Deed the company will need the value your house, obtain a settlement figure on your mortgage, obtain paperwork about the help to buy to calculate how much of the house you own to confirm the equity. They should also go over all of your debts, complete a thorough income and expenditure and ask you for bank statements and payslips. Then they need to confirm all of this in writing in easy to understand paperwork. This takes longer than 24 hours.

If you are looking for a second opinion Kevin or Sharon the two experts on the forum could help with this.

As I said you need to feel comfortable with what you are doing and who you are dealing with. For someone to day you need to make a decision within 24 hours isn’t right.

There is no new legislation. Ask them to confirm this for you in writing.

You are right it does sounds like a sale pitch.

Hi Emily1234.

If you go to their profile pages (see the main menu of this website) you'll find a contact form for each of them.

We also have our own advice team who will be pleased to speak with you. Click the "contact me" button in my forum signature and you'll be taken to a contact form.

It does sound like a second opinion will be useful to you.

They have valued my house through a website online that they say is approved.

The value of this is a lot lower, I mentioned I had help to buy with the house and this didn’t seem to be an issue they haven’t asked for settlement figures of the mortgage as they could see if from my credit check.

I have provided bank statements and pay slips but haven’t had anything in writing? They said they build a case up then I get a call and go over everything on the call then get given paperwork to sign to confirm and start the trustdeed.

I was advised I could stop my payments to my creditors now and have a “holiday” as the trust deed would begin in a few weeks. I don’t feel comfortable with that though as I’d rather it was all done above board as much as possible. I’m not taking this lightly or because I want a holiday so trying to figure out what is best for me.

How do i get in touch with Sharon or Kevin to get 2nd opinion?

Thanks again

Hi Emily1234
Sorry it has taken me a few hours to get onto this topic. Of course I would be very happy to give you a second opinion about your situation.

As the others have said, this is a very important step and nobody should be trying to rush you into it. We've seen too many horror stories over the years of people signing up to something which wasn't properly explained, or where important details weren't sufficiently clarified, and then counting the cost of it further down the line. If your instinct is telling you it is a sales pitch then I'd listen to it!

Just click through my "contact me" button below, or Sharon's, and a call back can be arranged.

Thanks for the advice, I contacted Sharon but it’s Tracy we are meeting with on a Tuesday.

Look forward to speaking to you and getting help and guidance with this.

Hi Emily1234,

I think you have made the right decision seeking a second opinion from one of the experts on the forum.

How are you feeling now you have spoken to someone else?

Hi Emily

well done on seeking a second opinion, I truly hope the advice made you choose a different trustee, the sales pitch absoluty mirriors mine back in 2016 unfortunately I had one of their sales team standing in my kitchen showing me where to sign and no time to go through anything.
I am currently in the middle of fighting them, would you be kind enought to check through previous emails from the person you had contact with I would be extreamly interested to see if this is the same person or a company problem.
I would be grateful if you could pass on the information by clicking my name and sending me an email, publicly naming someone on here would probably break forum rules.