Hi Jm1727.

The main point here is that as annoying and frustrating as this must be, there is nothing to worry about if your partner is in a protected trust deed. It's unlikely that anyone will turn up at the door, but if they do there is nothing whatsover that they can do.

Trust deed firms do write to all of the creditors. Some creditors are however extremely slow to update their records which can lead to a period of overlap where collection efforts continue even though a protected trust deed is in place.

Your partners trust deed provider really should be able to help with this. Faxing the offending creditors to confirm the existence of the trust deed would probably help reduce the volume of contact.

I think if you keep checking into the forum you'll find that many of our members will have shared experiences and tips for you... this type of situation is experienced by quite a few people in the early stages of trust deeds but I can reassure you that it tends to die down in time.

Thank you very much for your reply. That has put my mind slightly more at ease. Let's hope it dies down sooner rather than later.

Hi jm1727

the truste deed firm should be dealing with this. In fairness, some companies can take a while to get the message, but 25 calls a day is ridiculous. You can also tell the companies involved that you are reporting them to the police and trading standards for harassement.
As far as the company goes, i cannot comment as i dont know who they are. However, if the trust deed is up and running and now protected, it must be a legitamate firm. Unfortunately, that is not the same as being efficient!!

If it helps, try not to be fearful of answering the door. No-one has any powers to enter and most likely they would only be 'contact agents' asked to call by and confirm you're there.In most cases they (contact agents) would leave a card if you were not home and you would be best to forward those contact details to your trustee.

Like others above said, it's likely just delays in everyone recording the information, it will stop/reduce.

Trust me jm, this is a common tale from newbies! I went through it myself and wondered if it would EVER stop but it does. Some creditors are worse than others - Barclays are terrible but we've not heard a word from Lloyds, Littlewoods or Hitachi. Not even a referral to a debt collection agency. Just hang in there!!

Hi JM1727

As an alternative to ensure peace of mind you could ask the Trustee for a copy of the Protection Certificate provided by the Accountant in Bankruptcy - copy it and send it yourself to any of the creditors who continue to hassle you asking them to contact the Trustee for further information should they so require.

Chris Wardle

Hello Jm1727, when I was inundated with calls I was very distressed and called my IPs office , Maria there called the worst of the offenders , in fact I think she called them all and for the moment they have stopped , They too tried to tell me that they had not been advised of the TD , but I knew they had ,Maybe a call to the IP would put your partners mind at ease ,since it is protected they will obviously have been made aware . it will stop eventually , however I know its distressing , I hope they stop soon and give you some peace of mind

Kitty x

How about some affirmative action!

Get a notepad, or even better if you've got access to a printer or photocopier. Type or write out a form or table which you can complete for each call. When they call, politely tell them that you're now in a Protected Trust Deed. Ask them to confirm that they understand what you're telling them and that you're going to take some details from them to protect yourself against their firm for harassment. Then ask them the following questions to keep a detailed record of who's calling you and how often.
The name of the caller.
The company they're calling from.
The date and time of the call.
Do they understand the implications of the Protected Trust Deed Status? (Y/N)
The tone of the person (tick box multiple choice - friendly? polite? professional? Rude? Intimidating? etc)

Don't forget to leave a space for comments or notes on the call you feel are relevant.

If these calls make your partner feel harrassed, then they can be construed as harrassment and you need a record of every call so you have evidence of this if need be.

Also, it will give your partner a tool with which to deal with these calls, as well as a sense of having the upper hand when he says "I cannot discuss my financial affairs with you as they are in the hands of my Trustee. However, please do stay on the line a moment as I have some questions for you now...."

Hi uncleben.

I think that's a really useful post.

Having a method to take control, rather than feeling that things are out of your control, must be very liberating and empowering.

Uncleben's post is great and I have personally found it a very effective way to give you some control. Having made financial mistakes does not reduce your ability to command basic respect on the phone or at your door.

I have also recently changed my phone number and nothing else was more effective! Free of charge if you explain the reason.

I was happy to speak to companies I had accounts with but became exasperated when I ended up with as many as 5 entities contacting me relating to 1 account. I couldn't afford the time or distraction eventually never mind the paper to keep track of who called when.

One of my creditors was very slow to stop contacting me.

I wrote a letter of complaint to the managing director of the credit card company concerned informing them I had copied it to all sorts of people from trading standards to the DTI, pointing out they were failing to observe their legal obligations. I also requested a written response by a certain date.

That worked wonders and had an almost instant result, not to mention a letter of apology!

It's also important to remember that this isn't some kind of game where they can choose which rules to stick to. They're legally bound by the PTD and would be in a lot of trouble if they carried out any of these "threats".

Cheers,

DebtFreeWannabee

Hello DFW.

I just wanted to say it's good to see you here again.

I hope all's well?

Hi TDA

Thank you 🙂

Believe it or not, it's almost 18 months since we signed our trust deed. I can't believe how quickly the time is passing and it's been going great.

We're self-employed and our income fluctuates. This led to us missing a couple of payments and catching up by paying double some months. I kept my trustee up to date every step of the way and it didn't seem to be a problem.

We have also had an annual review and that went fine with no changes to payments.

I have absolutely no doubt that a trust deed was the best solution to our problems. I now enjoy full nights sleep and don't worry about money even a fraction of what I used to.

We're looking forward to reaching the end of the process and it's even possible that a 3rd party family member will help us finish early.

One thing I know for sure - credit cards are the work of the devil and I never want to see one ever again!

Cheers

DebtFreeWannabee

Hello DFW.

It's good to hear your trust deeds are going well.

It really goes to show that with an arrangement set up well in the first place, a practical trustee, and individuals that are determined to see the process through, trust deeds can be really effective even in slightly complex and variable circumstances.