Hi Andrew and welcome to the forum.

It's a real positive that you have reached out for help and advice regarding your debts as this is often the hardest thing to do so well done.

Can you tell us a little more about your circumstances:

1- how much your debt totals.
2 - who you owe money to.
3 - do you have any assets such as a house or car.

When it comes to a Trust Deed we work to an almost set criteria and any good Expert will be able to give you a very quick idea if your Trust Deed will be accepted or not.

Do you know if the person you are due to meet with later in the week is an Expert in debt advice and if they will be the same person who will actually handle your Trust Deed? Also, have they explained any alternative options to you to deal with your debts such as a Debt Arrangement Scheme or even Sequestration.

Try not to over thing things or panic. As I said I can tell someone in the space of 10 minutes on the phone if there will be any problems with their Trust Deed proposal.

Hi thank you for the quick reply.

Total debts are 25k

The debts are with

Capital one
Amigo loans
Hitachi
Ikano
Nationwide
Argos card
Payday uk
And an over draft with Halifax that I'm never out of.

The person I am meeting with is from trust deed Scotland. She hasn't advised me of my options but she will on Friday. I have been advised on a DAS too but exploring the trust deed option

Hi Andrew,

Thanks for taking the time to share that information.

Your Amigo Loans debt, is this a guarantor loan with someone? If it is and you enter into a plan then Amigo can pursue that person for the full balance. Did you realise this?

Also, do you own your house or a car?

Trust Deed Scotland and that advisor will not be the one who actually handle your Trust Deed. They will pass you to another firm to deal with so ask about that. There is nothing wrong with that but we always recommend actually dealing with the advisor you initially meet with and their company to handle things rather than being passed to someone else. Ultimately it's the company you actually sign your Trust Deed with that is responsible for everything.

Ask a lot of questions and do a little research on the forum and this will help you decide what to do and which firm and advisor to help you with this.

If you do proceed with a Trust Deed make sure you receive absolutely everything in writing regarding payments, timescale, what will happen with any assets you have and also how long it will take for you to receive your discharge from the Trust Deed once you have completed your payments. Some firms can take up to 6 months to do this. My firm along with some others will do this within 4-6 weeks of your final payment. The reason this is important is that until you are discharged if you inherit or acquire any assets these can be taken into the Trust Deed.

The amigo loans thing is with a guarantor. I thought they would just go to them for the payments every month not the full balance? You cannot leave any debt out of the deed can you? I have my own car but not worth much maybe £1,000.

I'm worried I don't get accepted.

Hi Andrew,

Yes they will go to the guarantor for the payments per month. Is this something that could create a problem for the guarantor or you?

How much do you owe to Hitachi, Ikano and Nationwide?

Have you went over a budget yet with the advisor to see what you can pay per month?

Try not to over think things. If in the unlikely event that your Trust Deed was rejected you have alternative options you could consider. This could be the DAS but it depends on your payment per month how long this would take.

Another option is also Sequestration. Works very similar to the Trust Deed in that it's a payment per month for 4 years. Similar impact on your credit rating as the Trust Deed also. People always think the worst with Bankruptcy but it can actually be very straight forward. Make sure the advisor you meet with tells you fully about this option also. It's all too common that advisors only tell you about a Trust Deed and nothing else. I'm not saying TDS do this but you need to ask about all of your options.

The positive message here is that you have a number of options to help you clear your debts and you can be debt free in 4 years.

Sorry I forgot to say that your correct in that all debts must be included into the Trust Deed.

I would have to pay my guarantor the money before it came out her bank.

I owe

Ikano - £1,660
Hitachi- £5,200
Nationwide - £4,500

I haven't went over a budget yet. I calculated all my outgoings ect myself for now. Left with £50 or so after everything

Hi,

Do you think all you could afford to pay per month after only paying your living costs ie rent, council tax, gas and electricity and food, travel costs, etc is £50 to a Trust Deed?

When it comes to a Trust Deed you need to be in a position to pay a payment per month which you can afford but also that the creditors would accept. That's why it's crucial that you go over a very thorough budget with the advisor to ensure you can afford to live and pay your Trust Deed. Don't sign up to a payment which you can't afford to pay as it will only create problems later on down the line. A good Expert should assess your budget and then make suggestions on your options.

If you can only afford to pay £50 per month toward a plan then Sequestration may become a more suitable option. This doesn't require your creditors to accept it and the payment is purely based on your budget.

How much is the guarantor loan payment per month?

If my debts were made into a monthly payment with a trust deed I could afford more than £50 a month. £50 left is after all my bills debts per month and everything else is paid. But my partner pays 70% of the shared house hold bills. The guarantor loan is £213 a month

Hi Andrew,

Ah ok I see that makes sense.

I think it's absolutely key that you go over a budget with an advisor to establish what you can afford to pay per month. How much do you think you could pay to a plan?

Are any of your debts apart from the guarantor loan joint with your partner or anyone else?

If my debts were taken off the table for a minute, I'd say 400 a month, that's taking into consideration that I'd still be paying amigo £213 a month.

No all debts are mines, no one else's except the connection with my guarantor

Cheers

Andrew

Hi Andrew,

If your in a position to pay a payment of that size then a Trust Deed may be a suitable option.

When you said about taking out some debts this year, what ones did you take out and how long ago? Also was there any recent excessive spending on the debts? Sometimes this can be a factor on creditors accepting or rejecting a proposal.

My car broke so I needed to purchase a new once to be able to get to work to pay my Debts.
Maybe about 4 months ago. What do you mean excessive Spending?

They are ikano in June's for 1,500
Amigo for 5,000 in August
And hitachi for 3 in August.

Hi Andrew,

Thanks for taking the time to respond to all of my questions! It's really helped me to build a good under standing of your circumstances.

When it comes to spending some creditors will look at your spending in the last couple of months to decide if you have borrowed a large amount and shortly thereafter entered into a Trust Deed.

Imagine it on the basis that you lent money to me and then 1 month later I entered a Trust Deed. You might not be happy about that. Also when it comes to exsessive spending this could be a luxury holiday or even ordering a lot of goods from a catalogue.

All of the questions that I've asked you are things which a good knowledgable expert should ask you when they come to see you. When you meet with the advisor ask them if they are qualified, how many years experience they have doing this etc. If your feeling uneasy about anything you can always seek a second opinion for another Expert and firm. We always suggest it's best to speak with a couple of advisors from different firms as things can vary from firm to firm in terms of how they handle your case. Once you have signed up that's you tied to they firm for the duration.

With my firm for example I would be your point of contact for 4 years, you wouldn't deal with anyone else and you would always phone, emails or text me as you would have my mobile number if there were any problems. Kevin the other Expert and firm on here works like that too. This information help you to gauge and compare things.

In the job that you do, do you receive any overtime or bonuses? Things like this also need to be taken into consideration in a Trust Deed.

Is there anything else which you are worried about that I can help with?