Hello kev1980,

I think it's great that you are taking the step you have identified to try to deal with the gambling issue.

First and foremost your health has to be the most important thing and you should follow whatever course of action your doctor suggests.

In terms of the Trust Deed I think only you will know how to proceed. It could be allowed to fail but that would seem a shame as you seem to be a fair way through it and have already dealt with the equity. This also wouldn't necessarily help because it would be likely to lead to bankruptcy in which you would have to hand over any excess income in a similar way to a Trust Deed.

Depending upon the advice of your doctor you may need to discuss the situation with your Trustee, especially if being signed off from work will result in a loss of income.
I'm wondering how this might be viewed by a Trustee, especially as you are taking steps to deal with the gambling. I wonder what Kevin or Mark's thoughts on this would be........

Hi TDA,

Thank you for your reply.

I'll keep an eye open for Kevin and Mark's replies as well.

Thank you

Hi kev1980.

There is certainly some room for some flexibility in a trust deed, especially when it comes to allowing time for treatment of health problems. We do regularly allow people to suspend their payments for a period in order to deal with such issues.

As trust deed assistant says, get advice from a health professional and then discuss this with your trustee, there is a very good chance that you will be allowed some leeway.

Hi Kevin,

Thanks for youer advice.

I've got an appointment at the doctor tomorrow morning and my first counselling session will take place tomorrown afternoon.

I guess it is best to be open and honest with my trustee and explain the full circumstances of what has happened after visiting my doctor.

Hi,

I contacted my trustee today and explained the situation after my appointment with the doctor this morning.

Unfortunately my trustee said there wasn't anything they could do with regards to payment holidays etc....

I said i would put everything in writing and maybe someone could review my circumstances.

Hi kev1980,

How much additional debt do you have? How much do you have to repay each month?

Hi TDA,

My trust deed is set at ?ú242.00 per month and the additonal debt i have incurred amounts to just under ?ú3,000.

I had my counselling session yesterday and I felt much better, i will be going to the counselling sessions every fortnight.

I also posted a letter to my trustee explaining the circumstances.

Hi kev1980,

How much are you having to pay each month towards the new debt?

I'm glad to hear that the counselling went well for you.

There are 4 new debts i've incurred...

2 credit cards and 2 of those pay day advance loans.

The first credit card has ?ú1300.00 debt, i've spoke to the credit card company and they have frozen the interest and charges and are willing to accept ?ú30 per month.

The second credit card has ?ú500 debt, i've still to speak to them and to negotiate some kind of repayment.

The other debts are 2 pay day loans, one of which has ?ú600.00 to be repaid on 24/12/09 as a one of payment and the other has ?ú250.00 to be repaid on 21/12/09, i've spoke to both companies but they say they can't do anything until the actual repayment date.

I wonder if Mark or Kevin think that a payment break for three months might be granted in this situation?

This could allow repayment of most of the Payday loans.

If that happened would you be able to handle the credit card payments negotiated in addition to the Trust Deed contribution?

Yeah, I think that certainly would be acceptable.

I would be able to clear the majority of the payday loans in the 3 months.

I'l keep an eye open for Kevin or Mark's response.

Thanks

Hi kev

I'm glad to hear they've frozen the interest on the bigger credit card debt, that should certainly assist. Then chip away at the remaining debts. I think communication with them all is the key factor.

Let me know how you get on.

Mark

Thanks for your message Mark.

Yeah, I was really suprised at how helpful the credit card company was when i explained what was going on.

Like you say communication is certainly the key factor, and i would certainly stress that to anyone else who needs to communicate with their creditors..... Its amazing what you can achieve by being polite and asking for help.

I'll keep you posted.