Hi muiry33

Which company are you dealing with.

The advice they have provided is nonsense. Creditors would never come back with such a statement and I suspect the £250 payment and suggested 3 x £200 will be for their fees.

A Trust Deed could be set up fairly quickly and I have no idea where the 3 months timescale came from.

My advice is to speak directly with an insolvency firm. In all cases we are involved with, we arrange a face to face meeting to discuss the whole process and then confirm this in writing. I would suggest you ensure that you follow this process with an insolvency firm to safeguard yourself and certainly make no further payments to the company.

I hope this helps

Mark

Hi

It is Debt Free Direct. I wondered about this. The guy said it would show them that I am able to pay the £200 a month as the creditirs don't think I can. I feel I can pay this comfortably. I am just scared I may lose my house.

Hi muiry33

I suspect they are trying to get you into a debt management plan.

Don't worry about bankruptcy or legal action as this normally takes quite some time at best. Regarding your property, do you know how much its worth and what is outstanding on the mortgage and secured loan? Also is it held in joint names.

Mark

Thanks for the reassurance Mark. The house is worth £85-90,000. It is in my name only. There is £20,000 on mortgage and secured loan. DFD told me all the creditors said no as I wouldn't be able to afford repayment which I can. He said if I pay £200 x 3 months, they can go back to them and show I can pay. Can I contact you tomorrow on the advice line number?

Hi muiry33

No problem. If you have £60k equity in the property, a Trust Deed is probably not your best option. Contact me tomorrow and we can have a look through the options.

Regards

Mark

Hi all

I have just spoken to muiry33 and it's not often I'm left speechless on advice provided by rogue companies.

The company she has been dealing with have so far taken £250 in fees and requested a further 3 payments of £200, allthough they appear to have done nothing for over 3 months.

When contacted as to why the setting up of the Trust Deed was taking so long, they provided the following reasons:

They pass their files to a certain company who are the IP firm (though they are in fact not an IP firm). They have advised that the problem is due to
delays at court. Strange as the TD in a non court process.

The IP has contacted all of the creditors and they have advised
that they don't think she is able to maintain the payments, but
if she makes another 3 months payments this may convince them.

The Trust Deed is 100% guaranteed to be accepted if she makes the
payment.

The equity in the house is fine in a Trust Deed and in terms of The
Consumer Credit Act!! the Trustee or creditors are unable to touch
this.

I have the contact details for the person involve and strongly urge that she report matters to the OFT. I have advised that she speak with Money Advice Scotland and hopefully they can take matters further.

Sorry for the rant, but it is incredible how far people will go to earn their commission!

Mark

This topic references to a major debt solution provider and I think we need to be conscious that a rogue advisor could be responsible rather than it being reflective of the general practice of the firm in question.

I do however think this brings up two issues that we in the site support team hear about from those who contact us time and time again:

1 - "Advice" versus "Selling"
The experience of many people who contact certain debt solution operators is that they are sold to rather than advised. This often involves, for example, exaggerating the negatives involved with debt solutions that will not result in a fee for the advisor (for example bankruptcy for certain people can be the best course of action). It also often involves regular calling/texting to "chase" a client for information or commitment while they are still sensibly taking the time to weigh up their options.

2 - "Flipping" of debt solutions
This is where a client would be best served by a Trust Deed but are encouraged to enter into a debt management plan as an interim solution and then a Trust Deed is created later on. The justification put forward for this is that it provides the client with an opportunity to "check" that they can afford the payment before they commit to a Trust Deed! Conveniently (for someone.. not often for the client) this also enables set-up fees to be charged for the debt management plan and then a whole new set of fees being earned when the Trust Deed starts.

At a recent conference of the UK debt solutions industry it became apparent that both practices are causing concern at the Office of Fair Trading and the Ministry of Justice. It was apparent because they said so... very directly! It seems likely that regulation will be introduced to the debt advice industry in due course. If this helps the industry to more consistently provide best advice from the point of view of the client that can only be a good thing.

Until that point arrives anyone considering a Trust Deed, or any other type of debt solution, should protect themselves by:
1 - Finding help that they have reason to trust.
2 - Confirming advice externally if they have doubts.
3 - Getting information on all of the available options.
4 - Not being hurried into a commitment that they are not ready for.
5 - Not signing anything until they are satisfied that they fully understand their commitments and how things will work from that point.

Well said Trust Deed Assistant fab response & well said Mark. Companies as described in TDA's post are an absolute disgrace to people seeking genuine advice & help. Thank heavens this site appears to say things as they are, answering straight questions with straight answers. In this climate this is a luxury! Disappointed slightly that some of the experts who are so readily quick to respond to things have sat on the fence on this one.

Hi diverdown,

Thank you for your comments and positive feedback about the site.

Mark has personal in-depth knowledge of this case, knowledge that the other experts do not have. It's very difficult to make such a strong judgment about a scenario without being very close to the facts.

Bit harsh there, diverdown. Nothing to do with "sitting on the fence", it is just that Mark happened to have picked up the query first and taken it on so figured there was no need to stick my oar in - too many cooks and all that.

For the record, I totally agree with what Mark and Trust Deed Assistant have said on the matter - outrageously bad advice given. Thank heavens muiry33 had the sense to seek another opinion otherwise she would be even more out of pocket. This is why I always recommend that anybody seeking money advice either speaks to a professional in an insolvency firm or goes to a reputable free money advice agency such as their local CAB or local authority money advice team.

Hi all
The same kind of thing nearly happened to us trying to find a solution to debts problems is hard and you dont have a clue where to find help. I done a questionaire on line and was contacted by loads of different companies offering all these different kinds of solutions we signed paperwork and gave personel documents to this company. But for sum reason I still didnt feel happy I had never meet these people. After searching the internet again I found money advice Scotland and contacted my local office they advised not to used these companies because of the fees they charged they got IP to come to see us in their office to see the person face to face gave us the reassurance we needed. Now just waitng for the TD to become protected. PLEASE BEWARE of these companies. This site will keep you right still waiting for the return of our documents from this internet company which was over 3 months ago and have made numerous calls to them.

Hi All
By way of introduction, my name is Declan Murray and I work for Debt Free Direct. I came across this posting and felt it needed a response from DFD. Having gone through the thread, I am very keen to investigate this further as I feel there are some issues that need addressing. I do not recognise the practice mentioned above as been that of DFD. Muiry - would you mind dropping me an email with your details so I can carry out a full investigation of this? My email address is dmurray@debtfreedirect.co.uk.

Many Thanks
Declan

Reading this topic makes me so angry that people looking for help just get ripped of again.
muirry33 complains about her fees from dept free direct.
Loads of replies complaining about the fees she is being charged.
I scrolled down to check your fees which appear to be a lot more.
£2500 or more for going bankrupt?
Are people being made aware that if they go to citizen advice that it will cost them £100.
Thats a minimum saving of £2400.
I suppose thats why we all ended up on this site,overspending.lol

I think you have missed the point slightly jazmac.

The company in question were not an IP firm, they were merely a middle man who had ideas of charging £850 for the simple task of referring muiry33 to a proper IP consultant (such as Mark or Kevin).

The IP firm then would have charged their fees (£2,500 - 4,500) for setting up and administering the PTD.

To my knowlodge the CAB cannot set-up and run a PTD.

Once the IP has begun work on the PTD and it is accepted the level of fees make no difference to the client, as these are deducted from the 36 monthly contributions and the remaining funds divided amongst the creditors.

The 'middle man' in question wanted £250, then 3 x £200 before the PTD contributions would commence. This would mean additional expense to the client.

Regards,
PB