Hi, I'm sure one on the experts will be on soon to give you their usual good advice, but here's what I think

If they are actually going through court action (not just threatening it as most do) then you may not be able to do a trust deed.

Your debts are yours and not your partners, only your income should be taken into account for a trust deed, but if he gives you 'digs' you will probably be required to show that.

Don't panic as the cavalry will be around to answer you at a more sociable hour [:D]

Do you own your house, or are you renting?

Hello La28 and welcome to the trust deed forum.

The fact that your debts haven't been addressed for three years makes no difference in terms of a trust deed; the option remains open to you as it would for someone with very recent debts.

Creditors always threaten legal action in their early communications; typically they are trying to create a shock that encourages you to speak with them (and hopefully establish some kind of repayment plan). However it is possible that they could take legal action at some point so taking some steps to deal with the debts soon would probably be in your best interests.

The situation regarding your finances in connection to your partner moving in is quite hard to explain. Basically his income is taken into account only to ensure that he is paying his fair share of the household costs. For example if you both earned the same he, for the purposes of working out how much you should pay into a trust deed, might be expected to cover half the mortgage/rent, council tax, utility bills etc. He still gets to keep and spend his fair share of the disposable income.

The whole subject about how a trust deed payment is worked out is more fully covered at:

http://www.trust-deed.co.uk/trustdeedexpenditureguidelines.php

I hope this information is a useful starting point but don't hesitate to let us know if you have further questions.

Hi thanks for the advice. I do have a few other questions - at the moment I am due to finish employment at the end of the month (temp contract) and am trying to secure something else. The jobs I have been applying for pay less than my current one - if I don't get a job then I know I can't enter a trust deed, but if I do - do I need to wait until I've worked there for a while before I enter a trust deed? I want to try to set up a TD as soon as possible as I am sure this company are about to take legal action against me - I am actually dealing with a legal firm rather than a debt collecting agency.

They have asked me to contact them before Wednesday. I know they will want full payment or at least a large part paid off which I cannot afford to do. I was thinking of contacting them and advising that I am seeking advice and looking into my options, and ask for them to delay action. This probably will make no difference!

Firstly, try not to worry too much. Just because it is a legal firm you are dealing with does not mean that legal action is imminent. This is par for the course to be honest and chances are that legal action is still a bit further down the line (though obviously there is always a risk). Do not offer to pay anything which you cannot afford.

There is no minimum period that you have to have been in a job before you can sign a trust deed. However, you need to be aware that if you do sign a trust deed and then the job doesn't work out for whatever reason then you are at a high risk of being sequestrated instead.