How to go about sorting this mess out!

[mustard7]

I am in just a big a mess as many others with payday loans.My spiral of debt with them got to the point when I had only £16 left in my bank account only 3 days after I got paid (monthly) and I still had food and petrol for the month to buy (My petrol bill is £550 a month on its own!)So I am in no other position than to default and arrange repayment plans.Firstly though, I wanted to ask a question regarding cancelling cards and bank accounts.I understand that I will have to cancel my card.... thats not an issue. But would I really have to change accounts?I check my bank regularly.. every day or too via the internet so could quite easily check if any new DD's had been set up.Or is it not as simple as that, and that they could get money from my account without a DD being set up?Any ideas?

[Cait116]

who do you bank with mustard?

[mustard7]

HSBC. Been with them 20 years

[Cait116]

Hi again mustard.

Make sure and cancel your card. Do that today - report it lost or stolen and get a new one sent to you. There is a chance that the PDL's will try and set up direct debits without you knowing though so tbh I think it might be prudent to set up a new basic bank account. Is it really inconvenient for you to set up a new account?

[Cait116]

p.s. they have also been known to take money from people's accounts at very odd hours! Like in the middle of the night!

[mustard7]

Hi Glo,And thanks for your input and advice so far. To answer your question, it would be very inconvenient to have to change accounts. I check my bank daily (or certainly will) so would see if any new DD's had been set up and would be able to cancel them straight away.Or does it not work that way? Could they just take the money instantly?Remember, im not avoiding the debts.. I just need a sensible time in which to repay. So if I manage to arrange a repayment plan with these companies, wouldnt it then be a little below the belt if they took the money from my account regardless of any agreement set up for repayment?

[Cait116]

Hi mustard

 

To be brutally honest the PDL's don't give a fig about being fair or hitting below the belt. In fact, they tell lies and try their damnest to get their hands on your money. If it is absolutely impossible for you to open another account maybe you should speak to HSBC. They might change your account for you, you never know. Ask if they can close your original one and open another? Worth a try I suppose. I'm sure someone else more qualified will be here soon to give you some more advice. Just make sure you report your card stolen. Sorry, I'm not much help hun but I do know how you feel, it's not nice being left with b*gg*r all for food in the middle of the month.

[stressedx]

Do you have a savings account? What i do is each Friday i transfer my money minus bills to my savings account. As i'm pregnant i always need the loo in the night lol so i do it then. Still waiting for my bank to sort my other account out. Then when i need money i just transfer it from savings to normal account.

[mustard7]

The issue I see with that is if the bank honoured the DD and sent me overdrawn.

[mustard7]

Plus if they do get rejected then I'm looking at charges!

[stressedx]

Plus if they do get rejected then I'm looking at charges!

 

Oh right, my account i don't have an overdraft so my bank just says no if anyone tries

[Jamie Kingston]

well it depends which lenders, most dont collect by DD except a select few... who are your loans with?

[mustard7]

Quidquid- £500 (600 with interest)

Payday express - £450

Lending stream - £400

Swift sterling - £200

Minicredit - £100

 

As you can see.., quite a mess

[Cait116]

Mustard I know how inconvenient it is to switch bank accounts but it might be the only way to set your mind at rest. There are a few good basic bank accounts that you can apply for online, Halifax is one.

[Jamie Kingston]

the only company in the above list that take DD is Quick quid and maybe Swift Sterling - correct me if i'm wrong... therefore cancelling your card is sufficient and ensuring the QQ doesnt set-up the DD again you should be fine.

[mustard7]

I think I will go down that route thanks Jamie. I may live to regret it and find I have zero to live off again next month if the DD's do come out.. but I shall check the DD setup online with HSBC everyday and cancel if I see anything appear.Does anyone know of a template letter I could send to each of the companies explaining circumstances and requesting a payment plan?

[Jamie Kingston]

i think it shows on the website under templates at the top. i'm also with HSBC and you can cancel online...

[robjam1969]

I think I will go down that route thanks Jamie. I may live to regret it and find I have zero to live off again next month if the DD's do come out.. but I shall check the DD setup online with HSBC everyday and cancel if I see anything appear.Does anyone know of a template letter I could send to each of the companies explaining circumstances and requesting a payment plan?

 

If you spot that a DD has been set up - get it reversed same day under the DD guarantee systenm. QQ tend to set their up in the early hours and may have taken payment before you are up in the morning.

[mustard7]

How does the direct debit system work?

Surely I wouldn't be able to reverse it as I have agreed to those companies to take payment by DD if I fail to pay by card. Or maybe I can?

[amac31]

It is no good to just cancel your card, i banked with Natwest for a lot of years and got in a mess with The Money shop. I cancelled my card as lost or stolen but a week later the money still went out. When queried with bank, they said that because I had an agreement with this company to pay by card, any transactions that were applied for on the old card were automatically took from the new card on that account. The only sure way is to change accounts so that you have a different number and if possible change banks completely. I even had cheques with them that bounced, and they just kept putting them back into the system until they eventually cleared, cost me a fortune in charges.

[Cait116]

Mustard - I totally agree with amac. Do you really want to have to get up in the middle of the night just to check if any lowlife has raided your account? To be totally safe you need to open a new account and move your priority debt DD's over to that one. I know it will take a day or two to get everything sorted but it will be worth it for peace of mind. Anyway, whatever you do, Good Luck hun x

[mustard7]

Oh crap... that really is a bugger if they can do thatMaybe a new account is the way to go?

[Cait116]

Why not open one anyway - just in case. You don't even have to go into the branch to do it you can open a good basic one online.

[mustard7]

I just tried to open one with the halifax... but there is a 28 day waiting period! Apparently, their very much in demand.Does anyone know of any other than the halifax?

[Cait116]

Aw bummer - try Nationwide mustard