Do it yourself

Depending on your circumstances and on your level of debt it maybe possible to agree reduced payments with your creditors by yourself.  Most lenders now have dedicated departments set up to deal with such requests who, if an agreement is reached, will want to review your ability to resume full payment at least once every three months.  This course of action takes time and patience and is most suited to problems that are considered to be only temporary, i.e. short term loss of income due to illness or redundancy etc.

Depending on how many creditors or collection agencies you have to deal with it can also be confusing.  For example, you may be under the impression that you have reached an agreement with a creditor only to find that they have instructed a collection agency to try and recover money from you or a solicitor that is threatening legal action against you.  In the majority of cases these problems are the result of lenders computer systems not being updated properly or programmed to automatically trigger certain action, if for instance you fail to make your correct repayments.  These problems can often be resolved but it is time consuming and can be very frustrating.

If you do decide to try the DIY approach you will need to be realistic and honest with yourself and wth your creditors.  You will be expected to provide detailed information which includes the following.....

• Details of how you have got into debt and how long it will be before you see yourself being able to resume your normal repayments.
• An income and expenditure showing the surplus income that you intend to use to pay your creditors back.
• A pro-rata schedule showing each creditor what share of your surplus income they can expect to receive.

You should also ask creditors to supply written confirmation to show that they have agreed to freeze or reduce the interest and charges on your debts.

If you think that this is the correct course of action for your situation you can get help from this web site by clicking creditors letters. However, if you are unsure as to whether Doing It Yourself is the best way to solve your debt problems, then why not get a second opinion. Fill in our Budget Planner, we will assess your situation and recommend the best course of action for you to become debt free.