Is a DMP right for me ?

A DMP may not be the most appropriate solution for you and, since it is important that we help you to find the best way to resolve your debt problems, we must first assess your situation thoroughly.

If appropriate, we will discuss with you how you might be able to make some economies in your monthly expenditure. If, having made all the economies that you can reasonably be expected to make, you still have insufficient funds to service all of your unsecured commitments in full, we will identify the appropriate solutions that may be available to you.

We will describe to you each solution that we believe may be suitable to your needs and discuss with you both the advantages and disadvantages of that solution. After we have discussed with you every option that we believe is suitable, we will leave you to decide which option you want to choose.

We will be open at all times during our discussions with you, making sure that you know the basis upon which we charge for our services and the likely total cost of any service with which we may provide you.

How does a DMP work ?

Stage 1 - Initial Assessment

Please do not be embarrassed about your current situation, it is very common. We are not like the loan and credit card companies, so you will not be rejected by us because of your adverse credit history. On the contrary, the greater your problems are, the more we can help you.

Firstly, we would need to confirm your total net monthly household income. This is the amount you have left after income tax, national insurance and any other items have been deducted.

Secondly, we would need to confirm your total essential monthly household expenditure. These are the amounts needed to pay your mortgage or rent, your household bills, and to feed and clothe your family. Most of our clients seriously underestimate these amounts, so we will help you to make a comprehensive list. From the above two figures, we calculate your disposable income, which is the maximum amount you can afford to pay towards your debts each month.

If your monthly debt repayments are greater than (or close to) your disposable income, you urgently need to take advice and we can guarantee that we can help you. If your calculations seem to suggest that you have enough disposable income to enable you to meet all your debt repayments, but you know you are struggling every month, we can almost certainly still help you, as you may be overlooking some items of expenditure.


Stage 2 - Creditor Contact

We contact your creditors to inform them that you have engaged us to act on your behalf and we ask them to direct all future correspondence and telephone calls to our office instead of to you. This will immediately reduce your stress levels by shielding you from the barrage of sometimes menacing telephone calls and letters that are often received from creditors.

We also ask your creditors to immediately suspend interest charges and to accept our reduced monthly repayment proposals. Initially, while we are in negotiation with your creditors, your monthly repayments will be reduced dramatically.

We simplify your debt repayments by establishing a Single Payment Plan. This enables you to make one simple and affordable payment to us each month, from which all your creditors are paid. This puts you back in control of your finances, rather than letting them control you.

Very importantly, our internal systems will ensure that each of your creditors is paid the right amount at the right time, greatly reducing the likelihood of them taking any further action against you.

Furthermore, we will send you a monthly statement, clearly showing all the amounts that have been paid to your creditors.


Stage 3 - Creditor Management

When we first approach your creditors to inform them that you have engaged us to act on your behalf, they will often attempt to ignore our approach and will continue to pursue you directly. They do so because they recognise that they have a better chance of persuading you, rather than us, to pay them a higher amount each month.

We will show you how to deal with these creditors politely and firmly and they will soon realise that, because you are well represented, there is no merit in pursuing you directly.

We will continue to manage your creditors and your payments to them, dealing with any enquiries they may have as well as dealing with their periodic reviews. This will enable you to get on with your life without the ongoing distress that is often caused by pressures from debt recovery agencies.

We ask you to forward to us, as soon as you receive them, all the letters received from your creditors. We also ask you to politely refer to our office, any incoming telephone calls from your creditors, without you entering into negotiation or prolonged discussion with them.

In this way, we seek to eliminate any fear and anxiety you may have acquired from answering the telephone, and any dread of opening the mail.


Stage 4 - Full & Final Settlement

Finally, when your circumstances have improved, for example, if you have had the good fortune to come into funds, from whatever source, we will approach your creditors for you with a view to negotiating a reduced settlement figure to enable you to totally clear your outstanding debt.

Although it is generally believed that a reduction in your monthly repayments to your creditors will inevitably lead to a much longer repayment term, and perhaps a much higher total cost, the possibility of an early Full & Final Settlement makes this unnecessary. We will help you towards this goal.

This very valuable benefit can, depending on the circumstances, average a 70% (seventy percent) write-off of your total debt, which I am sure you will agree, would represent a very significant overall saving !!!

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