A typical payment arrangement is an agreement to repay a credit card, catalogue or loan in affordable monthly amounts. This is also called an arrangement to pay.
You can ask a lender for an arrangement to pay, or a debt collector.
The key points are:
- an arrangement is needed if you can’t afford the normal debt repayments;
- do not offer more than you can afford;
- ask the lender or debt collector to freeze interest and not add any charges;
- it normally harms your credit record.
This article looks at making an arrangement to pay, including how to do this, how much to offer and what if the creditor says No.
Is a payment arrangement right for you?
Debts this doesn’t cover
The arrangements discussed here are for “normal” loans, credit cards and catalogues.
Where a lender has some extra security, they will normally refuse to accept a lower amount and freeze interest:
- mortgages and other loans secured on your house;
- guarantor loans or logbook loans; and
- car finance by HP (including PCP) or leasing.
If you have problems with any of these, talk to a debt adviser about your options.
Bills such as tax, rent, council tax and utilities are different, see What is a priority debt? for a list of these. Here setting up an arrangement to pay is a very good idea, but you may need to pay more to get the creditor to accept your offer. You have to negotiate these priority debt arrangments first, and your credit cards and loans may then have to accept a token £1 a month payments until your priority debts are cleared.
What about overdrafts? An overdraft on an account you aren’t using any more is just like any other bank debt and you can ask for an arrangement to pay that. Or if the overdraft has been passed or sold to a debt collector.
But if you are still using the account though, you need to talk to the bank about what they can suggest – and if it doesn’t seem helpful, think about switching to another bank. Overdrafts can be very tricky to clear.
The advantages of a payment arrangement
- a payment arrangement for a few months gives you time until your income or expenses improve so you can resume normal payments. This means it is normally your best option if you know you have a temporary problem. Perhaps you have been made redundant and need time to find another job.
- for longer-term problems, a payment arrangement where interest is frozen lets you clear the debt more rapidly and in a more affordable way;
- you can increase or decrease what you pay if your situation changes;
- most creditors will accept a payment arrangement and agree to freeze interest if you explain your circumstances;
- having a payment arrangement means you normally get few letters or phone calls from a creditor; and
- it is less likely a creditor will take you to court for a CCJ than if you ignore a debt.
Some disadvantages of a payment arrangement
- a lender may reject your offer or refuse to freeze interest (see below for what to do if this happens);
- it may take a long time to repay your debts, even if interest is frozen. In this situation, it is better to take debt advice now than to spend years not making much progress. In June 2021, the DRO rules were relaxed so mare people can qualify for a DRO.
- a creditor may take you to court for a CCJ even if a payment arrangement is agreed. This is unusual – it is more likely for larger debts and if you are buying not renting as the creditor can then get a charging order on your home;
- you have to deal with your creditors – some people don’t mind this, others prefer to get some help (see below);
- arrangements may be for a short time such as 6 months. This is a nuisance, but if at the end of it you explain your situation is the same, the arrangement is normally renewed;
- your credit rating will be affected (see below).
How much should you offer?
National Debtline’s Your budget takes you through setting up a personal budget, converts your income and expenses so they are all monthly, works out what offers you should make to your creditors and generates a budget sheet to send to your creditors.
The offer to a creditor depends on how much money you have left after paying for essential expenditure and paying priority debts. This is divided between your credit card and loans, so that the larger debts get more of the money. This is called a pro rata division and your creditors will think this is fair. They will also understand that priority debts will get more.
If you have little money left, the budget tool will suggest:
You could offer a token payment of £1 per month to each of your creditors. This may only be a short-term solution but it can give you some time to work out your other options.
Your budget has to be realistic for many months, so don’t put in really low expenses that you won’t be able to live on. If you aren’t sure, phone National Debtline and talk to them about what figures are reasonable. Make sure you save your budget, in case you want to change/add something later and create a new budget sheet.
Phone or write?
If you want to phone, it’s best to have worked out a rough budget beforehand and decided how much to offer each creditor. A creditor will often want to talk through your budget with you. Having one in front of you will mean you are more confident and less likely to agree to pay more than you can afford.
Also work out a short description of the reason you have problems to tell the creditor. “My hours have been cut” or “My wife has gone on maternity leave” or “I am behind with council tax and my electricity bill and need to clear these arrears” – just say what has happened, you won’t be judged.
If you prefer to write, you can send a letter but email is faster, cheaper and you have a record of what you have sent. Enclose a budget sheet – this shows the lender that you are making a fair offer.
National Debtline has useful template letters you can use. Here the most important ones are:
- making a pro rata offer to creditors
- making a token offer to creditors.
What if the creditor doesn’t agree?
You can’t make a creditor accept, but if you have sent the creditor a budget sheet and you are making pro rata offers to all your creditors, they normally do. So don’t worry about this problem until it happens, as it may not!
In practice, you often don’t have any better options. If you can’t afford to make the normal repayments – which your budget shows – then don’t get into more difficulty by paying more than you can afford. So make it clear that you are not going to increase your offer.
Sometimes a creditor will refuse to make a payment arrangement if you are up to date with the debt. This is annoying when you are trying to do your best but the answer is simple – miss a payment. Cancel any direct debit, standing order or continuous payment authority with your bank and contact the creditors again in a month.
Sometimes a creditor will refuse a payment if they think it’s more than you can afford. If this happens, talk to a debt adviser about your other options.
What is the difference between a payment arrangement and a Debt Management Plan (DMP)?
Not much!
In a DMP, you go to a firm such as StepChange and ask them to set up the payment arrangements with your creditors, and you then just pay the DMP firm one amount monthly which they divide between your creditors. See A guide to DMPs for more details.
The end result for you – and for your creditors – is much the same. Some people like a DMP firm sitting in the middle and organising it as they don’t have to deal directly with their creditors. Some people prefer to do things themselves. If you have a lot of creditors it can be easier to get a DMP set up, but if there are only a couple it’s not that much hassle to do it yourself.
Creditors are not allowed to refuse to set up a payment arrangement with you and say you have to have a DMP. And they can’t refuse to freeze interest if you are trying to make a payment arrangement and say they only do that for a DMP.
A payment arrangement also has the same effect on your credit record as a debt management plan. See how DMPs affect your credit record for details.
Would a Breathing Space help?
The Breathing Space help was brought in on 4 May 2021. It puts a 60 day hold on your eligible debts, during which time the creditors can’t add interest or charges, take you to court or send round bailiffs.
But unless 60 days will really let you solve your debt problem, you will still need a payment arrangement or another debt solution after that. And the Breathing Space is inflexible – all your debts have to be listed. Many people who want to set up payment arrangements themselves may prefer to decide which creditors to talk to and possibly ignore creditors who aren’t a problem at the moment.
Need some help with this?
If this is the first time you can’t make a debt repayment, or you haven’t paid anything for a long while, you may be worried.
It normally won’t be as bad as you think!
Creditors are used to this, it is part of their business that some people can’t manage to repay on time and their regulator says they have to treat customers in financial difficulty fairly.
But if it makes you feel very anxious, or you have many creditors it feels difficult and confusing to speak to them all, or you aren’t sure if an arrangement to pay is right for you, or a creditor refuses to accept your offer, then talk to a good debt adviser for free and confidential help.
If you think you can only afford token £1 payments and you don’t this will change for years, then you should take debt advice as there may be better options for you. £1 a month may sound good, but it’s only postponing the problem, not solving it. If you are renting then a Debt Relief Order may be a much better option.
Complain if a creditor doesn’t freeze interest
Are you worried about debt management?
Could a Debt Relief Order help you?
Jane Clack says
Hello. I was discussing this the other day with a credit union representative – only a small debt continued cycle of payday loans. Same lender! Client has ample funds to pay and knows this but has been paying £150 per night out twice a week in the past. Credit union person said would be far better to take out a credit union loan and consolidate all other debts – not many but a loan with his reputable bank and a credit card he pays off in full as only ever about £50 on it. So we can say consolidation is a way of clearing debt when affordable but not when having to change banks in my opinion. What do you think?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I’m confused.
“paying £150 per night out twice a week” to a payday lender, that’s a bit odd? If this is a continued cycle of loans from the same lender, then an arrangement to pay plus an affordability complaint would seem the best option.
I can’t see the point in consolidating a credit card which is repaid in full.
Not sure what the relevance of changing banks is – apart from being able to include an overdraft in an arrangement to pay? (Hang on, I forgot to mention overdrafts in the above article, will just go and add a bit…)
Jane Clack says
No the reason he has not got enough money at the end of the month is that he is spending £150 on nights out twice a week. Young chap enjoying life! He borrows £700 from this payday lender and has to pay back £844 at the end of the month! He also smokes as he has a lot of spare time on his hands! It was well affordable and if he did not go out and cut down on the smoking he could pay it back but just does not want to have to budget. I cannot see how we could go for affordability with this one. My suggestion was he should repay in 2 instalments and only go out once a week!
He likes his bank and is repaying a loan which he has with them – it will finish in 14 months and the credit card is with the same bank. The credit union adviser said he should put the loan into the consolidation with them and pay it off earlier! He has no overdraft with them!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
ah!
Well you know having time on their hands isn’t the only reason people smoke…
Then consolidating the payday loan and the bank loan may be sensible – but I can’t see why he would include the credit card.
Laura says
Hello Sara,
I’ve recently been made redundant and contacted littlewoods as I can’t afford the full repayments at the moment. I’ve offered to pay £50 a month until I can hopefully get a job after Xmas but they have said this isn’t acceptable and I should seek third party advice. I don’t have any other debts that I can’t meet so what should I do now? Any advice
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Are they saying £50 a month isn’t enough? Or are they saying you can’t afford to pay £50 a month?
What sort of other debts do you have?
Laura says
Thank you Sara, wAsnt sure where to post.
They didn’t say. I’m actually deaf and trying to sort this through there secure webmail has bordered on shambolic and now it’s offline saying they can’t tale any more messages. Been trying to sort this for 6 weeks.
They didn’t say. I can afford £50 although we are now living off one wage. We have mortgage, car loan and one bank loan which I feel are more a priority. I have never been out of work before so I don’t want to say £100 and then I can’t make that as I don’t know how long this is be, but I can afford £50 and said I would pay more if I could which I would do. I’ve written a paper letter because it’s starting to really stress me out, interest getting added etc when I’ve said the situation claiming not getting these secure messages?!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I hope your letter explained you are deaf so you can’t use the phone?
re priorities. A debt adviser will say that your mortgage is top priority and next is the car loan if it is HP/PCP or leasing, as you could lose the car if you don’t keep up the payments.
A normal unsecured bank loan however is not a priority debts. Whose name is the bank loan in? And whose name is the catalogue in?
Laura says
Yes I’ve made it clear to them I’m deaf and sent my certificate because they must think I’m lying as they still try and call me etc. The bank loan is in both our names but the catalogue is in mine, I don’t know why but would prefer just to pay the bank loan until I’m back in employment. I’m looking at the website and I think I could gave had unaffordable lending. My credit limit on catalogue was almost 6k and I worked part time and was raising my son. Kept increasing. Quick other question the interest free period is coming to a end on a item is there anything I ca do about that given the situation?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I’m sorry but Littlewoods are within their rights to say that they won’t accept a lower payment from you and freeze interest if you are making a full payment to the bank loan – this is not treating your creditors fairly.
A 6k credit limit is high but you may find it hard to win an affordability complaint if your credit record is good.
The interest free period coming to an end – when it ends if you haven’t paid the whol amount you will be charged interest. this will probably be backdated to when you bought the item.
Milky says
I got into debt with the water to the tune of £1000 in 2010 began repaying them back. In 2017 they registered this as a payment arrangement on my credit file. I only discovered this when making a mortgage application. I asked when my mom was dying to reduce the payments to be able to help her and visit and also to save for a mortgage the irony. I was not informed it would affect my credit when I spoke to them about it over the phone. Is this treating customers fairly when they are most vulnerable by omitting it. I am sure they would say it’s in our terms or on our bill but shouldn’t they say when take your card details to set it up?
What if anything can be done
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Did you tell them you wanted to be able to reduce your payments in order to save for a mortgage?
Milky says
No -I did not tell them
Their data officer is contacting within 5 days
It was a while ago can’t remember what I said, I was not in financial difficulty on both occasions just difficult circumstances and wanted all the money possible to help my parent and the other was just pay minimum on everything and then use rest of income to clear a debt at a time.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
OK well tell the data officer that if he listens to your call recording, he will hear that you were never informed that your credit record would be affected and this seems unreasonable as you had had a payment arrangement for years and your credit record had not been impaired.
Milky says
Thank you I have spoke to the data officer and he immediately said he would remove it as I was not informed of consequences.
I did not have to quote him a word from data protection act GDPR on the Right to be Informed.
I also did not complain it was done in the first place clearly flouting the above acts
Joseph says
Sara, does going into a payment arrangement with a company affect/show on your credit file?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Normally it does. Which isn’t a reason to avoid them – you can’t carry on borrowing, so if you don’t have enough money to make the loan repayments and get through the month, then your alternatives are to not pay at all or make a payment arrangement, either of which will affect your credit record.
Of course if you win the affordability complaint – and the last loan still owing is the loan that is most likely to be determined to be unaffordable – all negative marks should be removed.
Joseph says
Sara, Following on from my comment above: I’m completley free of payday loans now, and now all in all only owe 2 student overdrafts (co-op 2K and TSB 1.5K and a capital one credit card of £800). I just want to pay off these at something around £170 a month, but want to come to some agreement with these comapnies to allow me to pay it off but at the same time don’t want to enter into a DMP or something that will affect my credit score and it’s really not needed as I am not in any sort of financial trouble. So i’m not in any money trouble, i just want to pay it off in a structured way without it looking bad on my credit file? These are the final 3 things i have left (Debt wise).
Sara (Debt Camel) says
An arrangement to pay has exactly the same effect on your credit score as a DMP. A DMP is just a group of arrangements to pay organised by a DMP firm. If you aren’t in any financial trouble you don’t want an arrangement to pay.
The credit card is easy – assuming you don’t intend to use it! If the minimum payment is £24 (I just made that up, it depends what the interest rate on the card is), then set up a standing order to pay them £30 a month. paying a fixed amount every month is then very easy for you and it saves a fortune in interest. And it will all be helping your credit score. This calculator can show you how long it will take if you pay 25,30,35 a month https://www.capitalone.co.uk/support/repayment-calculator.jsf
The overdrafts can also be simple if you aren’t using either account. Just set up a standing order for more than the charges every month and the balance will drop. Alternatively, you could ask a bank if they could give you a loan to clear the overdraft and then repay that – depending what rate they would give you and what the overdraft fees are, this could be cheaper.
Holly says
Hi all is it possible to get a payment plan with a NatWest loan ?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You can get a payment arrangement with any creditor. The above article looks at when this is a good idea and how to do it.
Steven says
Sara,
After a sustantial loss of income and taking the realistic senario that things won’t improve for 12 months, I am facing the following:
£55,000 of debt (1 loan and all the rest cards)
£385 per month available to creditors after expendtures.
Home owner but no mortgage to pay.
Credit score of 400 but no markers (yet!)
I decided to approach each creditor directly rather than through an intermediary.
I have 90 days arrears on two of the credit card accounts. And I’ve been told at 180 days that unpaid arrears will be transferred to a debt purchaser. I have already begun a pro rata payment plan with these two. I am yet to agree on flexible payment plans with the others and they have all agreed to allow me any offer I choose to pay. All other cards are currently up to date.
I don’t know if I should be hung up on credit scores, but I was wondering if there is good reason to just default on the larger debt balances and get it over with, thereby starting that 6 year period as soon as possible? I guess what I’m asking is I’d like decent credit worthiness 5-6 years from now even if I’m still paying down balances.
I could possibly pay the outstanding arrears (£1000) before the 180 days is up I just don’t know if it’s worth doing, as cards have or soon will all be stopped and payments have been missed anyway.
Thank you.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I guess what I’m asking is I’d like decent credit worthiness 5-6 years from now even if I’m still paying down balances.
If you think it’s likely to take you that long to repay the debts (and 55k is a lot!) then usually the best things is to stop paying them all for a few months now to ensure they all get defaulted and drop off after 6 years. Not just the larger ones.
If your income is very secure in these difficult times, you could also look at an IVA.
Although another option is to default on everything and then go for settlement offers in a few years when they have all been sold to debt collectors.
What could you do to improve your situation – do you have a room you could rent out?
Or you could look at getting a mortgage if your house is worth a lot? you will have to move fast on that before your credit rating is wrecked.
Linda says
Hello Sarah I’m on u/c and my husband has lost his job because of Covid I’ve had 2 coronavirus payments holidays with my loan company and due to start making payments again in October which I cannot afford what are my options now I’m with 118118 loans would be grateful for any advice before I ring them thank you Linda
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You can ask 118 for a payment arrangement.
Do you have other debts as well? It’s best to get a plan for all of them, not just the ones you think are worst.
Do you have any priority debts – rent arrears? council tax? gas/electric?
Any benefit overpayments?
Also read https://debtcamel.co.uk/refunds-large-high-cost-loans/ and think if this 118 loan was always “unaffordable” for you – in which case complain about that.
Rachelt85 says
Hi,
I currently have an arrangement to pay with satsuma loans x2. It’s showing on my credit file as missed payments, should it show as partial or in a plan instead? Would this look better on my credit score?
Thank you
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Were these large loans? Dud you have any from Satsuma before?
Dan says
Hi Sara
I settled an account with Vanquis in June 2019. I was on payment arrangement so I have AR markers for about 9 months however I’ve since realised that I was actually meeting the minimum payment each month within the credit agreement before the arrangement to pay was applied which was £5 . Am I right in thinking that the AR markers should be removed as the minimum payment was being met ?
Thanks
D
Sara (Debt Camel) says
did they freeze interest?
Dan says
Hi
Yes they did , so I’m assuming they are justified in applying the AR markers ?
Many Thanks
D
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes, this was an arrangement to pay £x and have interest frozen.
mark says
Last year I requested a payment holiday on my Vanquis account due to a temporary change in finances. They put me on a instalment payment plan, which I wrongly assumed was a short term plan, as I had requested, as would be reviewed, as per the confirmation letter. When my circumstances returned to normal I contacted Vanquis to advise I could return my account to normal status. They advised that wasn’t possible. I currently have approx £3k outstanding on my account and they have set up a £10 per month payment plan, the whole time recording on my credit file as AP. This will take 30+ years to clear at this rate. I did a SARs as I wasn’t convinced this was corrected. It showed on my notes that my circumstances had changed and that I had to quit full time employment to become a full time carer for my daughter. I have not left my job, nor do I have a daughter. I believe I was incorrectly placed on somebody else instalment plan and as a result have suffered negative impacts on my credit report. Do I have a case to complain? I assume they will have a recording of the call and it will prove it wasn’t me, as I only ever communicate via writing with them. Advice appreciated.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
how long has this been going on for? did you request a payment holiday because of Covid-19?
what are the rest of your finances like?
mark says
It happened February last year so not because of Covid-19, but that meant it took longer than planned to get back to normal as a result of Covid (which I advised them). I’m on top of all my finances now. Still have CCs I am paying off but everything is up to date and within an affordable limit.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
if it wasn’t a covid-19 payment deferral, then it will affect your credit record. They have presumably frozen interest? Can you not just increase your payments and clear the balance a lot sooner because no interest is being added?
mark says
I appreciate that they have frozen interest and that can affect my credit record, however the payment plan they set me up on was one agreed with someone else with different circumstance to me, which have wrongly been applied to my account. They have made errors. I should never have been put on this long term plan with no way “redeem” my account. I wasn’t given the correct terms to the new plan as it didn’t relate to me. Yes, I can “just pay more” but I cannot reinstate my account to is regular status like I have in the past as I have been put on a long term payment plan. Paying back early at approx £150, which I was paying affordably before the circumstances change would still have me on an AP for 20 years and so I would gain no benefit from paying off earlier in terms of my credit file, may as well stick to the £10 per month for 300 years option.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Paying back early at approx £150, which I was paying affordably before the circumstances change would still have me on an AP for 20 years
Your balance is £36,000 ???
Mark says
Sorry bad maths on my part there. 20 months not years :-/ Would you believe I have a maths degree. It has does harm in the sense that the AP would revert back to regular payments once the temp measures have been removed where as now they will remain for a further 20months. In the past they never even put APs on my file as it was a temporary measure for 2 months. (Same as all other creditors).
Sara (Debt Camel) says
wouldn’t it be good to clear this debt in 20 months?
this was clearly not a very short term measure as you never got back in touch to say you wanted to resume normal payments, so you are going to have AP markers there for quite a while. Your credit score will not quickly recover if you return to paying interest and normal payments.
So to be clear. they have clearly cocked up, so you can complain and ask to go back to normal.
But it isn’t at all clear to me that you would gain by doing this.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
it is odd that they have clearly got the wrong info on your account. But has this actually done any harm? The arrangement would have shwed tempoaril;y on your credit record anyway.
HJL says
Would AP markers on credit file affect employment? Would employee background screening reveal these or be red flags for
Employer? Thx
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It is down to the employer. But I think that would be very unusual.
HJL says
Thx, worried about severity of APs and whether to disclose or not.
Would you recommend disclosing?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
What have you been asked about?
Is this for a job application or for your current job?
HJL says
It is for Job application and asks if I ever entered into a deed of arrangement, IVA or trustdeed for Scotland or other agreement in favor of a creditor? Not sure whether AP means other agreement in favour of a creditor or if AP is not as severe as the information they look for, Thx
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I think you can answer No to that. They are asking about formal agreements with a creditor, not an arrangement to pay which is temporary and informal. I understand this is worrying – I suggest you talk to National Debtline on 0808 808 4000 and see what they think.
Mark says
I would go back to normal markers on my credit file and they would be cleared 20months sooner than if they keep on the current AP. That is a clear benefit. I can still clear my debt in the same amount of time but the AP markers would be removed immediately rather rather at the end. I was never informed I’d get the AP markers and as I hadn’t in the past, when they had frozen interest, I had no reason to suspect they would again. I requested a temporary arrangement for which they would review (their words), they set me up on an AP based on someone else’s situation, that was never reviewed until I raised a complaint back in December (it has taken 3 months to get the SARs). I asked 6 months previous to that if I could return to my normal payments and they refused as I didn’t have the affordability but they did not check this and refused to acknowledge my new I&E, etc. I have actually had a payrise during all this as well as a tenant move in (tenant moving out suddenly was cause of temporary income loss, covid meant I couldn’t get someone else in, all of which they have been made aware possible recorded on the incorrect file.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
AP markers disappear 6 years after the settlement date of the debt, not 6 years after the last AP marker.
HJL says
Thanks for advice Sara
Dan says
Hi Sara,
Just reposting as advised.
So basically I have a loan that I requested to be defaulted in April 2021 and they backdated the default to 2018. On my credit file it shows D for all months up to April 2018 and for last 3 months shows A (arrangement to pay)
I am checking with credit karma.
I have a Credit card also defaulted in 2018 but all months show as D even though I am on a payment plan.
My worry is with the loan, they come up as an arrangement to pay now but when I click on the debt it shows defaulted. I don’t want it to be on my file for another 6 years.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest you have a look at your statutory report from TransUnion, see https://www.transunionstatreport.co.uk/.
that is the data Credit Karma is reporting on, but it is often easier to see what is going on with the statutory report than the “prettier” third party reports.
Dan says
Hello,
Thanks it shows as a default on the statutory report. I assume this is OK then?
I also raised an issue with transunion for a lender (drafty) who I have been making token payments for 3 years and they have not applied a default and they also mark months as paid which I have not. They think I am on a payment plan.
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So on the statutory report it still shows as Default each month?
There is no point in asking TransUnion to correct something – they will just ask Drafty who will say it is fine.
Have you looked at making an affordabilty complaint to Drafty? Use the standard payday loan template here https://debtcamel.co.uk/payday-loan-refunds/. If you winj that, they have to delete all negative marks from your credit record … if you lose, you can fall back on asking Drafty to add a default.
Dan says
Yes correct it says default on transunion.
Have made complaint was rejected because it was first credit line with them even though had maxed out credit everywhere.
When I contacted the lender, they are awful saying I was on a payment agreement and they won’t apply default and I have been making token payments
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Did you send Drafty complaint to the Ombudsman?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So as I said, TransUnion will not apply a default, they will just ask Drafty.
You can either take the complaint about Drafty to the Ombudsman or simply stop paying then for 6 months now – they will have to add a default then.
BUT have you talked to a debt adviser about your situation? You have had high cost credit, you are only making token token payments for years, I think some debt advice could be a holp. Token payments never clear debts and weven when they are off your credit records, they are still enforceable in court and will make it very difficult to get a mortgage. So it is good to look at your other options.
I suggest you phone National Debtline on 0808 808 4000.
Dan says
I am on a DMP for all my other creditors with defaults. Should clear in 10 years. Drafty are absolute cowboys. Have asked them several times to apply a default and they are saying no because they seem to think there is a payment plan. They have passed debt onto DCA not sold but making token payment till they apply default.
I will stop all payments for 6 months see what happens. I have no assets so not sure what other recovery options that can take.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
How large are the debts in your DMP? how much are you paying to the DMP a month?
Dan says
20k debts and pay £120 per month. Can increase the amount in the future once things settle.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
To point out the obvious, unless you are expecting to massively increase the payments you should probably be considering some form of insolvency. Your credit record is not your main issue here, it is the need for an effective debt solution.
Dans says
Yes I did, the ombudsman are a joke! I had 5 PDL, 3 maxed out credit cards a loan and applied for a drafty loan and they rejected my complaint.
To be honest they upheld the PDLs because I had lots of loans with each. I have lost faith in the UK regulators including FOS to apply any common sense.
Smith says
Hi, I had arrangement to pay on a credit card since 2016 as I was unable to work due to some personal circumstances. I managed to get back to work in early 2020 and managed to pay of the full balance by the end of 2020 and closed the account. I am in the process of applying for a mortgage and found a lender who is willing to lend based on my poor credit report and couple of defaults but set an objection due to Arrangement to pay on one of the credit cards. They are OK to consider defaults, Is there a way I could ask the credit card provider to remove the arrangement to pay or register a back dated default as AR when on for nearly 4 years
Sara (Debt Camel) says
See https://debtcamel.co.uk/debt-default-date/ – you can ask but it may not work and it may not be quick.
The problem is that you have very recently repaid this. Next year when it has been more than a year since your problem debts were settled it may be easier to get a mortgage.
Smith says
I’ve read your article and by the looks of it I am expecting the AR to stay on until end of 2026 whereas if a default was register in 2016 it could potentially fall off in 2022. I am desperate to move and I have bigger deposit. I thought defaults will somehow cause issues (which this lender is bot bother about as they are registered in 2017 and fits their over 36 months criteria), did not think that AR would be an issue.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
A lot of lenders don’t mind default if they are more than 3 years ago – but they also usually want these to have been settled for more than a year.
ARs are a real problem – lenders like to imply that are less bad than defaults, but they are still bad and they stay on your credit record for much longer than defaults. This suits lenders as they can sell your debt to a debt collector for more if it is “undefaulted” as the debt collector then knows you will be worried about your credit record for longer :(
Smith says
Thank you for your comments Sara
The credit file is marked as settled in Dec 2020 after the last payment, credit file updated in Jan 2021. So Am I right in thinking it will be OK with some lenders after Dec 2021? I am going to try and get in touch the credit card provider to so see if they can sort something
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It may be. 3 years since the problem started & 1 years since it has been resolved was a rule of thumb used by many lenders before the pandemic. Since then of course lenders have just wanted more deposits from anyone who doesn’t have clean credit record. It’s hard to guess what the mortgage market will be like in 6 months from now.
J says
Hi
Apologies if this has been answered anywhere. I had some missed payment markers for 3 months from Satsuma back in 2019 and for those 3 months I was on an arrangement to pay. I actually paid off the loan in the 4th month but needless to say they added missed/late payment markers to my credit file. I have since been in touch with them and they explained they will remove the missed/late payment markers and add the arrangement to pay marker instead. Is this worse? Which is better for my score? And will it impact my score today seeing as this was nearly 2 years ago.. any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks
J
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I don’t think it will make a lot of difference. Remember that no lenders ever actually use the credit score that you see, they make their own assessment based on the detail information.
BUT how large was this Satsuma loan? Did you have other Satsuma loans before? Have you looked at making a claim to the Provident Scheme, see https://debtcamel.co.uk/provident-scheme-claim-refund/? If you can win a claim all negative marks will be removed – in pratice they may just delete the whole record.
J says
Hi Sara,
Thank you. I have submitted a claim for the provident scheme. Hopefully they remove the loan.
J
Jonjo says
Very interesting. I don’t suppose it’s possible to know which is more damaging to a credit file out of an ‘arrangement to pay’ marker or a ‘missed payment’ marker of 3? I’m guessing it depends on each lender’s own criteria? I’ve been contesting late payment markers with a couple of my old creditors and one of them has said they’d be happy to change it to an ‘arrangement to pay’ marker, but I can’t seem to find out if that would be good news or bad news for my credit file. Any insight appreciated!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
That depends…
did you make any payments? was there an arrangement to pay?
Have you now repaid the arrears and gone back to normal payments?
HAs the whole debt been settled? If not how long do you think it will take?
Jonjo says
Thanks for such a quick response! Above and beyond the call of duty. I made payments every month through StepChange, often just £6 less than the contractual minimum. I wish with hindsight I’d intervened with StepChange about that. I settled the remainder of the debt in full last September. Again, I probably could have negotiated to have improved my file at the same time if I’d been savvy enough. Do you think changing it to an AP is better than the six consecutive ‘3’s’ or is it much of a muchness? Thanks for your insight.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Thanks for such a quick response! Above and beyond the call of duty.
thanks but it is random – you just got lucky :)
If you had a StepChange DMP, does that mean you had other problem debts with payment arrangements and defaults showing?
Jonjo says
Ha! Well, I’m certainly grateful I caught you at the right time.
I don’t have any defaults on the account (I did have one with another creditor once but they agreed to wipe it on the basis of irresponsible lending). So, the six consecutive ‘3’s are the worst thing on there along with an ‘AP’ recorded for a Loans2Go account which I’m hopeful they’ll agree to delete completely following a complaint. There are some closed payday loan accounts which will be removed by April thanks to advice I read on another of your pages, but I always paid those on time so it’s mainly the embarrassment of them being on there which is a problem for me.
The background, really, is that my circumstances today are thankfully very much happier than they were a few years ago and I’m trying to ‘polish up’ my file however I can to keep my life moving forward. It’s just a bit of a minefield and when this particular creditor offered to swap the markers they used I had no idea if it would be for good or for bad, especially given we may apply for a mortgage in the coming months. Thanks again!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So send the L2G complaint to the Ombudsman if they will not agree to this.
I am afraid I have no idea whether a mortgage lender would prefer 6 APs or 6 3s. You could ask a broker but they may be equally vague.
Rob says
Hi,
Could I get some thoughts on my situation?
I have attempted to set up payment arrangements with 6 creditors – five have accepted a token £1 payment for the time being with either 3 month updates or ongoing as my finances improve.
Drafty though have declined and state that because of my financial situation – negative personal disposable income. I gave the same info to the other five with the additional info that my incredibly generous partner who I live with is helping me financially, hence being able to offer £1 a month.
Drafty refused to factor this in and stated that the options are either pay the debt or they hand the account to a debt collection agency.
This seems a bit harsh considering the flexibility of other lenders. Is there anything I can do? I’m going to pay Drafty £1 a month anyway just so it’s on record that I’m making a good will gesture while my finances improve.
Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Cheers!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest you don’t pay them for a couple of months (this may involve cancelling a direct debit or a continuous payment authority over your debit card?) and let them send the debt to a debt collector. They won’t be more unpleasant to deal with than Drafty!
Have your finances suddenly got worse and do you expect them to get better in a few months?
Can you say what your total debt to other lenders is and how much you owe Drafty?
Also have a lot of your problems been caused by high cost credit such as Drafty…
Read https://debtcamel.co.uk/payday-loan-refunds/ and think about sending Drafty an affordability complaint. This could get your balance reduced or even wiped and refund depending on how long you have been using their very expensive credit.
And if your other debts are credit cards when the lenders have increased your limit too high, read https://debtcamel.co.uk/refunds-catalogue-credit-card/ and think about complaining to them too!
Rob says
“Have your finances suddenly got worse and do you expect them to get better in a few months?”
From about Last September to about February this year was rock bottom – I basically took on the debts thinking things would be a fine, short term arrangement and then things tanked. But am back working and seeing an increase in income for sure. Aiming for better each month.
“Can you say what your total debt to other lenders is and how much you owe Drafty? ”
Total debts to the other lenders is approx £4500. Drafty is £960.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
ok, but Drafty could see your bank account, couldn’t they? So they should have known that you could not manage to repay this… I would definitely send them a complaint.
Rob says
Oh, I see what you mean. I never thought of that – yes, I guess they could see what was in my bank account.