What's the first step? Take credit card debt help and seek advice from a professional

Most importantly, don’t bury your head in the sand! Ideally, seek some debt management free advice quickly. The longer you leave it the worse it will get.

Take a deep breath, and collect all the statements together so you can see where you are. If you feel up to tackling the problem on your own, then you can contact the credit card companies yourself, and explain that you are having difficulties meeting the minimum repayments. You will find they may offer you credit card debt help by reducing your minimum repayments if you contact them as soon as you realise you have a problem, rather than later.

Alternatively, if you feel that you just can’t face it, find a good debt management company who can set up a debt management program  for you. They will liaise with your creditors on your behalf, and negotiate reduced minimum payments for you. In addition, you also have the option to contact non-profit making professional debt councillors, who provide debt management free advice, such as the Citizens Advice Bureau, or the CCCS , who will assess your situation and help you plan a strategy to get you back on the right track.

Credit debt help

What can I do with credit card debt?

Credit cards are one of the biggest contributors to personal debt in the UK. Thousands of people look for credit debt help to manage their credit card problems every day in the UK, so don’t feel embarrassed, you’re not alone.

Credit card companies charge crippling rates of interest, which really start to hurt as the balances get bigger. Soon you realise you are struggling to meet the minimum repayments. So you take out more credit cards to ease the pressure. Obtaining new cards is so easy, and you breathe a sigh of relief as you relax and take your eye off the balances.

Gradually the balances on the new cards also increase. Before you know it, you have several credit cards, all with big balances. The debts increase and the interest accumulates meaning that the minimum payments are not even covering the interest.  You then realise you have no hope of paying them off. So what do you do?

Deciding the level of repayments - Get debt management free advice

When working out how much you can afford to pay your creditors, debts such as your mortgage, water, gas, electricity, food, school transport and school meals etc are necessities that should be given priority. Only once you have taken account of these regular payments, can you then look realistically at how much you can afford to pay to your creditors every month.

You must contact the creditor and attempt to negotiate reduced repayments. If you don’t seek credit card debt help in this way, or you do, but the creditor refuses to be flexible and continues to insist that the debt is repaid immediately, you may receive a warrant of execution from the courts. If this happens the creditor can instruct bailiffs to take property from your home in lieu of the debt.

If you receive a warrant like this, you can apply to the court to have the warrant suspended. However it is also wise to seek advice from a professional debt help management adviser immediately. You are not legally bound to let Bailiffs into your home, however if they enter through an unlocked door or open window, they are not acting illegally. They are then able to take items from your home, but they are not allowed to take necessities such as clothing, furniture, bedding or household goods. The items which they take will be sold at auction to raise money to repay your debt.

Be careful!

Always read all the small print very carefully before signing any new credit agreement. Taking on further loans to pay off debts should be avoided if at all possible, as interest charges will normally be high, and the debts are often secured against your home. This means that if you found you could not repay the loan, or you were late paying, you could be forced into bankruptcy and lose your house. Bankruptcy is a very big step and it should not be taken lightly. Contact a debt help management company as soon as you know you are in difficulty.

What are the options? Seek credit debt help!

There are several ways in which you can seek credit debt help, and deal with debt problems, and it is much better to face the situation head on before Bailiffs arrive on your doorstep. If you feel up to negotiating with your creditors yourself, you can arrange a direct repayment plan with the lender, by informing them that you need credit card debt help. Alternatively if you feel you cannot face that as an option, choose a debt help management company to arrange a debt management program for you, especially if you have equity in your house that you want to protect. An IVA (Individual Voluntary Arrangement) is another option. Many companies will give you debt management free advice and help.

Before doing anything at all, we would always advise anyone to get proper credit debt help from a debt specialist. This is vital to plan a safe route through the financial minefield before you. Making the wrong choice potentially has huge implications, such as the security of your home for example, or the chances of you being able to get credit again, at some point in the future.