Man Found Guilty of Fraud

A man was found guilty yesterday of fraud and theft after he stole from his landlord. Michael Wilds stole from Paul Hardiment by using his Barclays bank card and spending more than £10,000.

After an intense investigation it transpires Barclays bank had been sending Mr Hardiment's card to the property he let to Mr Wilds, who in turn committed serious fraud. Over £10,000 had been spend by Michael Wilds before Paul Hardiment became aware his tenant was stealing from him. Barclays sent their statement to Paul at which point he queried the balance.

Mr Wilds from York used the credit card to finance his expensive lifestyle and pay off gas debts. Michael Wilds solicitor, Nicholas Barker, said: “This did not fund any high living”, however, the prosecutor stressed he drove a jaguar and spent the money on new tyres for his girlfriends Audi TT.

Wild pleaded guilty to fraud and theft and received a sentence of up to four months imprisonment, suspended for two years, and ordered to carry out 150 hours unpaid work.

Student debt: We Need An Education

Students across the UK are facing a massive uphill struggle with their debts begining to spiral out of control due to student fees. An independent body has stated they believe Universities will have to lower their fees or risk alienating students.

Students in debt



Typically students leave University owing on average £35,000 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. This is a combination of tuition fees, student loans and personal debt.

Student loan debt has one of the lowest interest repayments available but the interest can, and will, continue to grow

Changing the mindset

The students of today and the experts of tomorrow. It's fair they should pay for their education however Government ministers seem to forget they are doing so to help pay increased taxes and contribute to the economy.

The supply and demand issue surrounding Universities has pushed up the prices and meant the UK Government can take a backseat role in the future of students. By removing courses such as 'Seminar on Lady Gaga', as entertaining & educational as I'm sure it is, we can reduce the number of people at University.

The Government need to take a more active role in the future of students to reduce their level of debt. Let's start by giving everyone the chance to go to University - but only if it's necessary!

What is a Payday Loan?

What is a Payday Loan?

A Payday loan is short term lending with high interest rate (up to 5,000% APR). This type of lending has become popular for people who can't make it to the end of the month with their wages and as such need additional finances.

An example of a Payday loan is, John goes to his local Payday loan company and asks to borrow £200 for 1 week. John will then at the end of the week repay £250 back to his Payday loan company.

What are the benefits of a Payday Loan

• It can provide a short term release during a tough financial period
• All you need is a UK bank account and a regular income to get a Payday loan
• Usually there are no credit checks
• The money is available quickly and can often be in your account within 24 hours.

What are the disadvantages of a Payday Loan?

• If you miss your payment the interest and charges can be huge
• The Payday loan company will pressure you to get their money back.
• If you are self employed the checks will be larger and more in-depth than for anybody else
• Like all loans and debt, if you fail to repay the money a Payday loan company can get a charge for payment order and then take money directly from your wages

Debt Help

If you have a debt problem contact a debt advice charity for help. If you have a financial problem at the end of the month then we advise you to look at a budget plan which can help you manage your finances better and avoid the need to use a Payday Loan company.

Free Debt Advice Tips

Budget Today!

It may seem like the most simple thing to do but setting a budget and sticking to it can be the best thing for maintaining your finances.

Spending your money as you go can mean at the end of the month you are short on cash. This is how people end up taking Payday loans and getting into more debt problems. By setting your budget you allow yourself a certain amount of money each day / week and this will help your survive until the end of the month.

You must ensure you meet your essential bills like rent/ mortgage, food, council tax, gas / electricity etc before repaying the rest of your debts. A budget can help you realise how much money you have available to pay towards debts each month.

Keep a record of your budgets so you can review this every 6 months.

"Look after the pennies"

When finances get tight and times get tough you need to look after the pennies, which could mean cutting back on luxury items.

Some luxury items can include gym membership (exercise at home / at the park), Sky TV, shop at ASDA not Marks and Spencers etc.

Change how you see credit

Credit card companies want you to miss payments and receive charges and interest so they can make profits. If you can't afford to repay it, don't use it. If you have debt problems and you need to use credit to survive then a debt solution would be required.

If credit cards are used carefully then you can benefit from free offers, improve your credit rating or use your credit card for the insurance for large purchases.

Tell someone

One of the reasons people struggle with debt is because they don't share the burden they feel. As such this can be detrimental to their health. Share your problems with friends / family or work colleagues - they can support you during a difficult time.

Inform your creditors

Tell your creditors about the tough time you're experiencing. It's important to keep your creditors informed of the debt problems you have, otherwise they may think you are refusing to communicate leading them to take severe action. Sometimes your creditors can work with you and help set up a payment plan.

Get debt advice

Speak to a registered charity for debt advice. There are a number of charities who can help you if you need their support - get in touch and they can give you qualified debt advice.

Tips for People in Debt

There are 5 top tips we have for people in debt trying to become debt free, which are;

1. Face your debt head-on
2. Ask for help from a debt charity
3. Write an income and expenditure - be honest!
4. Don't make any hasty decision and speak to lots of people 
5. When you take your head out the sand, move forward and continue

A story from another blog which we think could be useful for people in debt is below. It's quiet an inspirational story.

This story is taken from a blog called astoryofdebt.com 

When I first started paying off my debt, I was looking at a balance of more than $20,000 and thinking, why didn’t I do this earlier?

I thought that for two reasons.  First, it turned out that doing something about my debt was so much easier than just stressing about it.  I cannot say how miserable it was to feel crushed by the weight of not just all the money I owed, but the guilt over having put myself in that position.  Second, if I had started earlier, then I would be further along, of course!

I took the only option available to me and started at the beginning.

I never despaired, but it was not easy. I sometimes experienced the never-tweeted-about, never-blogged-about “ZOMG. I work more than anyone. I never get a break. My life is so hard. No one understands” thoughts, but I always had enough perspective to remember I was doing this for myself.  I was giving up my free time to make my own life better.  Selfish, really, but the good kind of selfish, because how much can you help anyone out when you’re limited by debt?

What I’m saying is that it’s worth it.  Worth it to do whatever you have to do to get your own life in order. And worth it to sacrifice a little so that you can live better later.  Not when you retire, but sooner than you might expect.

But, as cool as it is to be out of credit card debt, the year I spent working toward it was pretty amazing too.  I gave up stuff, and stuff is great, but it’s probably the easiest thing to give up. This year, I was just as happy and had just as much fun as years previous.  I kept working toward my academic and career goals.  I wrote a lot.  I met amazing people.  I made plans, imaginary and real.  I remained sane.  And all with the extra bonus of feeling good about what I was accomplishing in paying off my debt.

If I gave up too much, then I would regret it now, but instead I thank everything that I was smart enough to just get started already.

Free Debt Management Plans Only!

We can't stress this enough and UK Debt Helper will be giving you honest information about Debt Management Plans. For profit debt management companies charge thousands of pounds in fee's directly out of their vulnerable clients.

If you think a debt management plan is the best advice for you then always speak to a not for profit charity. All for profit companies are only in it for themselves looking to make money. They may have excellent customer service but actually the truth is your debt management plan will last longer with a for profit company.

Pricing

Charities get paid for administering your debt management plan but they get their money from the creditors at the end. So you would repay 100% of the money you borrowed (potentially including interest and charges) and they you will be debt free.

To become debt free with a for profit company you need to pay back all of your debt plus their fee. The average fee for a debt management company is the first 2-3 months payments as setup costs then between 15%-40% of your month contributions. This means your debt problem lasts extra long for no apparent reason.

UK Debt Helper believes all for profit debt management companies are not competitive in the current market and as a result some are using sneaky, deceitful tactics to trap customers.

AVOID FOR PROFIT DEBT MANAGEMENT COMPANIES

Man in Debt Goes to Extreme Measures: Alternative Debt Advice

Ross Humphries, a man with severe debt problems is facing a three year jail term for agreeing to be a courier of 45 Kilograms of cannabis resin which was worth around £280,000. Mr Humphries received a fee of £250 for his services.

The class B drug was found in Mr Humphries car when he was stopped by police on the M1 in May 2011.

Mr Humphries was a man described as a 'hard-working family man who fell on hard times and got into debt'.


What to do in debt?

It's understandable people in debt may feel stressed and panicked about their debt problems however committing crimes to survive is not a sustainable way solution to debt.

There are numerous debt solutions which people can utilise to resolve their debt problem. These solutions include general money advice, debt management plan, refinance, full and final settlement, IVA, Trust Deed or potentially Bankruptcy.