Much more than debt, IVA and personal finance from ClearDebt.

ClearDebt donates Christmas gifts to children’s charity

by Jacqueline Cohen on December 28th, 2011

The teams at ClearDebt and Abacus took a different approach to this year’s office Secret Santa, read on to find out more!

If where you work is anything like where I work, each Christmas, we all take part in “Secret Santa”. We pick a name out of a hat and buy something for that person – normally a mug, some soap or maybe a hat and gloves. Creative, I know…

But this year, we’ve been working with Rainbow Trust – a charity which offers support to terminally ill children and their families. Bearing in mind the work they do and the people they help, we decided to organise a “Secret Santa” campaign that will actually make a difference to someone – to be exact, 196 someones.

The gifts ClearDebt and Abacus donated to Rainbow Trust charity

196 gifts from ClearDebt and Abacus

This year, each member of our staff contributed to a fund which raised a total of £400. Rainbow Trust provided us with a list of the age and gender of 196 children who they support in the Greater Manchester area – some of whom are terminally ill and their siblings.

From the details provided, we worked with Tesco Altrincham to source the first 100 gifts; a huge thanks goes out to them and their Community Champion, Lisa. A selected member of the Tesco team designated to help worthy causes in the local area.

We then scoured the local shops in Altrincham for the remaining 96 gifts which were wrapped and labelled for each age and gender, and collected by the Rainbow Trust representatives.

Not only have we provided the gifts for these children but we also agreed to cover the cost of the postage.

It’s at this time of year that I think it’s important to evaluate our contribution to other people’s lives – what we do with our life outside of our everyday routine which makes a difference to others. I’m proud to be a part of this campaign which enables every member of staff at ClearDebt, Abacus and ClearCash to be proud of taking a few coins from their wallets to think of others and help make a difference.

On Christmas morning, families across Greater Manchester saw gifts for their children which arrived without condition or cost. This year, we have in true essence become “Secret Santas” to the children of Rainbow Trust. If you don’t know much about the work of Rainbow Trust, why not tune into the Rainbow Trust Youtube Channel to understand why we chose to get involved.

Posted in Inside ClearDebt | 1 Comment »

A “Thank You” from a ClearDebt IVA client

by David Howard on December 22nd, 2011

I received the following letter this week from a client who completed his IVA and I wanted to share his kind words with you all.

No two IVAs are the same and as a Personal Insolvency Advisor it’s part of my job to deal with the changing financial circumstances which can occur in a person’s life throughout the duration of their IVA.

Dear David,

I am writing to thank you and all concerned with me over the last few years, before I rang your company I was about as low as I could get. On talking with you and the others I came to find that there were people who not only cared, but could help. The service and advice you gave me and the help went beyond what I thought possible, you got me through the last few years.

If I had to give points out of 10 it would be 12.

In the case of this client, he suffered an accident at work which resulted in him losing his job. In light of these changes, we first advised him to find out what benefits he was entitled to receive. We then reviewed his income and expenditure and at this stage, it was clear he could no longer afford to make his IVA payments.
As there was little prospect of his financial situation improving, we submitted a proposal to his creditors asking them to consider the contributions paid to date as a full and final settlement of his IVA. This proposal was agreed by creditors and his IVA was completed early.

You can read more testimonials from our IVA clients here: What people say about ClearDebt and if you would like to leave a review of the service you have received, you can find links to review us online here: Review ClearDebt.

Posted in IVA | 1 Comment »

Coping with the worry and cost of Christmas

by Jacqueline Cohen on December 19th, 2011

Whilst families across the country un-wrap gifts on 25th December, I can’t help but wonder how many people will be worrying about the bills to arrive the first week of January.

No matter how hard you budget, Christmas shopping bills add up – and for those who pay on plastic, it’s only natural, whilst enjoying some quality family time over the holidays, for your mind to drift off and let panic set in about the payment demands which will follow in the New Year.

This year we have spent a great deal of time learning about the emotional toll debt can take on someone – so much so, that sometimes, the bills and chasing calls can get too much.

If you are feeling the weight of this burden, we are here to talk to you. They’ll be no pressure and no tactics. That’s not what we’re about. We’ll simply go through the maths with you and talk through the options available – making sure you know you’re not alone and there is help out there for you.

We are closed for the holidays from 1pm on 23rd December but will re-open on 28th, 29th and 30th December. We will be closed on 31st December – 2nd January but we will be open as normal again from Tuesday 3rd January.

You can contact us on 0800 019 2095 or on 0161 968 2030 from a mobile.

If you’re struggling emotionally, you might want to speak to someone who is professionally trained to help you cope with this pressure. Sometimes, just talking things through can help you see things clearly and feel more supported. Below are some organisations which are able to help throughout the Christmas period:

Samaritans: 08457 90 90 90

Mind: 0300 123 3393

Posted in Personal Debt | No Comments »

Festive Fun Ideas for Christmas Holidays

by Nazma Noor on December 9th, 2011

Stuck for activities that won’t break the bank this Christmas? I’ve put together some tips to help you find the best free and affordable events to keep you entertained this December.

Christmas is expensive enough with all the gift buying (read our Christmas Shopping tips here), but when you factor in activities and entertainment over the festive season; the costs just keep getting higher and higher. However, if you plan ahead and keep an eye out for special events, you could save yourself a lot of time and money! Here are my tips for seeking out the activities to suit your budget.

Start with your local council website

Your local council website should serve as a resource of useful information – including Christmas events. You will find links to local libraries and art galleries and be able to see what events they’re hosting over the Christmas period. If you’re not sure of the web address for your local council, you can do a search via this link on the direct.gov.uk website.

Shopping Centres aren’t all about shopping

The thought of visiting a shopping centre in the run up to Christmas might fill you with dread, but if you can find yourself a parking space and battle through all the shoppers you might find that there’s some free fun to be had! For example, local to me, Manchester’s Trafford Centre has some great free craft workshops on.
The best way to find out about any upcoming events is to sign up to the shopping centre’s email list or connect with them using social media by liking them on Facebook or following them on Twitter. This way you’ll be the first to know what’s happening and when.

Sign up for meal-deals direct to your inbox

As well as keeping your children entertained, you might also need to think about entertaining friends or family who have come to visit during the festive period. A great way to save on eating out is to sign up to discount websites such as Livingsocial and Groupon. These websites are free to join up to and will send you regular emails with restaurants offers so that your meals out don’t cost the earth.

You do need to be cautious though. Before buying a meal deal, check when the offer is valid from and which days of the week you can use it as most have restrictions on dates and times. It’s also worth checking the prices for any extra drinks or side orders as these can often make you meal suddenly seem not so reasonable.
Jacqueline Cohen, Marketing Manager at ClearDebt is a big fan of these sites, she explains,

After having a baby three years ago, we really cut back in my household and the need for nappies, childcare and more food in the house, far outweighed the opportunity to go out for dinner. With sites like Groupon, Living Social, Frugaloo and KGB, we now go out for dinner quite often – all for £25 or less – for the two of us! These sites are also great for Christmas and Birthday gifts so when the moneybox is running a little low in January, these sites will certainly lend a helping hand.

Plan a perfect night in

Celebrating the festive season doesn’t have to mean going out all the time. Personally when the winter weather kicks in I much prefer an evening in all snug and warm. This time of year there are always plenty of films to watch on TV, so pick one that you like and start planning a “movie night” around it. If movies on your TV at home just don’t compare to the cinema, there’s plenty of other fun you can have at home. Why not dig out your old board games and get some healthy competition going? Or if you’re more into video games set up a tournament between your friends.

What are your plans for the Christmas break?

We’d love to know how you’ll be spending the Christmas break, so tell us your plans and feel free to share any affordable events and activities you’ve come across.

Posted in Managing Your Money | 1 Comment »

Pay Day loans. A trap for the unwary – or an answer to big bank charges?

by Andrew_F_Smith on December 7th, 2011

There is lots of coverage around today about just how horrid payday loans are.

They can be. But it’s not the whole story. They can also be a useful tool for overcoming the horrendous costs associated with bank current account un-arranged overdraft fees and charges. Providing you stay in control.

The BBC published this story, which I thought was suprisingly partial. I added a comment, (it’s not published it yet) and thought I would share it here too:

This story is, I think, a little simplistic.

Payday loans and high cost credit does contribute to unmanageable debt. But there are a number of important “buts”.

First, payday loans and other sources of high cost credit are often the only sources of credit available to people at the bottom of the financial heap. Mainstream banks won’t lend to them at mainstream rates. It’s not uncommon for 30% of the loans in these categories to fail – so it’s not surprising the interest rates are high. Organisations like Joseph Rowntree Foundation have done research that shows non-commercial organisations (like credit unions) would not be able to charge less.

Then, the Radio 4 “Today” report on this spoke to a person who’d got into trouble with payday loans. Why? because she could get ONLY payday loans because she had a bad credit history: I wonder whether Tim Harford would perceive a causal relationship in this?

The R3 research, I think, overlooks something rather obvious: That a payday loan, despite the outrageous interest rates, can be far, far cheaper than an un-arranged overdraft from a bank. If one avoids the other, then that can be a huge benefit to budgeting.

Of course if you are one of the relatively few who “shop until you drop” payday lending can feed the habit and make it horrendously expensive. And, if you are a zombie debtor, who is unable to deal with more than interest payments, then payday loans are a form of life-support you don’t need: You should be dealing with your debt instead.

Tags: payday loan, payday loans
Posted in Personal Debt | No Comments »