Looking for a Trust Deed Specialist Forum in an online world where advice is offered freely can be overwhelming and often contradictory.
Similar to whenever we feel under the weather, where it’s easy to consult with Google and self-diagnose ourselves with a critical illness, when in fact all we have is a common cold.
The same principle applies to those searching for a Trust Deed Specialist Forum, or any other Debt Advice Forum for that matter.
Unfortunately, it’s all too easy to find yourself in debt and you’re not alone. Often, it’s tempting to bury your head in the sand and hope your problems will go away – but debt isn’t a problem you can just ignore, with interest charges stacking up, the longer you do, the worse your financial situation will get.
For people struggling with debt in Scotland, several debt solutions could allow you to repay what you owe and potentially write off all, or part of your unaffordable debt.
But for true specialist Trust Deed advice, the first step Trust Deed Scotland recommends is to talk to an experienced debt adviser who can talk through all available Scottish debt solutions with you.
One of the options available to residents of Scotland is a legal agreement called a Trust Deed.
What is a Trust Deed?
Many people find themselves with unaffordable debt and do not necessarily know the types of solutions open to them. Therefore, the question of What is a Trust Deed? is fairly common among those in the research phase of their debt help journey.
A Scottish Trust Deed is a voluntary legal agreement between you and the companies you owe money to.
When you enter into a Trust Deed, your total debts are all grouped together and a Licensed Insolvency Practitioner takes on the role of a trustee.
By grouping all of your debts together your trustee will help you to find an amount you can realistically, afford to pay towards your debts. This will become one monthly payment replacing all of your existing payments. Because this amount is based on what you can reasonably afford it is usually significantly lower than your previous combined payments.
You’ll make this payment once a month, for 48-60 months depending on circumstances months. At the end of this time, any remaining, qualifying, unsecured debts will be written off. Legally, your creditors can no longer pursue you for the remaining amount.
Almost all unsecured debts are eligible to be included in a Trust Deed, such as credit and store cards, unsecured loans including payday loans, overdrafts, old council tax arrears and old utility bills from a previous address, catalogues and old HMRC debts.
Advantages of a Trust Deed
- Your debt becomes manageable – You will only make one monthly payment to your Trust Deed rather than several payments to several companies. This monthly amount will be based on what you can realistically afford and is therefore usually, significantly lower. You can agree on a regular date to repay the money you owe, for a time that suits you best – after payday for example.
- No further action – If the majority of your creditors don’t object to the Trust Deed terms it will become ‘protected’ meaning as long as you stick to the agreed terms they can’t legally take actions such as arresting your wages, or bank account to recover money. You can protect your house and car.
- No direct contact from your creditors – The licenced Insolvency Practitioner will take on the role of trustee, who is there to help you to repay your debts.As long as you make the reduced monthly payment, with Protected Trust Deeds your creditors can no longer call you up, email you or contact you directly in any way.
- Your future interest charges can be frozen – After signing a Trust Deed, you’ll be paying back the debt you already owe but not racking up any more debts as you go.
- Debt written off – At the end of your Trust Deed period, any remaining qualifying, unsecured debts will be written off. Legally, your creditors can no longer pursue you for the remaining amount.
Are there any disadvantages to Trust Deeds?
Before considering a Trust Deed, there are some things to be aware of:
- You must be able to make the agreed monthly payments towards your debts unless your circumstances change. If they do you need to inform your trustee immediately.
- If you gain any new money or assets such as tax rebates or inheritance during your Trust Deed period your trustee can claim them towards your debts.
- A Trust Deed will negatively impact your credit rating for 6 years from the date you start one, making it more difficult to obtain credit such as a mortgage.
- Usually, you can’t be a director of a limited company. If you are self-employed you may have to appoint a new director or sell your business.
Are there Trust Deed alternatives?
Yes, you can pursue other forms of debt management in Scotland. The Debt Arrangement Scheme also allows to get your payments down to an affordable level and uses formal legislation, the same way a Trust Deed does.
When you request Scottish debt help from a reputable firm, they would go through your details and advise you of the pros and cons of all solutions, but more important to you; how they would affect you based on your own circumstances.
Always be careful that a company isn’t trying to force you into a solution. If in doubt, it doesn’t hurt to ask around and get advice from multiple firms who are regulated by UK regulatory bodies. It doesn’t harm you to look at the number of specialist Trust Deed forums online, or MoneyHelper – which an independent service set up to help people manage their money.
Is a Trust Deed right for me?
If you are thinking of setting up a Trust Deed you should seek advice first, remember you should never pay for this advice, we offer confidential, experienced advice.
You should also consider whether you have enough disposable income to afford the monthly repayments. If you’re not sure, it’s something we can help you with.
A Trust Deed could be a good option if you:
- Have unsecured debts of £5,000 or more
- Have enough income left after paying your bills each month to make a contribution towards your debts
You may need to consider a different route if you:
- Have no disposable income to put towards your debts and no assets
- Have debts that don’t exceed £5,000
- Have enough disposable income to pay off your debts before 4 years
For more information see How does a Trust Deed work or have a look at our FAQ question – Is a Trust Deed right for me?
Also, as mentioned above, common alternatives to a Trust Deed is known as the Debt Arrangement Scheme (DAS) and Sequestration, Scotland’s equivalent to bankruptcy.
How can we help you?
From our feedback, we know people often feel too embarrassed to take that first step and talk about their debt. There’s no need to feel embarrassed and struggle alone.
Watch our videos below and see how we can help you.
Trust Deed Specialist Forum
At Trust Deed Scotland, we’re the leading Scottish debt advice company in the debt relief category of TrustPilot.
We offer non-judgemental and 100% confidential advice to people living in Scotland and struggling with debt. For more than a decade, we’ve helped over 30,000 people.
Don’t just take our word for it check out our Trustpilot reviews where we currently have a rating of 5/5. Thousands of the people we have helped left us a positive Trust Deed review.
If you think you may not qualify for a Trust Deed, we can talk you through the other options available to you. We will always give you advice suited to you, with your best interests at heart. It is our mission to help you get out of debt rather than sell you a solution.
If you want to start the journey to a brighter future, or just want a friendly chat and some advice give our experienced team of debt advisers a call. Or, you can try our Trust Deed Wizard tool to find out if you’re eligible.
Whilst not a Trust Deed Forum, our Trust Deed Scotland WhatsApp service can be used to quickly find an answer to your question.