BT have announced the cost of their call prices will be increased for the second time this year, making customer’s debt problems even harder to shift.
The telecomms company have now made making calls over 30 per cent more expensive than they were six months ago, after they put up prices again. They have now risen by 34 per cent and stand at 5.25p per minute, compared to 3.91p at the beginning of the year.
Debt advice organisations have slammed the timing and amount of the increases.
Ivan Cooper, Chairman at the UK’s leading debt management company Chiltern, said: “To raise call prices in these troubled economic times is hard to bear, especially for our customers who are already struggling with their debt problems.
“This price rise means that living costs will continue to reduce the amount of disposable income available to repay debts, meaning it will take longer for people to get out of debt.”
If you are finding it hard to repay debts or that your outstanding unsecured balances are making paying bills increasingly difficult, you could benefit from seeking impartial debt advice.
Debt help firms can recommend a number of budgeting techniques that can alleviate finances, or suggest a professional debt help solution if necessary.
Professional debt help solutions include programmes such as a debt management plan (DMP), Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) or Trust Deed.
These work by gathering multiple unsecured balances into a single monthly payment, and are often recommended following impartial debt advice from a professional.
Finances are made simpler and more affordable on a debt management plan by rescheduling debt payments over a longer period of time. The monthly payment is then distributed to creditors on your behalf, and payments are negotiated to try and reduce or freeze interest and charges.
An IVA is similar to a DMP in that finances are made simpler by combining multiple unsecured balances (overdrafts, personal loans, store cards and credit card debts) into a single monthly payment. However, an IVA is repaid over a fixed period of time. This is usually over five years. An IVA also involves the services of a qualified Insolvency Practitioner, as a legally binding agreement is drafted between you and the people you owe money to. This protects you from creditors changing their payment demands.
Trust Deeds work in a similar way, but are typically repaid over three years. They are also only available for people living in Scotland.
All of these debt management solutions can be provided by a reputable provider, like The Debt People, Hamilton Locke and Chiltern. They will handle all negotiations and will deal with all creditor contact – so payment demand letters and calls from creditors should stop.
For immediate debt advice from a reputable debt help provider, please call the number at the top of this page.
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