Sheryl from Middlesbrough contacted Five Lamps to apply for a low cost personal loan and it was during the application process that it became apparent she had a number of serious financial issues.
Her case was passed to John Hird Five Lamps’ Senior Loans Officer who arranged to meet Sheryl and discuss her finances and to also look at all of her available options to resolve her problems. The issues related to previous creditors and for 2 outstanding water bills. Sheryl’s main concern was with the water company who were sending letters and threatening legal action if the matter was not resolved promptly.
After looking at Sheryl’s income and her current commitments, John contacted the two creditors and agreed reduced monthly payments on both accounts which were subsequently accepted.
The problem with the water company was not as straightforward, as they were preparing to put court proceedings in place. John contacted Northumbria Water and arranged an affordable monthly payment to pay this year’s bill with a smaller payment to reduce the outstanding arrears. Sheryl was still worried about the issue with the previous bill and the application for an attachment of earnings. This concerned Sheryl as she had just started a new job and did not want her employer to know of her previous financial problems.
After Sheryl received a letter threatening court action, she spoke to John again who contacted the water company who told him that a hearing date had been set. John raised Sheryl’s concerns regarding the attachment of earnings and her employer and asked if there was an alternative solution to the problem. The adviser promised to speak to the department handling the legal claim and attachment of earnings issue and try to resolve the matter as quickly as possible.
John received a call back within an hour to inform him that Northumbria Water were willing to postpone the attachment of earnings order and the legal hearing, they would also put a hold on this year’s bill and direct the agreed monthly repayments towards paying the previous bill first, then once that bill is repaid they would use the agreed payment’s for this year’s bill.
This was a satisfactory outcome and when John phoned Sheryl to inform her of the good news she was very pleased and grateful for the help from Five Lamps.
Sheryl said
‘The help from Five Lamps has made a big difference to my life, I no longer have to worry about my finances and can now concentrate on my new job and career. Thank you John’