I cannot afford to pay my Studio Catalogue Account Debt?

Many are worrying “they can’t repay Studio Catalogue Debt” and what debt solutions there are?

Are you feeling embarrassed about your catalogue debt? Did you seek out this page while hanging your head in shame? If the answer is yes, the first step I urge you to take is to shake that shame off. The truth is, you are not alone.

Check out our comprehensive article here if you can’t afford catalogue debt payments.

If you think you’re one of the few to struggle to make catalogue repayments, I assure you, you’re actually one in tens of thousands struggling with debt in the UK.

The good news is, while many people have found themselves in your situation before, they’ve worked themselves out of it too. And with our help to guide you through the many debt solutions available, so can you.

I Can’t Pay My Studio Catalogue Debt – What Should I Do

The ease of being accepted for finance for catalogue companies paired with appealingly small repayments makes it easy to fall into the trap of buying more than you need. What seems like pennies soon add up to pounds and it only takes one unexpected payment, such as a broken boiler or car breakdown to make you slip behind and get stung by unattainable interest rates- potentially leading to persistent debt.

Even the minimum catalogue repayments being asked of you might feel impossible, Try and put those daunting numbers out of your head and go back to the drawing board by conducting an expenditure assessment. Calculate your household income and all necessary outgoings, such as unavoidable bills and food expenses. The figure you have left is your disposable income.

It might not feel very disposable to you right now, but track what you’ve been spending money on and see if there are areas you can cut back on. If every penny is accounted for, consolidating your debt from catalogue accounts into one loan might be a more realistic option.

Hopefully now you’re feeling reassured that every debt problem is fixable, including yours. But because every situation is unique, there’s no one size fits all solution. For debt advice catered to you we strongly recommend you take our debt quiz so we can assist you the best way possible.

Can I Write Off Studio Catalogue Debts

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Do Not Pay Studio Catalogue Until You’ve Received Free Debt Advice.

The debt quiz is completely free to complete and will offer the best no obligation professional catalogue debt advice available to you following assessment of your current situation.

There may be a possibility to write off a large portion of your debt depending on your circumstances.

If you have credit card debt or loans on top of your catalogue debt, it is advisable to speak to a third party. Debt charities and Citizens Advice are there to help you create a feasible repayment plan whatever your situation.

Can I Write Off Studio Catalogue Debts

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Here are all the solutions for debt available to you depending on where you are based in the UK:

Who Is Studio Catalogue?

Studio has been growing from strength to strength as a company, seeing a record £634 million profit in 2008 even during the recession.

It is part of a large parent company that started life in 1962 under the name Fine Art Developments, rebranded as Findel in 2000. Their first Catalogue circulated in 1965 the company has been ever growing since. It has kept at the top of it’s game by constantly adapting to the demands of the market.

Studio pride themselves on being one of the largest online ‘value’ retailers in the UK, providing a plethora of products. Now 90% of its customers are online as it has moved away from its early success as a physical catalogue. The extended credit option was launched in 1996, enabling shoppers to pay the balance of their purchase within 28 days or take advantage of their flexible credit account.

They claim ‘to hunt for the best value products, so customers don’t have to,’ and that their integrated retail and financial service business model encourages high levels of customer loyalty. But with an APR rate of 49.9%, it could be that customers feel trapped in a perpetual cycle of paying off debt that means they feel tied to using the catalogue rather than a sincere loyalty to it.

How to Stop getting calls from credit card debt collection companies:

When you live with mounting catalogue debts, they’re always on your mind. Constant threats and reminders from the company which you owe or a debt collection agency can be highly stressful and unnerving, but you do have a right to request that debt collection agencies stop contacting you.

A debt consultant can help you with this by writing to the debt collectors with an explanation of your circumstances. You can seek this assistant free through a debt charity.

If your unsecured debts have already spiralled to the point where you are receiving threats from the bailiffs or debt recovery firms you must seek advice from a debt advisor, who can stop these threats immediately.

Stopping correspondence from debt collectors doesn’t eradicate the problem but it does take the heat off while you take control and investigate the best plan for you.

Complaining About Catalogue Companies

If you’ve seen your underpayment charges are still soaring even though you have notified Studio of your circumstances and tried to make minimum payments to your account, you are within your rights to complain.

The first step to formally complaining is to complain to the source directly. Studio list four ways to do so on their website:

  1. Fill in their online complaints form and submit via the studio website.
  2. Call their customer service team on 0371 200 0378
  3. Write to them: Financial Services Department, Preston, Lancs. PR0 2BP
  4. Email them via their online contact form

It is increasingly common for customers to raise complaints via social media such as Twitter and Facebook posts. This can be effective in getting a quick response because they want to uphold their company reputation, but please remember not to put any personal details such as your account number on a public platform.

If you’re not happy with how your complaint has been handled, you might want to take it up with the Financial Ombudsman if your case has not been resolved within 8 weeks.

Close My Studio Account

You must contact Studio directly in order to close your account with them and unfortunately the only way to do this is to have a clear balance. A debt charity can give you advice on how to do this when you don’t have the money at your disposal.

You might be accepted for a consolidation loan. Moving your debt to a lower interest loan or any other finance option with smaller interest rates will stop your debts rising further and further. It can be more difficult to be approved for a loan when you’re already struggling to make payments, but again this depends on your situaiton.

Final Thoughts

Whatever stage your debt is at, feel assured that there are plenty of third parties at hand to help you. Don’t be afraid to seek advice because once you’re taking charge of your debt, with the right people helping you it is unlikely to result in court action.

Notify the catalogue company that you’re struggling to pay and see if you can negotiate minimum payments with them. Follow their advised procedure and if you aren’t happy with how they handle your case make a formal complaint through them.

Contact the Financial Ombudsman if you do not feel satisfied with their response or need help in your financial circumstances.

If the debt has already escalated, contact a third party such as a debt charity or citizens advice. There is plenty of information out there to help you, and plenty of people have been in your situation before. Remember, you can seek debt advice for your circumstances for free right now by taking our debt quiz.

Free Interest on Studio Catalogue Debts

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FAQ's

I may not be able to pay my debts. Can I pay a minimum payment?

Paying a minimum payment is certainly better than doing nothing and leaving the problem to escalate. If the minimum payment you can afford is higher than the minimum payment required by the catalogue company you will see your debts reduce, albeit slowly.

Paying just the minimum payment however, can result in significant interest rates and you might not see your debts reduce this way. It also means you’re at risk of your account being in ‘persistent debt.’

If you have been informed you are in persistent debt, this will mean that you have been paying more interest than you have paid back for your credit.

You can read more about persistent debt here!

What happens if you don't pay catalogue debts?

Some finance agreements require you to give the items back if you fall behind on payments, but this isn’t required for catalogue debt. They are a non-priority debt and should be treated as such, meaning they shouldn’t come before ensuring your household bills and living costs are covered first.

If you can’t pay your catalogue debt you will need to look into options to write it off.

You can do so with an IVA or filing for bankruptcy if your situation is perilous. This is not an option to take lightly, because your credit rating will be severely damaged for six years. It would be highly unlikely you would be approved for any kind of credit during this time.

If you feel you cannot pay your debts and must consider this as a serious option, it will involve entering a legal agreement with your creditors with an Insolvency Practitioner who will act on your behalf.

Can bailiffs come for Catalogue debt?

Because a catalogue is considered a non-priority debt, they do not have the power to send bailiffs to your home. They can send you intimidating letters which may suggest otherwise, but only the courts have the authority to send bailiffs.

A catalogue can apply for a County Court Judgement (CCJ) against you to get back the money you owe. The court would implement a payment plan for you to pay your CCJ and only if and when payments aren’t adhered to would the courts then have the power to send bailiffs on behalf of the catalogue.

What to do when you have debt you can't pay?

If you have any disposable income after your bills and necessary expenditures, find out whether the minimum amount you can afford is a sum that can be agreed upon with the company you owe.

If an agreement can’t be reached, assess your options to see if your debt can be moved to a lower interest loan that would be manageable with the monthly repayments within your budget. Some balance transfer credit cards might also be an option.

Seek third party advice such as debt charities if you don’t feel like the first two options are available to you. You may be able to come to an agreement based on your personal circumstance.

The last resort would be to become insolvent or file for bankruptcy to get your payments written off. If you do find yourself in this situation, it is still better to be proactive and take control of the situation in this way than to let the catalogue company file for a CCJ.

Struggling With Other Debts

Here are some other debt guides if you are struggling with different types of debts:

Debt Help

Speak to the debt advisor to check what debt solutions you have to help you consolidate debts into a single affordable monthly repayment.

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