what the F do you do if you get sacked and have cars and credit cards
Dec 17th 2008, 5:35 am
#46
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Re: what the F do you do if you get sacked and have cars and credit cards
Careful what you wish for Mrs H...
Life as an (apparent) Dickhead is so not you.....
Last edited by Eva; Dec 17th 2008 at 5:38 am. Reason: challenge4change
Dec 17th 2008, 5:42 am
#47
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Re: what the F do you do if you get sacked and have cars and credit cards
Dec 17th 2008, 5:45 am
#48
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Re: what the F do you do if you get sacked and have cars and credit cards
Not everyone believes in the 'kickin them in the ribs when they are down' routine.Good luck with it all
Dec 17th 2008, 5:48 am
#49
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Dec 17th 2008, 6:24 am
#50
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Re: what the F do you do if you get sacked and have cars and credit cards
Haven't read the whole of this thread - sorry, so if this has already been suggested apologies. But assuming the credit card debt is on a local card could you transfer it to a UK based credit card ? Assuming you've kept them of course. We've been in ME for years and still have UK based cards. Some UK banks offer good deals if you transfer all your debt with them - altho I guess in todays climate this might not be the case anymore. If you've only been out of UK for 6 months this could be an option. Just a thought.
Hope all goes well for you and your husband
N
Hope all goes well for you and your husband
N
Dec 17th 2008, 6:37 am
#51
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Re: what the F do you do if you get sacked and have cars and credit cards
Some general advice for all those in debt (personal loans, auto and credit card debts) and your job is shaky. I am not going to sugarcoat the potential risks simply because I would rather you be safe than sorry:
1.Firstly – Keep some (in fact a lot) of emergency cash and withdraw most of the salary - only keep a bare minimum in the account into which your husband’s salary is transferred. I cannot stress enough on this.
2.The scale of retrenchments and the resulting problem of potentially massive bad debts is unprecedented. Banks are not used to this and will be prone to some really rash/knee-jerk reactions. I do not expect most banks to listen and be reasonable – unfortunately, they will be merciless when they see little hope of recovering debt. And debtors have little protection here, unlike the US/UK… it is a jail term. Therefore, I believe that some of the advice given above (which I cannot repeat for obvious reasons) is unorthodox but very practical in the circumstances. You can return to your home country and then negotiate a debt reschedulement. There is no chance of that happening here, as once a case is filed then you are stuck in Dubai and it is a vicious cycle thereafter.
I will pm you some specific advice later this evening
EDIT: And start SAVING LIKE CRAZY...
1.Firstly – Keep some (in fact a lot) of emergency cash and withdraw most of the salary - only keep a bare minimum in the account into which your husband’s salary is transferred. I cannot stress enough on this.
2.The scale of retrenchments and the resulting problem of potentially massive bad debts is unprecedented. Banks are not used to this and will be prone to some really rash/knee-jerk reactions. I do not expect most banks to listen and be reasonable – unfortunately, they will be merciless when they see little hope of recovering debt. And debtors have little protection here, unlike the US/UK… it is a jail term. Therefore, I believe that some of the advice given above (which I cannot repeat for obvious reasons) is unorthodox but very practical in the circumstances. You can return to your home country and then negotiate a debt reschedulement. There is no chance of that happening here, as once a case is filed then you are stuck in Dubai and it is a vicious cycle thereafter.
I will pm you some specific advice later this evening
EDIT: And start SAVING LIKE CRAZY...
Last edited by IndieG; Dec 17th 2008 at 6:42 am.
Dec 17th 2008, 6:49 am
#52
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Re: what the F do you do if you get sacked and have cars and credit cards
I had to smile at Admon's "don't get into debt" advice... unfortunately, almost everyone coming over has to pay rent at the very least and with the moronic system here, well... a great big fat £35k loan within the first month of moving over becons. I'd have never signed up to something like that ihad I been in GB, but here? Well, everyone needs a roof over their heads.
Mr Kitty and I have been thinking about an exit strategy, hoping that we'd never have to implement it. We've held off buying our own car, since just as we started looking, serious wobbles were starting to be felt.
The main thing is the apartment and how to mitigate the loss of our rent, assuming that our landlord refuses to let us vacate and refund the difference (which I'd doubt he'd do, but this is a worst case scenario, after all). Basically it'd come down to renting it out as a fully-furnished, *short term* rental apartment. There seems to still be a market for them and I understand that you could expect 5-7k per week (800-1k per night). Ok, it wouldn't be guaranteed, but in terms of damage limitation, it could be worse.
That is, ofc, assuming that you have a home to go to in the UK. If you've rented it out, then you can ask the tenants to leave after 6 months, with however much notice the contract requires.
As for the "tax doesn't need to be taxing"... well, we didn't get that far! Half-baked exit plans ftw!
Also, although your residency/work visa expires after 30 days of being enemployed, surely, there's no reason why you can't come back on a tourist visa, and allow yourself an extra 60 days to deal with stuff.
Fingers crossed for you both/all...
Mr Kitty and I have been thinking about an exit strategy, hoping that we'd never have to implement it. We've held off buying our own car, since just as we started looking, serious wobbles were starting to be felt.
The main thing is the apartment and how to mitigate the loss of our rent, assuming that our landlord refuses to let us vacate and refund the difference (which I'd doubt he'd do, but this is a worst case scenario, after all). Basically it'd come down to renting it out as a fully-furnished, *short term* rental apartment. There seems to still be a market for them and I understand that you could expect 5-7k per week (800-1k per night). Ok, it wouldn't be guaranteed, but in terms of damage limitation, it could be worse.
That is, ofc, assuming that you have a home to go to in the UK. If you've rented it out, then you can ask the tenants to leave after 6 months, with however much notice the contract requires.
As for the "tax doesn't need to be taxing"... well, we didn't get that far! Half-baked exit plans ftw!
Also, although your residency/work visa expires after 30 days of being enemployed, surely, there's no reason why you can't come back on a tourist visa, and allow yourself an extra 60 days to deal with stuff.
Fingers crossed for you both/all...
Dec 17th 2008, 6:59 am
#53
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Re: what the F do you do if you get sacked and have cars and credit cards
Kitty:
I've read that you have to leave UAE for a period of 30 days, no later than 30 days after the cancellation of your work visa. Is that true?
Oh, and subletting is illegal in Dubai.
Your sub letter will quite likely get evicted, unless your landlord offers their blessing.
IndieG:
#2 sounds interesting - but how do you avoid the "passport blacklist" after the bank is notified of your redundancy? I'd much rather negotiate with a bank from the safety and luxury of home! That's a fantastic suggestion, if they can avoid airport jail.
I've read that you have to leave UAE for a period of 30 days, no later than 30 days after the cancellation of your work visa. Is that true?
Oh, and subletting is illegal in Dubai.
Your sub letter will quite likely get evicted, unless your landlord offers their blessing.
IndieG:
#2 sounds interesting - but how do you avoid the "passport blacklist" after the bank is notified of your redundancy? I'd much rather negotiate with a bank from the safety and luxury of home! That's a fantastic suggestion, if they can avoid airport jail.
Dec 17th 2008, 7:04 am
#54
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Re: what the F do you do if you get sacked and have cars and credit cards
Kitty:
I've read that you have to leave UAE for a period of 30 days, no later than 30 days after the cancellation of your work visa. Is that true?
Oh, and subletting is illegal in Dubai.
Your sub letter will quite likely get evicted, unless your landlord offers their blessing.
I've read that you have to leave UAE for a period of 30 days, no later than 30 days after the cancellation of your work visa. Is that true?
Oh, and subletting is illegal in Dubai.
Your sub letter will quite likely get evicted, unless your landlord offers their blessing.
I don't rightly know about having to stay out for 30 days... but then again, a month's break may be necessary in every way.
As for subletting, I was assuming that the landlord would agree... he's a very honest and reasonable chap (yes, there is one here!). If the worst were to happen, we'd have a very honest discussion with him and work out a solution. I was only assuming he'd be reluctant to give us the money back, seeing as a downturn would also mean that he wouldn't be guaranteed to get the place rented asap after we left.
Last edited by Hello.Kitty; Dec 17th 2008 at 7:06 am. Reason: argh, why do the quotes not work now?!
Dec 17th 2008, 7:08 am
#55
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Re: what the F do you do if you get sacked and have cars and credit cards
N.
Dec 17th 2008, 7:11 am
#56
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Re: what the F do you do if you get sacked and have cars and credit cards
Burpus - will send you a pm this evening....
Dec 17th 2008, 7:13 am
#57
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Re: what the F do you do if you get sacked and have cars and credit cards
IndieG: I hope I never need this info - but I'm curious how this works! Looking forward to the PM!
Dec 17th 2008, 7:41 am
#58
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Re: what the F do you do if you get sacked and have cars and credit cards
Ok some good news: according to my friend who heads up Collections:
If you only have an Auto loan then the bank CANNOT file a case or blacklist you at immigration unless you are delinquent. A redundancy is not a reason for blacklisting.
Banks are normally informed only if there is a personal loan involved and if your bank has provided a salary transfer undertaking.
Keep paying the instalment and min balanace on card until you decide whether it is worth staying or packing up and moving on.
If you only have an Auto loan then the bank CANNOT file a case or blacklist you at immigration unless you are delinquent. A redundancy is not a reason for blacklisting.
Banks are normally informed only if there is a personal loan involved and if your bank has provided a salary transfer undertaking.
Keep paying the instalment and min balanace on card until you decide whether it is worth staying or packing up and moving on.
Dec 17th 2008, 8:08 am
#59
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Re: what the F do you do if you get sacked and have cars and credit cards
Ok some good news: according to my friend who heads up Collections:
If you only have an Auto loan then the bank CANNOT file a case or blacklist you at immigration unless you are delinquent. A redundancy is not a reason for blacklisting.
Banks are normally informed only if there is a personal loan involved and if your bank has provided a salary transfer undertaking.
Keep paying the instalment and min balanace on card until you decide whether it is worth staying or packing up and moving on.
If you only have an Auto loan then the bank CANNOT file a case or blacklist you at immigration unless you are delinquent. A redundancy is not a reason for blacklisting.
Banks are normally informed only if there is a personal loan involved and if your bank has provided a salary transfer undertaking.
Keep paying the instalment and min balanace on card until you decide whether it is worth staying or packing up and moving on.
Dec 17th 2008, 8:44 am
#60
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Re: what the F do you do if you get sacked and have cars and credit cards