Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

I have a few grand in credit card bills, plus some 10s of thousands in Student Loans, back in UK, that I plan to pay off. So each 11 hour day I work, I am safe in the knowledge that money will be going to various companies in England.

But I can't help but wonder, how would they ever know if someone moved to another country and didn't pay off their credit cards? What would happen to them? CCJs? What happens?

If this question fascinates you like it does me, please comment!

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

I am sure that there must be some wankers on here that have run off without paying their dues, but I doubt they would have the balls to admit their failings on this forum for all to see.

You're not a wanker are you?

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

Don't be that wanker. Find a way to pay internationally :thumbup:

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

There is no way to connect your credit history in the UK to your life in the US. That being said, it is extremely inadvisable to default on any credit arrangements - you really have no idea what the future holds, and how hard it could make your life if you needed to return to the UK. Just keep making those payments!

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

What he said.

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

I can think of at least two regulars on these boards in the past who were exactly that kind of "wanker" and proudly advised others on how to run out on their UK debts just like they had.

I think one of them, replete with his holier-than-thou wanksterism, still posts here occasionally.

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

I'm a wanker, but unfortunately I didn't leave the UK with any debts whatsoever so consequently have nothing constructive to add to this thread.

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

Same thing that would happen if you somehow went off the grid in the UK and hid somewhere. You could possibly get away with it for years, but eventually someone would find you, and you would pay the price in more ways than one.

I am paying off student loans and credit cards from here in the US. It's not that hard.

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

Can you please advise how you arrange payment of student loan internationally? Do you just agree a cushy non income based figure and that's it or is it still income linked? If mine was they'd want way too much per month!

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

It's income linked. I think it's 15% of whatever's above their defined salary threshold for each country. You have to show proof of income, and it's based on gross income, not net. You will be paying back more per month than your UK friends do, probably. Also, for added fun, you get to pay in dollars - so that makes it seem like even more.

Once you are earning non-bursary or scholarship money in a foreign country, you are obligated to get in touch with them and set up an arrangement for payment. If you don't, they are able to charge you all sorts of fees - not sure how often they do though.

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/

Some of you might like this site ;)

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

We have a loan and a UK credit card still outstanding in the UK.

We've maintained our UK bank accounts in the UK too, and now use Xoom to send money back to the UK each month to take care of our obligations. It costs $4.99 to send any amount up to $2499 I believe, and the exchange rate is acceptable. It takes about 25 mins from the time I press 'Go' at my end to the time it appears in my UK account.

We did write to the loan company in the UK to figure out how to pay them - they weren't at all helpful, and during this time we missed a repayment. We got a letter from them saying we'd better get back on track or they would instruct agents in the US to recover outstanding amounts here in the US.

So I imagine 'running away' won't solve the problem in the end. We only have 1 payment left with that particular loan company, thank God, because they have been particularly inept...

The credit card company on the other hand have been very understanding and helpful.

Now, if only HMRC and the IRS could be the same - we're owed nearly $6K between them!!

As for those who run away from their debt - definite wankers, because the net effect is to raise the cost of credit on everybody else.

Wankers.

OK, off soap box now!

HTS

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

I prefer to keep my UK credit score intact just in case my kids ever decided they'd prefer to live there. Plus I sometimes need to use my UK cards to buy stuff online for delivery to people in the UK, without them I'd have to pay a fortune in shipping.

Not really sure how they track people down, I guess it depends on how much money it is as to how much effort they put in to it.

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

We do the same thing. Plus it's nice to have when visiting for car rental, lodging, etc instead of using a US card.

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

It's a badge of honor in the Barbie.

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

I worked with a Brit who received CCJs from the UK. They were even sent to his workplace and arrived on his desk some mornings, and I was nosey enough to notice a letter from the UK :o

Confident in the fact he was never going to return to the UK, he got laid off while on an L-1.

He accepted a job up in Canada and the same company had offices in the US. He was able to return to the US a couple of years later and is back on an L-1.

But it's clearly very tense for him should this one day not work out... :unsure:

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

I'm an unintentional wanker...and I posted this not to gloat, but more to demonstrate how quickly this stuff can get out of hand!

Graduated 4 years ago and moved to the US right after with my American husband. I had a student loan and a bank overdraft of around 2000GBP. The student loan company was reasonably helpful, though still a pain in the arse to make payments. Back then, they didn't have a website to make repayments on or a facility to charge your card monthly, so I had to call them once a month and give them my cc details. Now they have a website that you can make 1x or set up a monthly charge. :thumbup: And yeah, you'll pay more than your UK buddies because the income threshold is 12,000 GBP rather than 15,000 in the UK.

Anyway, HSBC was another story. They constantly pestered me to pay more and more into my account. I made sure I paid at least something into the account monthly through wire transfers...


...and then I had a baby and all the expense that comes with it, including around $5,000 in medical bills. Unfortunately, I also had postpartum depression and I essentially shut down and let everything get behind. Stupidly, I didn't get in touch with the SLC or the bank until much later on when we were finally getting back on our feet and I was feeling better. By this time (this was probably around 6 months later) I was getting letters from both companies threatening to refer to my accounts to debt collectors and they did warn me that legal action could be pursued against me in my country of residence.

Fortunately, I did get everything back up-to-date. The SLC had amassed a huge arrears against my account but were able to write most of it off as i) they'd been assessing me the blanket overseas amount (196 GBP/month!!!) which I was able to reduce to 120GBP by sending them records of income for that period and ii) I hadn't worked for 4 months out of the 6 anyway so I wasn't eligible to make repayments. They were really very sympathetic to my situation and really wanted to help me get back on track.

Again, HSBC were another story. They were rude and pushy and I don't think I ever had a phone call with them that didn't make me feel completely humiliated. I made a repayment agreement with them, followed through on all my commitments (which involved paying off huge sums of $$$ one particular month...) and then they still referred my account to their bill collectors. I complained and threatened to go to the ombudsman with it and they reopened the account and sent a 3 page letter apologising for not "properly monitoring my account."

In my case I certainly paid for "running away" from it those few months, and they certainly did catch up with me. However, I was always forthright with them and kept my contact details up to date. In theory, I suppose it would be possible to just go off the map (I've heard the student loan company is having a lot of issues with this happening with EU students who are now allowed to apply for loans with them).

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

Haha, is that me? I left debts after telling my banks I was leaving and asking how to pay and they told me, "your not allowed to leave without paying" they also said they needed to be paid from a UK account......Not something I'm proud of but also not something I'm ashamed of.

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

Hubs had a problem paying his final Sky bill. They wouldn't let him pay online or over the phone or send him a bill in the U.S or via email/internet. His son finally told them, here is the original $ that he owes...take it or leave it. He's in the U.S. and could have skipped out on this last bill. They took it and closed his account.

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

Was it your intent here to demonstrate even a semi-valid reason for walking away from your debt?

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

Not what so ever. I don't need to validate my reasons. I did something that people don't agree with. Like I said it's not something I'm proud of, it's just something I don't care about.

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

Ok - thanks for clarifying. It just looked like you were positioning what someone at the bank told you as some kind of mitigating factor. If it wasn't then I'm confused as to why you mentioned it at all though. A simple I left my debt behind but don't give a toss would have sufficed. Must eat you a bit though, otherwise why respond to dbj's post?

Re: Credit card bills back in UK? What
 

I just know people have given me a hard time for it in the past on this forum. I responded to that asking if it was me he was talking about.....I also wanted to let the op know that it's not something that is a huge deal.