unable to find this sort of money HELP!

[lisa.r]

I had a car on hp up until August 07 when I fell into arrears with the creditor and they collected the vehicle. They have contacted me today for the first time and told me I owe £10727. They say it is for the shortfall even though I took out protection against this. They have also said they could take a payment of £2500 but it would have to be in one lump sum. I am a full time worker with a 5 year old son and unable to find this sort of money. Where do I stand? I have a couple of days to reply to the company!!!!HELP!!!!!!

[MelanieGiles]

Hi lisa and welcome to the forum

Your insurance policy probably only covered you for accident, sickness unemployment or death, and not non payment due to financial difficulties.

The best thing to do would be to prepare a statement of your current income and expenditure and show them that you cannot afford £2,500 and offer them ongoing affordable payments. Or is there anyone else who could lend you the money and you could then pay them back - a friend or family member?

HP companies are pretty aggressive collectors in my experience, and it would be good if you could put this behind you. Do you own a property which has equity in it? If so maybe a remortgage or secured loan to raise some money is also something you might want to consider.

[Adam Davies]

Hi
I think the insurance that you talk about is called 'gap'insurance that basically covers any shortfall between the amount outstanding on the finance and the amount paid out by an insurance company if the car is deemed to be a total loss through an accident or theft.
Regards