Personal Debt

If you have lost your job and are unable to pay the bills, the first thing you should do is make a list of all your creditors. You will need to prioritise them, and then contact each one in turn.

Part of the debt enforcement procedure in Scotland involves the sending out of official enforcement notices to debtors. An enforcement notice can be sent by post, email or fax, or be delivered by hand by bailiffs.

When it comes to debt, there is not a one size fits all solution; what may be suitable for one individual may be completely inappropriate for someone else.

What happens when you default on a bank loan largely depends on whether the loan is secured or unsecured. Secured loans mean that you have provided security in the event of default, usually in the form of property or a vehicle.

If you’ve received a persistent debt letter from your credit card provider, you may be wondering what it means and how you should respond.

If you cannot pay your debts in full over an extended period of time, you may be able to legally write off some or all of them using the options below.

For sole traders, freelancers and self employed people, tax returns are a twice yearly fact of life that simply can’t be ignored. If you think you may have trouble paying your tax bill at the end of this month, you’re certainly not alone.

If you have built up debt from gambling, you may be able to write off part or all of the debt via a formal Scottish insolvency route.

The amount of interest you pay on your borrowing is often the element that makes it unmanageable at some point. When you miss a payment, you are charged interest on the amount outstanding, plus a fee for being in arrears.

Statistics published by the Equity Release Council show a significant rise in the number of equity release transactions in Scotland in recent years.

Because it’s highly addictive, gambling on even a small scale can turn into an addiction that takes over your life. The fact that it’s also easily accessible online now only serves to exacerbate this growing problem.

When you’re in serious debt, the consequences could be severe. In Scotland, it's unlikely that you'll go to prison for unpaid debts but it is possible...