When I was 18 or 19, I was financially naïve. Starting out as a car salesman I took on my first financial arrangements, i.e. car finance. I was the youngest in the team and relied heavily on my peers for financial advice. I took on a lot of bad investments and changed my vehicles regularly as it was the norm to have the newest and best car. Before I knew it, I was deep in negative equity.
Back then, the Financial Conduct Authority hadn’t brought in the stringent laws designed to protect people that are in place today. My colleagues advised me to take out multiple credit cards, so by the time I came out of car sales, I was in £35,000 worth of debt.
Mounting debt
It wasn’t until I left car sales that I realised how bad things were. All of the money I was earning at my new job was going straight into paying off debts. I had a car worth £8,000 but there was £16,000 worth of debt attached to it. I had to sell the car and work towards paying everything off, but the stress was mounting.
This is when I met my partner who was very understanding of my issues. However things got really hard when our first child was born. We were still young and used credit cards to cover baby expenses. Although I had managed to get my debts down to around £20,000 we were still living pay check to pay check.
Then the pandemic hit followed by the cost-of-living crisis and everything changed for me. Rent and bills started to pile up, and with the arrival of our second child, we simply couldn’t keep up. I was working every hour I could, but up to 80 per cent of my wages were going straight to debt payments. At one point, we had to use food banks just to get by.
The stress was unbearable, and my mental health began to suffer. I felt like I was sinking – I didn’t want my children growing up with bailiffs knocking at the door. That’s when I decided I needed help and I found out about Crosslight advice service. Walking through their doors was the turning point in my life.
Compassion and respect
From the moment I arrived, they treated me with compassion and respect. The process of getting debt advice can feel intimidating, but the adviser quickly assessed my situation and got to work helping me. She helped me get a Debt Relief Order (DRO) and for the first time I could see light at the end of the tunnel.
The DRO wiped out the remaining debt and I no longer had credit cards hanging over my head. Now, my partner and I can enjoy weekends with our children without constantly worrying about money. We’ve even started thinking about buying a house one day or taking the kids on a holiday, things that I felt impossible before.
Looking back, I wish I had asked for help sooner. The worst thing you can do with debt is to bury your head in the sand. Crosslight helped me realise that there is no shame in asking for help. I honestly don’t know where I’d be without Crosslight. They didn’t just give me advice—they gave me hope when I had none. They saved me from losing everything, and they gave me the tools and confidence to rebuild my life.
*stock image used to protect the identity of the individual used in this case study