How Diane’s debt spiralled after she lost her job

“I was on eggshells all the time. I thought, I can’t live with this.” 

Diane, 57, from Bolton was managing fine. She was working, paying her rent and bills on time and thought she’d make a few purchases from a catalogue. Nothing extravagant, just some clothes, presents and things for the home. She only spent £100 at first, with manageable £12 monthly payments. As she kept up with the payments, the catalogue company extended her credit to £500.  

It’s like “they’re like reeling you in,” Diane said. “I thought, right, Christmas is coming, we’ve only got one daughter and I want to buy her something nice.” 

So she bought a few more things, raised her monthly payments to £25. She even bought some items from a couple more catalogues as everything seemed fine.  

An unexpected job loss  

But then, her hours at work were cut. With less money coming in, it became harder to keep up with bills and the catalogue repayments were pushed aside.  

“I thought, I’ll be alright, they might increase my hours again,” she said.  

But they didn’t. That’s when the £12 late payment charges began to pile up.  

Eventually, Diane lost her job altogether.   

With around £7,000 of debt, £5,000 of it owed to catalogue companies, that’s when things really started to fall apart. Without any income from her job, Diane and her husband Graham really had to cut back. Their main worry was keeping a roof over their head.  

“I thought, I don’t want to be evicted, I’ll make sure my rent’s paid for. I made sure all my major bills were paid for. The catalogues were just getting… pushed to one side. And that’s how I got into trouble.”  

A section 21 notice and mental strain  

As Diane fell behind on rent, her landlord issued a section 21 notice, demanding they leave the home they’d rented for 10 years.  

That’s when Diane’s mental health really began to suffer.  

“I was just worrying all the time. I wasn’t sleeping. I was scared every time the door went. I was getting messages every day, [saying] you need to phone us to talk about your debt. I was thinking, I don’t want to talk about it.” 

As the months went on, the catalogue companies warned Diane that if she didn’t pay, the debt would go to the bailiffs.  

“That’s when I started really panicking,” she said.  

“No bailiffs ever came but I was on eggshells all the time. I thought, I can’t live with this.” 

Diane believes there should be a cap on how much people can borrow for catalogue purchases.  

“It’s so easy to just carry on buying stuff when you’ve not got the money,” she said.  

Reaching out for help  

A friend recommended contacting a debt advice service and, after reading positive reviews, Diane reached out to Money Wellness.  

With our help, Diane applied for a debt relief order (DRO). DROs freeze your debts for a year and, if your situation doesn’t improve during that time, your debts are written off. There are strict eligibility criteria and your credit rating is affected for six years. But, in certain situations, they offer the chance of a fresh financial start. 

Diane found the process easy and felt supported every step of the way.  

“I had no idea what I was getting into. The lady [our adviser] listened to us, she went through everything with us. I can’t praise her enough… actually someone listening to us and someone who could help us. Such a big relief.” 

“The hardest thing was building up the courage [to ring] in the first place,” Diane said.  

A fresh start  

With a DRO in place and some financial help from her daughter, Diane’s situation started to improve. Though she and her husband are still not working due to health issues, the constant stress of debt has lifted. 

“Not having the worry of people knocking at the door and having the letters every day, that’s such a big relief. We’ve not got a lot of money at the moment. We’re struggling but we’re getting by. As long as we can get by every day, we’re alright. We’ve got a roof over our heads. We’re paying our rent. We’ve got gas and electric. We’re alright, we can cope with that.” 

Diane’s story highlights how unexpected life events can turn manageable debt into a big financial headache.  

But as Diane showed, reaching out for help can make all the difference. With the right support, it’s possible to regain control and find a way through the toughest times. 

For the first time in months, Diane can sleep properly at night.  

“It’s a big weight off our shoulders,” she said.