Photo Credit: www.queercents.com
It was easy to cave in to their desires before. If a newlywed couple wants a nice house in a lovely neighborhood, the solution is a housing loan. If a sales executive is promoted and wishes to live up with his new status quo, he walks to the bank and applies for new car loan.
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Categories: Finances · Frugal Tips
Tagged: Frugal Tips, living frugality with your partner, teach frugality with your partner
Photo Credit: www.caribbeanunionbank.com
Processing loan transactions here in Abu Dhabi or UAE in general always require a bank statement of 3 months. Since I wanted to apply for car loan, I went last week to the bank to obtain the same.
I was really stunned to know that the new fee for acquiring bank statement is AED 50 (approx USD 14) for each month. So I shelled out AED 150 for the 3 months statement. I don’t know maybe it was ages ago since the last time I requested for bank statement but I really found it expensive.
Earlier the monthly bank statement is sent by postal mail and it can be used for any credit cards or personal loans application. Then lately the bank starts sending it by e-mail and I receive the monthly e-statement in my inbox. Unfortunately, the bank will not honor this because they need the company stamp.
Ideally the fee should be cheaper since they are no longer sending it by post. On contrary, the fee is even doubled than before. If they have continued sending it by post, I would have not spent AED 150 for that.
Honestly I can really feel the skyrocketing cost here in UAE after living and working here since 2002. Hence, it is another motivation for me to stay frugal in my expenses and way of life.
I have the urge to learn more about options on how to settle spiraling credit card bills and unpaid loans in Abu Dhabi or UAE in general because of my previous post, the “How to Settle Overdue Personal Loans or Credit Cards in Abu Dhabi?”. It is one of the most visited posts in Frugal Expat.
The search engine terms (words that people used which led them to my blog) in the statistic page are varied but rooted in the same subject – how to settle overdue bank loans and credit card bills to avoid being locked up in jail.
I am receiving overwhelming response and queries which I am happy because somehow the Frugal Expat serves its purpose – to help others.
On the other note, I cannot help but conclude that a significant portion in the expat population here in UAE is going through such predicament. Such response, queries and search engine terms reflected a cry for help or enlightenment on their plight. So, I decided to take further this particular topic hoping that this will help those who are trapped in this kind of situation.
In today’s post, this is about settling unpaid HSBC credit card bills. Payment policies differ from bank to bank thus this information will not be applicable in all cases.
According to the woman I spoke in the payment plan department of HSBC in Dubai, the cases of delinquent payments are generally taken to their legal department once you fail to pay for three consecutive months. Prior to this, you will receive incessant phone calls from their collection department. If you continuously ignore their calls in your mobile phone, then they start to call in your office number.
The feedback I heard is that they are very polite in dealing with your issue compared to other banks. There are no yelling and harsh words. They explain politely the consequences of missing the payments though very persistent in insisting to make an immediate payment.
Just a word of advice. It is better to always cross-check the information you obtain when inquiring in their toll free number. I first heard about the payment plan for HSBC credit card holders last year from a friend. Curious to know more about this option, I called the HSBC toll free number to inquire. The customer service agent advised me that this option is only available for delinquent payers.
Honestly, I found it ridiculous and I could not fathom the logic behind it. I even reacted sarcastically to the customer service agent and uttered that therefore HSBC credit card holders must wait first until they reach that ‘delinquent’ stage before they can avail this option.
It doesn’t make sense because no one knows better your financial condition but you. If you come to know that you will be laid off in the next two months, then you will certainly look for options to avoid legal consequences, right?
Anyway, a year after that phone conversation with the HSBC customer service agent, I managed to source the telephone number of their payment plan. I spoke to one of their staff who advised that the customer service agent had given me the wrong information.
In fact, any HSBC credit card holders can apply for payment plan (even if you are not a delinquent payer) however it will be subject to approval of the management.
So what is payment plan? If you hold HSBC credit cards and are unable to continue regular payments for whatever reasons, you can opt for the payment plan. It means that the bank will consolidate your HSBC credit card bills and convert it into a sort of personal loan.
Generally, unpaid monthly credit card bills will incur fees for late payment, finance charges, over limit and so on. The more you delay the payment the more the charges escalate.
In payment plan, they will close your account and top your outstanding balance with 6% interest rate. Then you can discuss the timeframe of the payment and your capacity to pay regularly without fail. Accordingly they will advise you of the fix amount which you will pay on monthly basis until the amount is paid off.
There are few things to remember when applying for payment plan for your HSBC credit cards.
Liabilities vs. Monthly Income
The bank will weigh whether you can commit to pay monthly the agreed amount. Therefore, they will calculate your expenses and other liabilities against your monthly income. The difference must at least justify your ability to pay religiously and to spend on your basic needs.
Pre-Qualification Payment
The bank will require you for initial payment which they refer as ‘pre-qualification payment’. It is usually equivalent to two months of the agreed monthly payment. According to them, it is their way of gauging your commitment to go for the payment plan and they will proceed only with your application for approval unless the initial payment is made.
Documentations
HSBC will require you to submit salary certificate, passport and visa copy, one security check and supporting documents of your existing liabilities (i.e. statement of account).
Lastly, HSBC urges you to pay regularly and failure to do so can breach the agreement though I am not sure the consequences for missing any payments.
I hope that the above info helps you one way or another.
Categories: Finances
Tagged: HSBC Credit Cards, Unpaid Credit cards
With the rising cost of living and the shrinking value of our salary, it is just apt to start living frugally at the same time scouring opportunities for extra source of income.
My pursuit for extra income was a heaven sent, a referral from a friend. Luckily, it is a part time job that I love to do.
It is a local company that hires part time mystery shoppers. Wish it is a real shopping activity. LOL! Service oriented companies such as banks, mobile shops, restaurants, hotels and occasional government sectors hire consultants to gauge their employee’s level of service and product knowledge.
So you go to the your assigned shop or office, pretend to be a potential customer, ask the staff with series of questions and once your mystery shopping is completed, fill up the report and that’s it! You will be paid afterwards.
In my case I started in July and so far, I completed 5 assignments. There was a bit constraint of the timings in my part. Most of the available assignments have the regular office working hours which is similar to mine. Basically, I can hit only shops in the mall because it is open after my work or banks because it is open on Saturdays.
It is an interesting job but deep inside I felt somehow bad for fooling the staff in front of me. You give them hard time by asking tough thorough questions, trying to extract as much information and in return, they do (most of them) their best to please you as a customer.
Anyway, the payment is not much really though it is not bad too rather than wasting your time.
I personally admire the level of professionalism of this mystery shopper company. They are prompt in replying to your queries and in rating your reports. The specifications for each mystery shopping job are very clear and specific. You will need a sharp memory though because there is detailed information that you need to remember while mystery shopping and this info will be asked in the report.
Also, it is an internet based job. Once you become a member, you will be given log-in details and you can check available assignments and complete the reports online.
The company has very limited time frame though you can choose according to the options given in the site. Some assignments need to be complied within the next two days while others will give you 3-5 days.
If you are a neophyte, you are allowed to take one assignment only then after that, you can take more.
It is an ideal part time job but here is the hitch! The payment process takes time. You can only request for payment a month after the completion of your assignment and the company process the payment every first week of the month only.
So, it will likely take 45-60 days before you receive your payment.
If you are interested to be a part time mystery shopper, PM me and I’ll send you the details!
Cheers!
Categories: Extra Income · Finances
Tagged: Extra Income, Mystery Shopper, Part Time Job
My quest for proper information about unpaid personal loans or overdue credit card bills started in late 2007. My best friend, who got pregnant two months after she received her personal loan, struggled to find solutions and options to settle her situation.
Unwed pregnancy is a BIG no, no in this country. I really don’t have the grasp of the legal consequences and applicable laws here for unwed pregnancy but it has been known that it can lead you to jail or deportation. Neither of it is favorable, right?
Anyway, my best friend needed to go back home on or before the 7th month of her pregnancy. If she would fly later than that, she would face a challenge in boarding the plane. There might be possibility for rejection which would lead to deeper trouble. To be safe, she had to fly on or before the 7th month of her pregnancy.
The challenge now was her loan. Because her status was single, she was compelled to resign rather than to face the legal consequence of her unwed pregnancy. Once the employee who has bank loan resigns, the employer will automatically inform the bank about it. Your final settlement will also be automatically deposited to your account.
Fearing this scenario, she would likely go home with nothing in hand, not a penny from her final settlement.
In my hope to bring enlightenment to others who may be undergoing the same situation, I planned to write an article about it. However, before I could pitch this brilliant idea to any publication, I must need some concrete information from the reliable sources.
So, I started interviewing few people who worked in the banks. At the back of my mind, there must be a solution for these issues but what are these options. I needed to dig this information. (Unfortunately, two weeks after I pitched the idea in one of the publications, the same idea was featured, front page in a weekend issue.)
Anyway, earlier this month another two friends of mine were in similar quagmire. My friend X took a personal loan in 2007. When he wanted to settle the balance last year, he could not get in touch with the financing company which was affiliated to a local bank. So friend X approached the bank to help him proceed to settling his loan balance.
Unfortunately, the local bank rejected him and advised that they could not help him because that loan was taken from the financing company.
Then ten months after, my friend X received a call from the legal office harassing him for non-payment and urged for full payment within one week. Failure to comply within the deadline means a legal case will be filed against him. Of course, the small amount escalated because of the other charges. The sad part was the legal office was very, very rude on the phone and the harassment stirred major emotional stress on my friend’s part.
Then he came to know also from the legal office that the financing company was closed already. The same reason he was unable to contact the financing company.
Then days after the problem of friend X was settled, I came to know also the same problem of friend Y. Hers was slightly different. She is dealing with another bank. Due to recession, she lost her job so she started to fail paying regularly her monthly dues. Now she starts receiving harassment calls from the legal office too.
I witnessed it with my friend X. This harassment is really no joke and it really creates havoc in your once peaceful life. It is emotionally distressing and draining.
More so, you cannot afford to travel because of fear that the police may pick you up anytime in the airport and lock you up in jail. You will not know at all if these legal offices are simply bluffing or not so you cannot confirm if indeed the case against you is already filed.
The least thing you want to happen is to be picked up by police in the airport.
So, how can you settle overdue personal loans or unpaid credit card bills? Let’s dissect and tackle each case.
Best Friend’s Case. Because she needed to clear her personal loan before she could travel back home and she didn’t have the money to settle the loan she hardly started to pay, her option was to look for a guarantor.
Then she and the guarantor settled her case in the recovery department of the bank. There were required documents too for the guarantor like salary certificate, checks, among others. It is recommended to contact the concerned bank for complete list of requirements.
My Friend X’s Case. His case too was settled in the recovery department. It was quite tricky because he needed to approach the recovery department office where the loan was taken. In his case, it was Dubai. After consulting his options for settlement, he was given a contact person in Abu Dhabi.
While going back and forth to the local bank, the legal office continued calling and harassing him. When he informed the legal office that he would settle it directly in the bank, the legal office insisted to settle it with them. We honestly felt a hue of skepticism as why the legal office continued to urge for payment and to threat for possibility of imprisonment despite the initial contact was made already with the local bank.
Anyhow, the recovery department offered two options.
First Option – Full Payment. The amount escalated already because of the late payment fees, bounced check charges, and who knows what other charges were incurred.
Then the recovery department offered a discount for the total amount if settled on one-time full payment. The banker told us that he would arrange to waive the bounced check charges.
Second Option – Partial Payment. The 50% of the amount has to be settled in cash. And then the remaining balance can be paid on monthly basis for the duration of six months to one year. However, for this option the bank needs a guarantor, and checks issued from the guarantor.
Friend X settled it in full payment. So the bank waived the charges for the bounced checks. After that, the bank issued a clearance certificate stating that he was cleared from his personal loan.
Friend Y’s Case. After she came to know about the solution offered by the bank for Friend X, she decided to go to the recovery department. She had been going back and forth to her local back previously but to no avail. The situation had been dragged but there was no definite solution being offered.
Well, I wish friend Y will settle her problem soon. Good news is she got a new job recently! Hopefully things for her will be smooth again, away from emotional stress and harassment calls.
Lessons Learned. These situations imply us to be frugal and to be smart on our finances especially nowadays that economic situation is not really good.
More so, it is important to talk to the right person in the bank if you face such kind of predicament. They will give you the right information and sometimes if you are lucky to meet a Good Samaritan, he will guide you through and give you financial advice as on how to settle it best.
But I think the best lesson is not to succumb to any luring instant chunk of cash through personal loans or to cave in for the gratification of your personal wants.
If you are in that quagmire already, it is not yet too late. There is still hope. What matter most is learning the lesson – to be prudent in our finances.
Categories: Finances
Tagged: overdue credit card bills, Overdue Personal loans
