What is persistent debt?

When your account is in persistent debt, it means you've been paying more in interest, fees and charges than off your balance for 18 months or more.  This is an expensive way to borrow as it can cost you hundreds of pounds in interest and means you are taking a long time to pay off your balance.

When you've been paying more in interest, fees and charges for 18 months or more we'll get in touch to let you know that you're paying back your balance in an expensive way. We'll explain your options and offer support if you need any extra help.

Pay more than the minimum each month if you can.

This means you'll:

• pay less overall,
• clear your balance quicker.

Ways to pay more than the minimum

You can either set up a regular payment for any amount above the minimum, or pay the minimum and add top-up payments when you can.

View your options to pay

If you can't afford to pay more each month, please don't worry. Keep paying what you can and get in touch so we can help.

At the moment, your minimum payment is a % of your balance, plus any interest, fees and charges.  The minimum payment you need to pay will appear on your statement each month. Details of how this is calculated is also included in your statement.

Occasionally paying the minimum can be helpful if your finances are squeezed, then you can pay off more of your balance when things improve. But if you only pay the minimum every month,  you'll end up paying more interest and fees than you could have because the interest adds up. It'll also take a long time to pay off your balance.

So, it's really important that you take some time to work out what you can afford to pay and get a regular payment set up, or talk to us if paying more isn't an option.

Extra cardholders don't have overall responsibility for the credit card account, so we'll only write to the main cardholder about this.

We'll write to you:

• If you've paid more in interest, fees and charges than off your balance for 18 months or more. We'll explain that paying just the minimum is costing you more in the long run, and how you can change your payment to save money and pay off your balance quicker.
• 9 months after that, we'll check in to let you know how things are going. We'll tell you if you're on track to paying more off your balance than in interest and charges. Or, we'll suggest a few more changes and explain what happens next to help your account come out of persistent debt.
• After the next 9 months, we hope by this point, we're saying that you're in a better financial position than when we first got in touch. If you're still paying more in interest, fees and charges than off your balance, we'll let you know how much to repay each month so you can clear your balance in around four years and pay less interest. We may also stop your credit card.
• If we think it will help you, we might send a few more reminders and suggestions between these letters.

If your account has been in persistent debt for three years, we’ll start giving you Recommended Payment Amounts in your statement. Paying these every month will help you clear your persistent debt balance over a reasonable period of time, for example four years.

The Recommended Payment Amount in your statement includes your minimum payment and any missed payments you owe. So please check it every month before you pay it as it may change depending on how you manage your account.

If you can afford to, paying this amount will help you clear your persistent debt balance over a reasonable period of time. This means you’ll pay back what you owe quicker and it could cost you less interest.

If you’re struggling, please don’t worry. Get in touch with us and we can talk through your options. Unless you’re on a payment holiday, you need to keep paying at least your minimum payments to make sure you don’t miss any payments.

If your account has been in persistent debt for three years, we’ll write to you about paying a Recommended Payment Amount each month so you can pay back your persistent debt balance in around four years. If you’re not able to pay these, or if your financial circumstances or repayment behaviour changes, we may stop your card to help you pay back your balance over a reasonable period of time. This will help keep your balance down and prevent you going further into debt. If we do this, we’ll write to you to let you know.

If we’ve stopped your card and you need this for essential living expenses, please call us so we can help.

Things like paying late or missing payments will affect your credit score. If your account is in persistent debt it won't directly change your score, but paying more than the minimum can help to keep your credit score healthy in case you need to borrow in future.

We'll keep writing to you to try and help. Changing the way you pay off your balance could save you money, so it's important that we keep reminding you of your options.

We'll write to you with a recommended repayment amount each month, so you can repay your balance in around four years paying less interest.

If you can’t afford the recommended payment amount, please call us to talk through your options.

If you'd prefer, you can get free, independent help from one of these services:

Citizens Advice
Call 03444 111 444

National Debtline
Call 0808 808 4000

StepChange
Call 0800 054 6734

We do understand that talking about money isn't easy. If you contact us, we can explain all your options and help you to find a way forward.

You can speak to us on 0800 085 9177

Our lines are open 7am to 11pm, 7 days a week.

If you prefer, you can get free, independent help from one of these services:

Citizens Advice
Call 03444 111 444

National Debtline
Call 0808 808 4000

StepChange
Call 0800 054 6734