Well firstly, a debt management plan isn't another loan. In simple terms, it's an arrangement where you make one payment a month into your plan and this is then shared out with your creditors. We negotiate on your behalf to get lenders accept fixed payments and reduce or freeze interest on your account.

With a debt management plan arranged by Reverse we can help to tackle your debts head on by talking with your creditors on your behalf. Even this simple act of picking up the telephone and knowing that there's somebody there to help you can feel like a massive relief for most people.

You deal with us and we deal with your creditors for you.

We'll work through your expenditure and look at how much money you have left each month once you've paid for essential outgoings. We call this your disposable income. We'll then review what you owe, taking into account the type of debt, who the money is owed to, and the amount owed. We'll then create a personalised programme for you which is made of up a realistic amount that you can afford to pay each month to repay your creditors.

We negotiate with your creditors to agree repayment amounts that are reasonable and we aim to get them to stop charging interest or adding other charges for late payments or non-payments.

Take the common example of a credit card - if you're only paying the minimum payment each month then most of this will be going to repay interest with only a small amount going towards the actual amount you owe. This means that it will take a long time to repay the debt.

It's even worse if you can't meet the minimum payments because, as well as the interest, you're probably also getting charges added for not paying, so the debt could grow rather than reduce!

If we can use our knowledge and experience to get the lender to freeze charges and interest and accept a payment that you can meet on a regular basis then your payments will be going to reduce the actual amount you owe and not to meet interest and charges. You will see your debts being repaid and you'll be moving in the right direction to becoming debt free.

We can include most debts but we can't include what are known as "priority debts" these are debts that can have serious consequences if you don't pay them and it is very important that you do all you can to pay these. These include:

Mortgages or other debts that are secured against property (such as secured loans) if you are unable to meet repayments on your mortgage or secured debts, your home may be at risk and it can result in your home being repossessed. Your lender can sell the property and if the price is less than the amount you owe, you will still be liable for the remaining debt.

Rent your landlord can evict you if you owe money on your rent. He can also take you to court to try and get the money you owe.

Hire Purchase If you can't meet the repayments on a car lease, it could be taken back. If you need the car for work then this could be seen as a priority debt.

Income Tax, National Insurance, and VAT non-payment can result in court action and in some cases, imprisonment.

Court fines, Council tax and Maintenance if you don't make these payments then you could face court action, including bailiffs, and can also risk imprisonment.

Gas and electricity your supply can be disconnected if you are unable to pay.

TV licence you can be fined or imprisoned if you don't have a TV licence when you're required to.

However, what we will do is to take account of what you need to repay each month to meet these "priority debt" and we use this information to help in identifying what you can afford to pay towards your other creditors.

This all depends on your own personal circumstances. Once we've identified the monthly payment you can afford we'll be able to work out the term or duration of your plan. We'll tell you this there and then and we'll also confirm it to you in your information pack.

Firstly, don't ignore them as this could undo the good work we're trying to do for you!

If you receive a call, explain to your creditor that you've appointed Reverse Financial Solutions to act on your behalf. Tell them we will be contacting them to discuss an offer of payment.

You can also give them our telephone number if they wish to contact us directly.

If you receive a letter, then you can simply forward this on to us and we'll deal with it for you.

When you start your plan we'll send you an information pack which sets out what we have agreed, including your debts, the proposed monthly repayment, terms and conditions, a letter of authority and a financial statement.

The financial statement sets out your income and outgoings and we ask you to confirm that it is correct so that we can use it when we speak to your creditors.

We also ask you to sign the letter of authority as this gives your creditors permission to speak with us on your behalf.

Payments that you make through us which are to be sent to your creditors are all retained in a separate client account. This account can only be used for the benefit of our customers and cannot be used by us for any other purpose. We also ensure that your payments are sent to your creditors within 3 business days of being received by us.

Credit records are used by lenders to obtain details of how you have handled credit in the past and this information, amongst other things, gives them an idea of whether you are likely to repay any new credit commitments. Credit information is kept for 6 years, so where you have experienced difficulties in making repayments this may reduce your ability to obtain credit in the future.

Your creditors will record on their records that you have entered into an arrangement to repay your debts. In some instances, this may show on your credit file. However, please remember that if you are having difficulties and have missed payments or haven't made full payments, it's likely that this has already been recorded on your credit record.

We'll review your circumstances on a yearly basis to check that the plan is still suitable. If any changes are needed we will discuss these with you and agree any changes before going back to your creditors.

However, if there is a change in your circumstances before then, or at any other time during your plan, that is likely to affect your ability to continue the ongoing payments we ask that you make us aware of it.

To cover the costs that we incur in setting up your plan as well as negotiating with your creditors, the first two monthly payments that you make to your plan are retained by us.

After that, we retain 17.5% of each payment as this covers the ongoing costs of the plan.

So for example, if we agree a monthly payment amount of £100, this is how it will work:

• In months 1 and 2, we retain each £100 payment.
• In months 3 onwards, we retain £17.50 and £82.50 is paid to your creditors.

Remember, we administer your payments, ensuring that these are paid onto your creditors promptly, and deal with any queries from you or your creditor. We also undertake an annual review of your personal circumstances to ensure that the plan continues to be right for you. If any changes are needed we will go back to your creditors and amend the plan. There are no additional costs for any of this - it's all included.

When you start your plan, your first two payments are retained by us. This means that your credit accounts will show as being in arrears for these two months.

Your creditors aren't obliged to accept reduced payments or to freeze interest and other charges. If they don't then as you will be paying less it will take you longer to repay the debt and will increase the overall amount you will need to repay. This is where we will use our experience and negotiating power to do all we can to get your creditors to accept the plan and agree to its terms.

We can't guarantee that your lender won't start or continue any existing action to recover the money you owe, including issuing default notices and potential legal action, as well as the costs that are incurred. However, we will show your lender that you are serious about repaying your debts and are making an offer which is affordable and one which you can realistically pay on an ongoing basis. This can help to give the lender comfort that it will receive payment towards the debt.

Yes, you do have a right to cancel. This works in a number of ways:

You can cancel your plan in the first 7 days by writing and telling us.

When you first speak to an adviser he will ask you whether you want us to start work on your plan straight away. If you wish us to do so, and then cancel the plan within 7 days, we will retain any payments already made by you.

If you have not made any payments when you cancel you will not have to pay us anything.

After the initial 7 days you can cancel the plan by giving us 4 weeks' written notice. This notice period is to allow us to administer any payments you have already made and terminate your plan.