Dear Debt Free Australia,

I would like to thank you and your team again for all the help and understanding with our situation.  When my husband lost his job we thought that he would only be unemployed for a short time.  As time went by and the longer it was taking to find a job, we went into survival mode, using credit cards, robbing Peter to give to Paul just to get by and make ends meet.

During this time there was also 5 deaths in the family and our family dog was put down due to bone cancer in the November.  A week before Christmas, and a month after losing our family dog, our other dog was diagnosed with a tumour on her leg which would become inoperable if they didn’t operate straight away, so four days before Christmas she had the surgery.  Needless to say, we had a very depressing Christmas and new year, hoping that the new year would be better.

Our financial situation took a nose dive the longer my husband was working casual and out of permanent work.  Whilst he was working casual, he would not know sometimes until between 8pm-10pm the night before if he was working the next morning.  Sometimes by time he would find out it was too late to try and get work through another agency.

Twelve months later, he found a permanent job, but it was too late for us to pull ourselves back up financially as all the debt started to catch up with us.  Unable to sleep, we were sinking.  We were under so much stress.  It was one of the worst years of our lives and we needed help.  It looked like our only option would be to become bankrupt.

I had been doing some research on how to get out of debt when I saw an advertisement on the television advertising a company that helped people in our situation.  I called them but they didn’t seem interested in listening to our story and it made me feel that we were on our own.

I continued to research and found an advertisement on the internet for get Debt Free Australia.  I read through all the information and found that we had a couple of avenues to explore other than becoming bankrupt.

I called them and found them to be extremely sympathetic and helpful.  They sent out a kit with all the information and an application to fill out so they could accurately assess our situation and advise what our options would be.  From that moment, for the first time I felt that there was hope for our situation.  Finally someone was listening and appeared to be interested in helping us.

Amber you took us on and told us that there was a light at the end of the tunnel even though we couldn’t see it.  You worked patiently with us while we were stressed and upset with our situation and feeling that there was no way out of it.  You advised  us that a Personal Insolvency Agreement was our best option and we would be able to keep our home and not become bankrupt.

There were times that I felt things weren’t happening quick enough because we continued to sink and the calls and the letters from creditors were coming daily, but you kept reminding  us that there was a light at the end of the tunnel and each day we were getting closer to that light, even though we couldn’t see it yet.

When we met with you, and you advised us that the PIA had been approved, I felt such a relief and a weight lift off my shoulders.  It had been such a long time since I felt that way. Thanks to all the hard work that Amber and the team put in at Debt Free Australia, we now have the PIA and even though we still have a long way to go, we now know that at the end of the agreed time when the PIA Is finished we will no longer have that debt.  Needless to say the phones have now stopped ringing with calls from creditors.

Amber, thanks to you we can finally sleep and see a future.  When you and Anthony (our Controlling Trustee) announced that the PIA had been approved, I could finally see the tunnel with you at the end of it showing us that there was such a bright light, and from that moment on our lives would change.  Just like you told us it would.

We would highly recommend you to anyone that has found themselves in the same situation as us and tell them that there are not on their own and to seek help.

Thank you again Debt Free Australia.

Trish