Fox Symes or My Budget are 2 organisations that can help with your friends situation. They will find someone who can restructure the debt into one repayment.
Bankruptcy is an option however, the future ramifications can be just as hurtful as the situation is now. If he owes the ATO or any other government department money, the debts will get raised even after bankruptcy has been declared. There is no time limit on it. I have seen people who were declared bankrupt, the ATO wrote of the debts, and then 5 or 6 years later when the person was due a tax refund, the ATO withheld it for the debt that had already been written off.
Mrs. Muffett Buffet. I hear you and totally agree with you. Had a lady who worked with me. She kept asking the boss for her pay in advance, and kept complaining about how she was struggling. She was married on 55K a year. Her husband was on 80K with a company car and her daughter was 17 and working parttime. Their home loan was $150,000 (House was worth 600,000). Why were they struggling so badly - 1. She would not drive a car that was over 24 months old. Apparently that was beneath her. 2. She stated "she couldn't be bothered cooking", so they would go out 7 nights a week for a meal. Throw the booze bill in and it shows why $130,000 was never going to be enough. 3. BEtween her and her husband they would smoke 15 packs of cigarettes a week and drink 3 cartons of beer.
