Your IVA could be set up in just 1 month
If you don’t qualify for an IVA we can refer you to MoneyPlus Advice, an FCA authorised advice company. Free, impartial advice is also available at Money Helper, a debt counselling service set by Government.
IVA Benefits
What debts can be included in an IVA?
Loans
Credit Cards
HMRC debts
Store Cards
Overdrafts
Council Tax
Previous rent & utility arrears
Buy now pay later debts
IVA Considerations
Creditor Acceptance
Creditors must accept your IVA after been given around 2 weeks to consider your IVA proposal.
Insolvency Register
As with a Debt Relief Order or Bankruptcy, an IVA is entered on the Insolvency Register which is accessible to the public.
Property
If you are a homeowner, then you may be asked to release equity from your property to repay creditors. If you cannot do this, then your IVA could be extended by 12 months.
IVA Failure
Should your IVA fail for reasons such as you fall into arrears by missing payments and do not remedy this, then your IVA could lead to Bankruptcy.
Credit Rating
As with a Debt Relief Order or Bankruptcy, an IVA will affect your credit rating for 6 years.
Payments
Your payments are subject to review each year to ensure your IVA remains affordable. If it’s determined that you can afford to pay more, you will be expected to do so.
Example IVA
Before an IVA
David owed:
| Overdraft | £1,000 |
| Loans | £8,000 |
| Credit Cards | £12,000 |
| HMRC | £2,000 |
| Total debt | £23,000 |
| Payments before IVA | £750 |
| Payments after IVA | £140 |
| Total paid over 5 years | £8,400 |
| Total savings | £14,600 |
*payments are discussed with you at a level you can afford, subject to creditor acceptance.
Alternative solutions
Self Help
Self-help is where you seek to stick to a budget without the use of credit. You then contact creditors yourself and offer repayments to them based upon what you can afford, with the amounts being divided in proportion to the amount you owe them.
Advantages
- You avoid any formal insolvency.
- If you have few creditors or low level of debt it could be a more manageable way to resolve your debts.
Disadvantages
- Creditors are under no obligation to accept your repayment or freeze
- interest and charges.
- You need to manage the payments yourself.
- There is no debt write off.
- It could take a long time to repay your debts.
Consolidation Loan
A consolidation loan is commonly known and can be an effective way of repaying your debts. You apply for the loan to cover all of your debts at a payment you can afford. This loan may be unsecured or secured against your property. Your interest rates, repayments and amount you can borrow will be dependent on your financial circumstances and your credit rating. This could also increase the length of time to repay your debts.
Advantages
- All your repayments are consolidated into one amount you can afford.
- You may be able to get a cheaper interest rate
Disadvantages
- If is important to establish that you can afford the loan as you obtain no debt write off.
- A loan may be difficult to obtain if you have poor credit, large debt levels or low disposable income.
- If the loan is secured your equity will be reduced.
Debt Management Plan (DMP)
Debt Management is an informal debt solution, which means it’s not legally binding on any party involved. It must be administered by an organisation authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority. Some organisation do not charge a fee (these are usually paid for by creditors), whilst some charge a monthly fee for their services.
The DMP provider will assess your financial position and establish what you can afford to repay. They will then seek to negotiate with your creditors to gain their consent to repayments, and if possible, freeze interest and charges. Assuming this is accepted and your circumstances remain unchanged, your plan will last until your debt is repaid.
Advantages
- Your payment is based on a detailed assessment of your income and expenditure.
- You only make one payment a month to your creditors.
- The majority of creditors will stop interest and charges and stop legal action.
- Your payment can be altered if your circumstances change.
- Most creditors will stop any contact.
- The plan is not legally binding so you can leave your plan at any time
Disadvantages
- You will need to repay all your debt. For example if you owe £15,000 and can afford £100 a month, on a free debt management plan it will take 150 months to repay your debt. With a fee paying DMP this will be longer.
- Only certain unsecured debts will be included such as credit card, loans, or store cards.
- As you are not making your contractual repayments, your credit rating will be affected.
Debt Relief Order (DRO)
A DRO is a formal route into insolvency designed for people in severe financial difficulty that has a low income and low value of assets. In order to qualify for a DRO, you must fit the below criteria:
- Total debt level must be below £30,000
- Disposable income must be less than £75 per month
- You can’t be a homeowner
- Your assets (including any savings) must not be worth more than £2,000 in total
- You don’t own a vehicle that’s valued above £2,000, unless it’s been adapted for a disability
- You aren’t subject to any other type of Insolvency
- You haven’t been subject to a DRO in the last 6 years
- You’ve lived or worked in England, Wales and Northern Ireland in the last 3 years
Advantages
- You do not have to make any payments to your DRO.
- Creditors cannot take any legal action or add any further interest and charges. After 12 months your debts are written off.
- The application fee is £90 and can be paid online.
Disadvantages
- If your circumstances change during the DRO, it may lead to the DRO being cancelled.
- If your DRO is cancelled, you cannot apply for another one for 6 years.
- Your details will be added to the Insolvency Register, which is accessible to the public.
- Your credit rating will be affected for at least 6 years.
From April 2022 to August 2022 37% of customers achieved a debt write off over 80%
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a formal solution for those who are unable to repay the debts they owe and involves the write off of all qualifying debts. To apply for Bankruptcy you must pay a fee of £680 and complete an application online which will detail your income, expenditure, assets and debts. This will then be reviewed and approved should you meet the criteria. If you own your home, or any luxury items, you may be required to sell these to release funds to help pay your creditors.
A government Insolvency Practitioner called the Official Receiver will then manage the Bankruptcy.
Advantages
- The fee can be paid in instalments before the application is submitted. However, the Bankruptcy will not be in force until it is fully paid.
- Any debts included will be written off.
- Your creditors cannot take any legal action, or add interest and charges.
- You are usually discharged from Bankruptcy after 1 year.
Disadvantages
- If you can afford a repayment to your debts, you will be expected to pay for up to 3 years.
- Any assets (subject to those needed for reasonable domestic needs) might need to be sold to repay creditors.
- The Bankruptcy is added to the public Insolvency Register, and will affect your credit rating for up to 6 years.
- If you own your own home, you are likely to be asked to release equity to repay creditors.
- Certain employments might be affected.
