Christians Against Poverty

[g.bm]

Hi all

Has anyone had dealings with this group on debt advice etc. My partners is currently going to start brankruptcy proceeding with them in support after it was decided she did not have the means to start any repayments via an IVA or other payment plans.

Thanks

[kallis3]

Hi and welcome to the forum.

Not heard of them personally.

I would recommend that she seek further advice by visiting www.iva.com

Does this company charge fees for going bankrupt? If so, I would avoid them as she can do this herself without any paid help.

[g.bm]

Hi
They do not charge directly they are a charity based organisation.
The background is: my partner is a christian and was put in touch, through her church, with CAP (christians against poverty). The met her and went through an income and expenditure proceedure. She only works 3 days per week, due to a recent illness, and also recieves diability allowance and working tax credit. After the review it was decided she had £200 to spare each month to offer her creditors. With debts of around £35K it was decided to go the bankruptcy route. The problem is that this process has taken 3 or so months and she has made the £200 payment each month. CAP have taken all the letters and delt with the phone call from the creditors- which is good. The £200 sum is broken down into £160 to the creditors and £40 into an account which my partner has access to,ie a rainy day fund. To get this money she will need to call CAP and they will transfer any amount (Up to the balance) into her current account for her to use. Is this normal??
everything seemed fine, no they are saying that the money she has in this account(around £120) will have to go toward Court fees for the bankruptcy hearing? First its her money -now its not! As she is on benifits and has an income from work of around £17K does she have to pay court costs for bankruptcy?

[kallis3]

I presume the £200 is her DI after essential bills are paid? If so, then she has enough to fund an IVA. I have not heard of this sort of arrangement before.

Court fees for BR are £600 a month so she would have to find the rest out of her own money.

Please get her to visit the link I have posted to get free and impartal advice. You should get a couple of opinions before making a decision.

[size5]

I have mixed feelings personally.

You can't knock someone who is prepared to produce a complete case for nothing, and having seen some of the work that CAP do for their clients first hand, I can confirm that their work is pretty good from what I have seen.

On the other side of the coin, I have had dealings with clients who have been very unhappy due to CAP taking money not only to pay unsecured debts, but also to cover mortgages and secured loans, council tax etc, thereby leaving clients feeling slightly like spare parts. I would also point out that this organisation seems to be very anti IVA, from my experience, on the basis that it doesn't pay all the money back and is therefore, somehow, wrong. I would stress, at this point, that this is purely anecdotal evidence based on my experience, but whether, if I am right, that this constitutes ethical advice, whether on a practical or spiritual level, is a matter for their own clients to decide.

Regards.

[g.bm]

£200 less £40 which is hers, leaving £160 to her creditors after all essentials have been paid.
Can you just confirm BR court fees- £600 to be declared BR?
I will try and get her to look at other options, but this CAP has been very supportive etc I am just not sure about the advice they offer- I have checked out the web site and all looks very professional- www.capuk.org
She has been told an IVA is not an option, and to be frank I think that a BR is the better option for her as she worries about everything and a 5 year IVA would send her over the edge- better to end it now and face the demons of BR and get it over faster- it has taken her 3 years to get this far!

Thanks

[g.bm]

Thanks size 5,
Thats sums up my worries, she was told today that £120 of her monthly payment is to go towards a £2500 council tax bill leaving only £40 to her other creditors. I am no expert but having started an IVA and kept it going for almost 2 years I have had experience on how an IP pays creditors etc- I think something is not right.
Thanks for the "purely anecdotal" advice.
Regards

[MelanieGiles]

To be told that an IVA is not an option is completely inaccurate - that of course is a decision for creditors to make.

If, however, she has decided on bankruptcy she must firstly work out a budget to ensure that her income at least covers her basic outgoings.

I would then recommend that she saves up the money for the Court fee and makes her application as soon as possible.

[kallis3]

I've just read my post again - I meant £600 to go BR, not a month. It's a one off fee, but if she has disposable income over £99 a month after essential bills are paid, she will have an Income Payment Agreement for three years. This takes between 50 and 70% of that DI.

Take a look at Skipy's blog as that is very informative about BR.

[Michael Peoples]

If your partner is going bankrupt why is she paying any creditors at all? This is ludicrous and the £200 she is paying towards debts would have funded her bankruptcy costs. Council tax would be a debt in the IVA along with everyone else so she should stop paying these people anything, save her money for the fees and go bankrupt!

If she continues to pay this money every month how is she to save the bankruptcy fees? She is also making preferential payments to the council in that she is treating them better than her other creditors in advance of going bankrupt. Totally crazy and makes no sense at all.

[animaleyes76]

Not passing judgement, but it seems quite weird that a christian group can have a problem with an IVA on the basis that it doesn't return all of the money, then suggest bankruptcy which pays even less...

Bizarre.

[Skippy]

I have to say that crossed my mind Animaleyes.

[Jan01]

Yes that seems strange because for me as a Chrsitian it was important for me to pay back as much as I can to my creditors. I was given the option of BR but decided to go for the IVA to pay back what I could. (This is my personal thoughts and no judgement on others decissions)
Jan

[animaleyes76]

Same as that Jan01

I could have done BR and actually someone I know did and called me a "mug" for doing an IVA.

He got away with no IPO as well, which was really surprising....

I just wanted to pay back as much as I could.. Have to admit though, sometimes I wish I had gone for BR..

[geri2004]

Both myself and my husband pay our creditors by using CAP (Christians against poverty). A budget has been set and we stick to it. Every week we pay an amount which pays each creditor an agreed amount off our debt with them. We have been told that it will take 4 years and 6 months for our debt to be clear (£29k)and we can 100% say with our hand on our heart that this organisation is great! They have never once judged us or asked us why we had got into debt. They never once made us feel guilty or pressurised - in fact they have been nothing but helpful, understanding and very sympathetic. We would have never been in a position to be able to live within our means and enjoy small treats now and again if it wasn't for their help. I would recommend to anyone in debt or having problems negotiating debt repayment to give CAP a ring.[:)]