could turn into my worst NIGHTMARE!

[andrew.g]

i have just recieved my proposal and am wondering if my IVA will be Accepted.
At the moment i am feeling really down and ill due to the stress of it all, i did'nt think that there was so much involved.
I have stopped paying my creditors HSBC,MINT,CAPITAL ONE & MBNA to name just a few as instructed, but i have £24500 worth of debt and am proposing a payment of £300 PER MONTH which works out to 55p in the pound.
What are my chances as i have never condidered an IVA before and am praying that it is accepted ,otherwise what started out as holding my hands up and asking for HELP! could turn into my worst NIGHTMARE!!!

[johnz]

I know it's difficult, but try not to stress too much about it. If for any reason the IVA doesn't get accepted there are options open to you. I have debts of over 30 grand and have a DMP in place where I'm paying back £315 per month. It will take me long than and IVA would have, and I have to pay all of my debt back, but stressing about something you have no control over won't help you in the long run. Trust that you have placed your finances in the right hands (your IP), and let them get on with it. Just start living on the new budget now and put aside the £300 you will be paying to your IP aside straight away. Start living as you need to go on.

Best of luck.

Johnz

[spenmotherhen]

Hi andrew.g Waiting for an IVA to be accepted is worrying, however once accepted your stress will diperse to a degree but budgeting after a time of spending is at times testing. The good news is that you soon learn to budget and apperciate the value of money alot more.

My IVA got accepted at 33p and I owed over 60k if this helps.

Good luck hope your IVA is accepted

[iva experts]

Hello Andrew,

The way you are feeling is completely normal, and probably all forum members can identify with what you are going through because they themselves are either going through it or have been through it.

Try and stay positive, if for some reason your IVA is not accepted at your creditors meeting you can always look into a DMP. With debts of £24,500 and a D.I of £300 you could pay off your debts in 6 years & 8 months. Eventhought this is slightly longer than an IVA you would still be paying off your debts.

Best Regards,
IVA Experts
http://www.iva-experts.co.uk/

[andrewgoodman121]

Thanks for the encouraging news, i have had my proposal back and ready to sign,
the hurdle rate for HSBC is 0.40p but i am offering 0.55p in the pound , if i went Bankrupt , God Forbid , the creditors would not get anything as i don't have any assets as such
so i would be puzzled if my IVA Application was refused.
If anything, the Stress and Worry of Applying for an IVA should be adressed as it feels like the most stressed i have ever been in my life ,what with the sleepless nights and constant worrying, especially after STOPPING payments to my creditors.
I think that the way IVA's are advertised is as though it is Painless and quite Easy , but i will tell you that it is nothing but TOTAL STRESS!!!!

[iva experts]

Just think about it this way, you have recognised that you have a debt problem, instead of continuing to stick your head in the sand and ignore it like 1,000's of others you are doing something about it. [:D]

As Johnz has already mentioned, there is no point stressing over something that is out of your control. Stressing/Worrying will not change the outcome it will just rob you of your energy, time and make your brain hurt alot more than it should. [:D]

Best Regards,
IVA Experts
http://www.iva-experts.co.uk/

[andrewgoodman121]

I know i have held my hands up , but i am 43 years of age and going through this kind of STRESS! from Creditors after STOPPING!! payments to your creditors as instructed isn't good for your HEALTH , so what must it be like for a lot of people who have posted on IVA.co.uk forum that are in their Late 50's or 60's or maybe are having Health Issues anyway due too loss of job or loss of earnings beyond there control.
I personally think that Creditors push people FAR!! too Hard and are quite intimidating regarding peoples Health and Circumstances

[aguise]

Hi Andrew it is stressful and i can remember collapsing intears due to creditor calls after stopping payment whiulst the iva was being set up and just undergoing surgery. I then actually became a lot stonger and thought that they didnt have the right to intimidate me the way they were and I dealt with it by actually phoning their customer services and making a complaint about their treatment. I must say this was only one creditor out of 17 and they were being totally unreasonable ,in fact calling me 14 timews in one day. Just take any calls in your stride dont get into conversation if you dont want, be polite give them the info they need, that you are taking steps to sort your finances and that you can refer them to your company. Dont be pushed in to payment they are quite often on commission for the amounts they get in so they can be aggressive. Just be firm and dont be spoken to rudely just say you are ending the call as they have the infoprmation they require.
I did find that once the proposal went back most went very quiet including the pesky one i had. It is only for a short time. I dont the setting up time of an iva is at all stress free but hopefully it is for a short time and then, the peace of mind is fantastic.
Hope this helps a bit.
You will be fine, we are always here if you feel like a moan.

Ang

Please visit my blog at http://aguise.blogs.iva.co.uk/

[andrewgoodman121]

Thanks Ang,
I know what your saying is very encouraging, but when they advertise IVA's and say we can write off 50% of your debt and be debt free in 5 years
and you see a picture of the perfect happy family
, it is so misleading.
What they should be saying is that you stop paying your creditors and get Loads of Harrassing Calls and letters for 6 weeks
,you get your proposal set up and there is no turning back having commited yourself and then there is NO GUARANTEE!! that it will be Accepted
plus from now on in you HAVE DOUBLE THE STRESS!
and could face DREADED BANKRUPTCY!!!

[gill.p]

Hi Andrew, I had my IVA accepted in December, and yes I can definately relate to the ongoing stress. I was in such a mess, I walked around at work a quivering mess, I had always paid all my cards, and to stop was really frightening!! I woke up every morning, wishing I hadn't and did not trust that the IVA would be accepted until it actually was!!!! No its not all nicely nicely like advertised, but when it is accepted, you will feel alot better. The waiting, i can sympathise with. I had a tight knot in my chest for months and regularly broke down in tears. Your IP would not be putting you forward for an IVA if they thought it would fail, it would not be worth their time and effort. Yes it will be a waiting game for you now, but their are other options if all else fails. To stop the horrid calls from creditors, we changed all our mobile and home phone number. It worked!!!! I can remember dreading coming home before the IVA was agreed to the post that I would have to open. I really do know how you feel, and i wish you all the best. There is a light one way or another at the end of the tunnel, so please take care

[andrewgoodman121]

Thanks Guys , for your nice words of encouragement, this IVA.co.uk forum is the BEST!! and i will try to sleep soundly tonight after hearing that you guys have been through the same feelings Pre-IVA than me.

[stoney]

Hi Andrew

Just to say that I know how you are feeling.. We are in the process of setting up an IVA and like you we are in our early 40's. We got our proposal yesterday and it takes some digesting! It actually gave me hope for the future and we will have to budget instead of have today and worry about it tomorrow. We have had the letters and phone calls and I'm sure that the Postman knows whats going on. The phone calls were hard to deal with at first but you get used to it, a lot of them are from abroad and by the time you answer the phone there is a time delay, quite often the line went dead so we didnt end up speaking to anyone anyway. There are a lot of people out there in the same boat as us on this forum, they just havent done anything about it yet. I'm sure it will all work our for you. Take care and try to sleep well if you can.

[andrewgoodman121]

Cheers , Thanks Stoney!!

[emma_t]

Hi Abdrew

I was in much the same position as you late last year and was a wreck with worry and all the 'what ifs'
I was so pleased I found this forum as I did not tell any family/friends i was going for an iva, so had no one to talk to about my worries.
I really don't think that any IP would waste valuable time preparing a proposal if it had little chance of being accepted by creditors. In your down moments try to also remember that the vast majority of ivas proposed are accepted (over 80%).
You will be in for a rocky ride with creditors calls, letters etc but try not to take it to heart, stay polite and keep letting them know the reason for your current situation and that you are in the proces of proposing an iva.

If there is anything you are worried about just call your IP for some assurance instead of worrying over things.

Also the forum is a fab place to ask questions or just have a moan when having a bad day.
If it helps I had debts of £46,500 and my iva was accepted at 38P in the £, I had hsbc, mint, capital one, mbna and lots of others also.
I had 82.79% for my proposal.

Look after yourself and stay in touch with the forum as it will really help you[:)]
Good luck
Emma x

[Martin2011]

Good luck Andrew....agree with all the wise words from friends above - to alesser or greater extent we've all been just where you're at and it's no fun.... but I'm prepared to bet that in a few months I'll be reading a post from you, on here, reassuring someone else whose woken up to their problems and taken the first steps in getting sorted.... believe me, you're doing the right thing and try to keep focussed on the end point, debt free in 5 years, seems an impossible dream, but it's real and within our grasp...

Very best wishes for an end to the calls and letters and the acceptance of your proposal...

Martin