IVA 1st yr review

[yade]

I have been in my IVA for one year now and have a review due very soon. The IVA has not gone as smoothly as I hoped due to niavity on my part.
When I took the IVA out my I&E was one that was being used when I was in a DMP, it was ambitious to say the least because I wanted to show that I was trying to pay back all I could.
On the IVA being accepted it was accepted on the basis that I find cheaper accomodation once my tenancy had expired, basically £200 cheaper than I am paying now and that my IVA payments had to increase by the same amount. I wasn't happy but the horrid man from Payplan who dealt with it was very impolite and direct and basically said that I had no choice but to take it. I was in a desperate situation and agreed to it. It was only after that I saw that they had ammended my I&E to get a certain percentage and was totally unrealistic. Since then I had a 3% payrise at work which they told me wouldn't be considered because it was only a basic salary increase but I have been sending in my payslips and they are asking for more money from me to cover this. I simply cannot afford to pay anymore
I have managed to make it through this year paying the amount that was agreed but there have been months where I have had no money for 2 weeks, I have sold everything I owned from car to DVD's just to make it through and had to be helped out by my girlfriend and family just to get through.

I couldn't move out because I didn't have the money to pay for deposit and fee'son a new rental property but my girlfriend has now moved in with me and pays me money monthly to help with the rent and bills. It now makes it so I can make it through the whole month but only paying the amount that was originally agreed. I have made a new I&E that is realistic but I am really worried that in my review I will either fail my IVA or they will demand money that I simply cannot afford.

The I&E I have set out now is below, please tell me if it is realistic and allowable.
What are the chances of this being accepted?
I have been considering bankruptcy so I can get it over with faster and get on with my life, what reason is there for me not to?

Thanks in advance for any help

I&E

Income
Clients Income 1857.00
Rent from lodger 300.00
Total Income 2157.00

Expenditure
Mortgage/Rent 750.00
Council Tax 120.00
Contents/buildings insurance 26.00
Water 50.00
Gas 45.00
Electric 38.00
Landline/mobile phone 40.00
TV Licence 11.38
Internet 15.00
Bike maintenance 25.00
Public Transport 250.00
Housekeeping 250.00
Clothes 20.00
Hairdressing 10.00
Medical/dental/opticians 20.00
Pets 20.00
Total Expenditure 1690.38

Total surplus 466.62

[kallis3]

Hi yade and welcome to the forum.

On the face of it your I&E looks fine, but hopefully one of the experts will be along to assist with that.

I'm with Payplan as well, and apart from a glitch at Christmas, have found them to be excellent. I had a payrise last September and when I rang to tell them, I was informed that they wouldn't look at it until my annual review which is due March/April time. I've just had my quarterly review and my payments haven't gone up.

You do need to speak to someone at Payplan to get this sorted out as you obviously don't want it to fail.

If you have no joy with your case worker, try emailing your IP direct with your concerns. You can contact them via this link:

http://www.insolvency-service.co.uk/newipsearch.htm

[yade]

Thanks for your help. I will contact Payplan tomorrow. By their calculations I would have to pay in excess of £600 per month which I just cannot afford. The amount I am paying is exactly what I can pay and I am worried that if they ask for more then bankruptcy is my only option.

[kallis3]

They should realise this and adjust your I&E accordingly.

If your case worker can't help, then use the link provided to contact the IP direct.

I hope you get it sorted out. Let us know how you get on with them.

[MelanieGiles]

What a shame that you are not getting support from a firm that are frequently recommended by creditors. If you cannot afford the payments, and they are not appreciating your actual income and expenditure, then as a tenant with presumably no assets which would be available to a Trustee in bankruptcy, I would give serious considerations to whether bankruptcy is a better option for you moving forward.

That said - and I am assuming that you are now a family of two adults, I feel that your expenditure is on the light side - but if that is what you spend then it must be correct.

I note that you have not included anything for the following areas, which may have been overlooked when you were writing down your figures.

Meals at Work
Sports, hobbies and entertainment
Sundries and emergencies
Bike Insurance
Bike Fuel
Household repairs and maintenance

Now that you are living with your partner, are you sure that her contribution represents a fair share of household bills based on the ratio of your individual earnings. Your IP will no doubt need to look at this.

[yade]

Hi Melanie,

Thanks for terrific advice.
My rent of 750 is for a 3 bedroom house which I originally rented because it is a great price for that and I know the owner so there were no big fee's when I took it out it was me and I had a friend living with me who was giving me £300 but he moved out because his situation changed and when I went into the IVA I was living alone and they decided that I should be paying £550 which was the going rate for a single person.

My girllfriend has moved in since November but can only afford to give me £300 because she has a child and to move in with me she has lost her single working parent benefits completely because they only take into consideration my income and not my debt.

I kept my I&E for me as a single person but included the £300 payment as additional income for simplicity. Would it be better to include my partners part time income and expenditure or should I leave it as it is? From my point of view I guess I would like to do what leaves me best off and struggling less but what would the IP accept.

Can I go from an IVA to bankruptcy myself or would I have to have my IVA fail before hand?

I am sad that it has come to this and wish I had seeked advice from such websites before I accepted my IVA.

[kallis3]

If you are thinking of bankruptcy, you will have to let your IVA fail first by missing three payments (which should allow you to save for the fees). You can fill in the forms online, and there is always someone around to help you if you get stuck.

[MelanieGiles]

As you are now living as a family, I would present your income and expenditure to your IP in this manner, so that they can work out what your individual percentages are for the purpose of allocating expenditure. Make sure your partner's child benefit and any tax credits are also included.

If they still refuse to acknnowledge your change of circumstances, or that you are struggling with your payments at the current level, then bankruptcy might be the only way forward.

[kallis3]

Let us know how you get on yade. I hope they are sympathetic.

[yade]

Well I spoke to Payplan today, I am not sure what I was so scared of. The girl seemed helpful and understanding. She did say that agreeing an unrealistic I&E was my big mistake when agreeing the IVA. They said that it is unlikely to get an increase without extending it over a longer period which I wouldn't like). They also said that in terms of my girlfriend they because she has her own commitments it would be best to put her down as a lodger to ensure it doesn't affect her in any way.They want to go through what I think my I&E realistically is tomorrow so I just wanted to see what you think of this as a realistic I&E that wont get bashed down immediately.

Your updated I&E

Clients Income 1857.00
Payment from Lodger 300.00
Total Income 2157.00

Expenditure
Mortgage/Rent 750.00
Council Tax 120.00
Contents insurance 26.00
Water 40.00
Gas 45.00
Electric 38.00
Landline/mobile phone 50.00
TV Licence 12.00
Internet (Need for work)15.00
Pushbike maintenance 20.00
Travel 250.00
Housekeeping 200.00
Clothes 30.00
Hairdressing 10.00
Medical 20.00
Pets 20.00
Sundries & emergencies 20.00
Household maintenance 15.00
Meals at work 30.00
Sports & entertainment 20.00
Holiday 30.00
Total Expenditure 1761.00

Total surplus 396.00

I don't know what is and isn't allowed but think that is a fair judgement. Please can you let me know if there is anything I should add/remove and whether the amounts seem fair?

Thanks in advance

[Michael Peoples]

Hi Yade. That seems like a reasonable income and expenditure and hopefully Payplan will accept it. If you are comfortable with the payments the IVA is more likely to run it's course which is best for all concerned.

[MelanieGiles]

Interesting to note that they say it was your fault for accepting unrealistic expenditure. I wonder where some of those figures really came from, being cynical?

[yade]

I looked through my email today and found my original I&E that I submitted to Payplan, it is totally different to the one that they submitted to the creditors. I accepted it because of the desperation to change my situation. I just wish I had seeked more advice before accepting the IVA. I was not in control of the situation where now I realise that I should not have had everything dictated to me. I hope that the IVA can continue but I am still very much looking into BR, it all depends on how Payplan are with me and what they come back with after I sent the new I&E

[kallis3]

I must admit that our I&E was never changed. We altered it last year as obviously things had gone up, and it was accepted with no problems.

If you don't get anywhere with your case officer, you could try emailing your IP direct via this link:

http://www.insolvency-service.co.uk/newipsearch.htm

[Michael Peoples]

Best of luck Yade and if you have to petition for bankruptcy do not worry. You tried your best and you should not be in an IVA where you are struggling and know you will struggle for the duration of the term.