I am due an inheritance due do my mother dying in December 2014 and her house going up for sale. My IVA was started in August 2008 and extended several times and was paid up in April with extra dividend due to a PPI windfall but has been extended until November to see what inheritance I get. However, the house hasn't even been put up for sale yet and the company dealing with my IVA said it'll be extended after November for another 6 months if it isn't sold which means my iva will have run for over 7 1/2 years - and kept open indefinitely after that until the house is sold (my inheritance will be around £30-£40,000). When I pointed out that my iva has run for so long and I am having to rent a taxi for work which costs me £70 a week and if my iva was ended I could get one on finance for £40 a week the iva company was dismissive - their answer was "see if a relative can lend/borrow you £20,000 (roughly half my possible inheritance) and offer that to your creditors to see if they will accept that and close your iva so you won't have to wait until the house is sold before closing your iva" - and that was from one of the managers!! Is this advice usual or should I take it to a regulatory body or FCA or somebody like that.
To be fair the suggested compromise offer is a good one, although I am sure, with a little effort some way forward could be negotiated.
Is the estate being dealt with by a solicitor ? If so the IP could take an undertaking for the solicitor to hold your inheritance to the order of the IP.
My opinions are merely that .. opinions based on experience. Always seek professional advice.
IVA Completed 23rd July 2013 .... C.C. 10th January 2014
I see no reason for the IVA to remain open as the inheritance is captured by the IVA. The IP will have been in touch with the executors and solicitors showing their position so I see no need for your IVA not to be closed.
The settlement offer is a potentially excellent one for you although creditors may not accept it. However if you said that the remainder of the funds would be used to buy you a taxi for work thus saving thousands of pounds creditors may be sympathetic especially since you disclosed the inheritance and have been fully compliant.
Thanks Michael, it's Mccambridgeduffy that's administering my IVA so can I put this to them? They haven't been in touch with my younger sister who is the executor and there is no solicitor involved, in fact I haven't spoken directly to my IP for about 2 years. Furthermore what happens if my sisters decide not to sell the house for the foreseeable future? Does my IVA then remain open until it does?
IVA started March 2011, Completed March 2016 and certificate issued 11 days after final payment. It was not always easy but then some of the best decisions aren't.
Lifenoteasy.If you put your head above the parapet then expect to be shot sometimes! I have to expect problems but hopefully we can deal with them better than other firms otherwise I am giving up.
However, I have looked at the case and without going into any specifics I think what was suggested was actually correct. There was a variation proposed offering the inheritance as full and final settlement while also forgiving arrears on the IVA. The funds were to be introduced within a set timeframe under the terms of the variation but the property has not sold as yet.
We will have to go back to creditors once this timeframe is up and seek a further extension because the money has not been paid in. We will gladly go back with a separate offer to close it earlier with third party funds and no reason why creditors will not accept this.
You state that there may be a problem with your sisters not selling the property and it has not even been put on the market yet. This could cause a serious issue as we have promised creditors your share of the sale proceeds within a set period and this is not going to happen.
If your sisters do not want to sell they have the option of buying you out and we will call another variation. If they refuse to do either this could default your IVA which no one wants to see after all this time. By all means contact myself directly or speak again to Roisin who is the manager of supervision. James is your IP and he will also gladly speak with you as we do not want anything to fail now but we must supervise the arrangement in line with any proposal and variation.
I have a hell of a lot of respect for you knowing that you do put your head above the parapet and have there is nothing that I have seen over the last few months to change that view.
I also know that your firm helps sponsors this board.
Your approach is also better than some of the other firms that are more into reputational management than actually having a good reputation.
IVA started March 2011, Completed March 2016 and certificate issued 11 days after final payment. It was not always easy but then some of the best decisions aren't.
Cheers Lifenoteasy. We all make mistakes and how we deal with them is important. We like to think we try our best but at the end of the day we will get it wrong at times but we will deal with it. I will always try and resolve problems with our clients not just because we do not like the bad press but we do want to provide the best service we can to our clients.
Just musing on this situation: Could the share in the inherited home not be treated in a similar fashion to a property owned at the start of the IVA, once ownership has been established and assuming the benefactor doesn't own another property. Could he not, being unable to remortgage, offer an extension in lieu ?
My opinions are merely that .. opinions based on experience. Always seek professional advice.
IVA Completed 23rd July 2013 .... C.C. 10th January 2014
Unfortunately it is a windfall and must be dealt with as such.It would be difficult if not impossible to get creditors in particular HMRC to accept an extension rather than the windfall. If the funds were raised by way of a remortgage then this may be acceptable but it would need to be at least close to the inheritance value.
