possible for hubby to do the iva in his sole name

[jackiedf]

hiya..
married for 8 years. mortgaged together.. and just seperated . Hubbys moved into a rented flat which leaves me with mortgage etc to pay which i think i can manage along with 7 kids. (2 our own, 1 we adopted, 2 mine from previous and 2 fostered )..Is it possable for hubby to do the iva in his sole name leaving me up and running.. only one of the 8 debts are in my name..im additional card holder on the others(this isnt the issue tho as im pretty much happy to go halves... more about credit rating and being able to funtion with 7 kids)... or are we better off doing debt management so we can both move forward..do they accept real minimum payment??
Also have overdraft and one of the loans with the bank and have heard that banks have taken incoming money to pay off their loans not leaving enough to cover mortgage etc...is this right...can they do this or do we change bank as a precaution????
Any advice would be great...

[kallis3]

Hi and welcome.

Your husband can do an IVA on his own, but for any joint debts, you would still be chased for the entire amount.

As for the cards, I am not sure, I imagine if you have your name taken off them, it would be classed as his debt. The cards would disappear into the IVA so they won't exist anymore anyway.

You do need to change banks as there is a possibility they will take money from there to offset against the loans. Be warned that even though you may cancel the direct debit for loan payment, they may still take it out. That happens quite a lot.

I would advise you to give an Insolvency Practitioner a ring as soon as possible and they will explore all your options with you. Visit www.iva.com for a list of IP's, or you could give Melanie Giles a ring, she comes highly recommended, and her details can be found on the experts page.

[MelanieGiles]

Hi Jackie - Sorry to hear about your separation.

Would you be able to manage the payments to the joint debt on your own, as if your husband enters into an IVA creditors will expect you to pay them directly? Can you also manage any other debts that you have, together with the running costs of the house, and will your husband be able to afford IVA or DMP payments if he is paying you maintenance?

It is probably better to get used to your new living arrangements, and know what costs you are going to be incurring as individuals before you leap into a formal debt repayment plan. So a DMP initially to just keep creditors at bay may well be the best option, but have a chat with an insolvency professional to see what options you have.

[Michael Peoples]

Hi Jackiedf.
There are quite a few issues and you should both seek advice from an Insolvency Practioner and probably a solicitior. If your husband does enter an IVA creditors will want to know the full details of equity in the property and whether there will be a divorce and settlement. The judge will need to be aware of his insolvency prior to any settlement and you could be obliged to offer equity to his creditors. The fact that you are a named cardholder on his credit cards could in effect mean that you owe him money depending on how much you used the cards. Depending on the equity situation you could make an offer and he could use the funds to enhance his IVA or as a one off if he cannot afford ongoing payments.

It is advisable to open a new account to maintain your priority payments such as the mortgage and you could make token payments or enter a temporary debt management program until your best options have been decided.

Finally, as you are a foster carer your income and expenditure account would be different to a normal one as monies paid for fostering are allowances and not deemed the same as wages or child benefits. Any insolvency practitioner would need sight of your tax returns to properly assess your affordability.

[go_4_broke]

Hello

To get a proper debt management plan you would probably need around £100/month min dependent on the size of the debts.

What you are looking at is probably making some smaller token payments while you get things straightened out as suggested.

I would agree with Kallis that the card debts which are in hubbys name are legally his responsibility (at least for now) whether you have a card or not.

Any discussion you have with the professionals should centre around protecting your home as this may be at risk from (largely) your husbands creditors, as presumably he is the joint owner, but this depends on how much equity there is in it (value - mortgage outstanding) and how big this is relative to the overall debt.

Certainly get a new bank account ASAP and make sure all your income is paid into it.

Best Regards

[jackiedf]

Thanks to all for your time..
Ive now opened a new bank acc. away from the overdraft and loan attached to the previous bank and tomorrow arranging swiching the direct debits over too. i guess i need to arrange for my wages to be put into there but need to get the timing right so the mortgage gets paid okay.. is this quite a lengthy process or should the new bank be sorting that one out...Also have told hubby(ex) he also should be changing banks before he goes for the iva as his wages which cover his rent may?? be eaten up by the bank helping themselves to cover the overdraft and loan, is this right?
Also...if he does try to open a new bank account, once they do a credit check will they realise whats happening as applied for loans left right and centre and been turned down or only offered a small amount..
Which banks are more lienient and understanding ?? or arent there any ??? ! Is he right to get away from the bank with the debts attached to it ????
Thanks so so so much for all yout help !