Why would you send your proposal back with your first payment?
Have you been guaranteed your IVA?
If you can get the money back in the event of rejection then fair enough, but personally I would be very, very wary of paying for a debt solution that nobody can guarantee that you can actually have.
My instinct is to advise you to cancel the cheque/payment unless you have a cast iron guarantee that that money is fully refundable, no questions asked. If not, or if you are paying a packager, then my advice would be to speak to someone who asks for nothing upfront. There are plenty of those such firms about.
Regards.
Cert DR
23+ years in debt advice
I do not post for anyone other than myself
Mike I think the poster is with Melanie, so the payment is totally safe, I made one payment up front with a guarantee that it would be refunded in the unlikely event of rejection.
All the best and hope the date arrives soon. x
IVA final payment left the bank on the 26th January 2013...looking forward to a debt free future.
Sharing from experiences of dealing with debt
The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively.
Bob Marley. http://kallis3.blogs.iva.co.uk
There is no harm in sending the proposal back with the first payment as the meeting will be held quickly afterwards. We do the same if the client has the money and if rejected they get their money back. If they do not have the money we will go ahead and call the meeting anyway and I am sure Melanie operates something similar.
I am with Melanie and I sent my first payment with my signed proposal. I had it in writing that if my IVA was rejected, I would be refunded in full. So I had no concern about sending the cheque.
I never had to as I had no way of sending money - no cheques and no debit card.
However, it is always best to check what happens to upfront payments if you are not approved.
Sharing from experiences of dealing with debt
The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively.
Bob Marley. http://kallis3.blogs.iva.co.uk
Can I just assure any clients of mine who are concerned about why they are asked to make a first payment with their returned proposals, that this is very clearly explained during the initial meetings with my staff and the final clearance meetings with myself or my fellow IP. And in the very unlikely event that we will not see the IVA accepted, a full refund is made.
I resent the suggestion in the earlier post that this is in someway something to be wary of. It is actually common practice in most reputable firms, and to suggest that firms who do not ask for such payments are more reputable is pretty unfair.
Once proposals are returned to my office the creditors meeting is generally called on the same day.
I agree everhopeful, there is nothing wrong with making your first payment when you return your proposal as you know that you will get your money back if your proposal is rejected. The problem in some cases is that people pay money and don't realise they won't get it back.
You're in safe hands with Mel and her team. Keep posting to let us know how you're getting on x
I think that making the first payment on return of the proposal when you know the creditors meeting is imminent is fine and as with Melanie's firm fully refundable in the event of a rejection.
However, I think that firms who ask you to start paying as soon as you pick up the phone to them are those to be wary of, especially as you are in panic mode then and will pay whatever you are asked to get you out of the mess you find yourself in.
7 year IVA completed in December 2016 - there is light at the end of that tunnel
