Am I better off with a charity or a debt management company to resolve my debt problems
I have been given conflicting information and don't know who to believe.
I want to do an Iva but concerned how it will affect my future job prospects. I also am concerned may lose my house.
If you are going into a DMP, then the "charity" firms are probably a good bet, as they have a good working relationship with most creditors ( after all they are funded by the banks) and fees are not deducted from your payments.
If you are going into an IVA then you have to look at the fact that these "charities" will deduct fees in exactly the same way ( and amount ) as private firms. They have tens of thousands of cases dealt with by one or two IP's, who you are denied direct contact with. Private firms will have half a dozen IP's for hundreds of cases, who you can contact directly, should the need arise.
My opinions are merely that .. opinions based on experience. Always seek professional advice.
IVA Completed 23rd July 2013 .... C.C. 10th January 2014
The 'charities' are paid a commission by the banks to recover their money and there is conflicting information on their impartiality.
You should get advice from one of these so called 'charities' plus a debt management firm plus an insolvency firm and possibly even the Money Advice Service which is taxpayer funded. Ultimately you need to be aware of all the pros and cons and be able to make your own decision based on what is best for you and your family.
I stand to be corrected, but there is only one debt charity who do IVAs, and that is StepChange, and I understand that these are done in a separate company to the charity as they charge the same level of fees as the rest of us.
There are many charities who will put together a DMP in the so called "free" or "not for profit" sector - and a lot of them do incredibly good work and are supported by the financial institutions who fund them. There is a school of thought which suggests that you may get a better service by paying a commercial firm to repatriate your payments to creditors, but only you can make your mind up about that - and personally I would probably give the free sector a go and see how hard they work to get the interest and charges stopped, if you do eventually favour a DMP over an IVA.
