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Hi guys,

I am currently off work sick due to back problems, due to the nature of the job I do (Call Centre) it means that it's pretty much impossible for me to go to work whilst I'm in this condition. My sick note runs out tomorow and I have to go back to the doctors tomorrow and I anticipate that I am going to have to take more time off. The problem I have is that the company I work for don't pay sick pay, therefore I'm already down a weeks wages and I'm out of my mind with worry on how this is going to impact our IVA. We've made 3 payments so far and if I have to take more time off we won't be able to pay anything this month.

As you can appreciate my health is paramount and I don't want to cause any lasting damage to my back with going into work against my doctors advice.

Any advice would help as I don't know what to do.

Don't want to let it lay me down this time, drown my will to fly....

Employment Law Explained
Sick Pay
Many written Contracts of Employment provide for the payment of sick pay and it is these contractual terms that the employer is obliged to follow.

If the Contract is silent, most employees are entitled to be paid Statutory Sick Pay.

There are exceptions, which include the extremely low paid, who do not earn enough to pay National Insurance Contributions or pregnant women. The rate of Statutory Sick Pay is £64.35 per week. It is not payable for the first three days of any illness. Statutory sick pay entitlement lasts for up to 28 weeks.

If an employee does not qualify for statutory sick pay he/she may still qualify for sickness benefit from the DSS.

Statutory sick pay will be paid by the employer and reclaimed from the state. Statutory sick pay is payable at a weekly rate divided by the number of qualifying days in that week. The qualifying days usually follow the normal pattern of working days, for example Monday to Friday. The qualifying days can, however, be less, but there must be at least one qualifying day per week.



Empty pockets never held anyone back. Only empty heads and empty hearts can do that.

Thanks for that, SSP works out at £15 per day for me so I will be able to over any sick pay I get to the agreement that's not a problem. My salary is a lot more than £15 per day though....

Don't want to let it lay me down this time, drown my will to fly....

Hi princessb

I am not able to advise you on whether or not you should be reciving sick pay. However, in terms of your IVA, with legitimate problems such as sickness, you will notmally be able to take a payment holiday. This could be for up to 6 months depending on the nature of your illness. You will obviously have to make up the missed payments at the end of your IVA but a payment holiday will give you a breathing space and help you to get better without the worry of how to pay your IVA hanging over you.

You should discuss this with you IP asap

James Falla

Expert in IVA, Bankruptcy and informal Debt Management solutions for over 10 years.

For more information visit www.jamesfalla.com and visit my blog at: http://jamesfalla.blogs.iva.co.uk

Hi James,

Thanks for your help. I don't get sick pay because I'm within my first 6 months with the company. I have emailed my IP with the details and he usually gets back to me pretty quickly.



Don't want to let it lay me down this time, drown my will to fly....

This is perhaps one of the advantages of having the type of insurance policy that John often refers to - which would cover IVA payments in such circumstances.

John - if you are watching this evening, is this the sort of cover your ASDU policy would provide?

Regards, Melanie Giles, Insolvency Practitioner for over 20 years.

To have me propose an IVA for you, please visit:
http://www.melaniegiles.com/ivaEnquiry.asp

See customer feedback at:
http://www.iva.com/iva_companies/IVA_Advice_Bureau.asp

Hi Melanie

Can you get payment protection type insurance policies to cover iva payments in cases of sickness ore redundancy?
Do you think they are needed?

You can Emma - although I have to say that creditors do not always see the benefit of funding the insurance premium, as obviously this would have to be paid as part of the IVA allowable expenditure.

My own experiences of these types of policy are not good I am afraid, in that I found it very difficult to claim - and actually gave up using such schemes over 5 years ago, but John reassures me that the new products available are much better and soundproof from a claims point of view.

I think the industry as a whole needs to embrace such policies before they ever get popular, and it would be useful to know how many IVAs are accepted and backed by ASDU insurance. I suspect not very many!

Regards, Melanie Giles, Insolvency Practitioner for over 20 years.

To have me propose an IVA for you, please visit:
http://www.melaniegiles.com/ivaEnquiry.asp

See customer feedback at:
http://www.iva.com/iva_companies/IVA_Advice_Bureau.asp