would it be preferable to go bankrupt ?

[kazzafunk]

Good to hear your news and I'm glad it's working out for you!

[thegripper]

Take my advice, if you have over £20k worth of debt, dont lie in bed worrying over it, go bankrupt, life is to short my friends.

[kazzafunk]

I do unfortunately - just sending paperwork off for IP to let me know if he thinks IVA or BR. He is more inclined to BR at present as I may have to reduce my hours due to ill health. Hubby going into an IVA though (due to personal reasons)

[thegripper]

BR all the way...id do it now because the cost of doing it is going up soon.

[kazzafunk]

Yeah I had seen that - IP says he'll give me his opinion asap. Do you really recommend it over IVA? They seem to be trying to make it harder for people to go BR

[andrea1968]

Going br would have left us homeless and penniless-the br would have meant losing our house and hubby losing his job.
So for many of us on here BR was never an option.

[thegripper]

Yes I would definitely.

Rather than paying all different creditors you just have to deal with the official reciever for 3 years then its all over.

The lady who deals with me at the recievers end is really nice as well.

I would really go for it, you wil feel such a weight lifted of your shoulders,one warning though, if you have any property they wil try to get it off you BUT only if there is equity in it.

Keep smiling it aint all bad.

[kazzafunk]

Hi andrea. I think that's where my options change as we are in rented. I will go with what is advised and see how it goes.

[kazzafunk]

Thanks for that gripper. Presumably you don't pay anything? I will only have a small disposable income as I will drop my hours before going BR if that is the option. That will help me sort my health out as well

[andrea1968]

Oh and if the official receiver believes your spending has been wreckless they dont have to stick with 1 or 3 years-BR could potentially last a heck of a lot longer than an iva-and more costly!!!!

[Broke of London]

Hi kazza...the allowances in iva and br differ so it is worth checking out which would leave you most comfortable on a monthly basis. E.g. I just found out that broadband isn't allowable under br but it is in an iva. However, br gives an allowance to save for Christmas whereas iva doesn't. I'm not sure why they differ as our basic needs don't differ!!! Good luck with making your decision.

[thegripper]

Dont listen to Andrea kazzafunk, she is just tyring to scare you and reply like you are daft or something, the world is full of people like that.

Kazza I dont pay anything and Im gonna make sure I keep it like that for as long as I can.I jacked my employment in and do my own work now.
b***** hell, you dont have to tell em everything you know.

Why would your spending be reckless if you aint got much to spend in the first place? Thats why people go BR in the first place because they are sick of being broke and hassled by snot nosed kids on the other end of the phone.

Do yourself a favour Kazza, if you dont have property with equity in it, go for it you will feel amazing when you walk out of the court, hell I didnt even have to see the judge I just waited 10 minutes after seeing the clerk and it was all over.

What tosh, you go for BR cos you aint got nowt, consider that Kazza!

[Broke of London]

There are pros and cons to all the options and you can't know enough before making a commitment that will last for a good few years. Anyone reading this will value all the opinions and information put forward.

I wouldn't advocate defrauding creditors or deliberately denying them a return though...your morals are your business but it is illegal and can lead to criminal proceedings. By not working you are also denying yourself as you can't avail of the maximum allowances. I saw my uncle do this in his br and he had a shocking standard of life on benefits but thought he was being very clever and outsmarting the system.

[kallis3]

Kazza, andrea isn't trying to scare you at all, what she says is perfectly correct. The OR will look into all of your affairs and if they thing there is something untoward they'll investigate it and it could end up with the person being given a BRU which means that the bankruptcy goes on a lot longer. Not that I think that will apply to you.

You're with one of the best in the business and she will advise you accordingly.

The allowances in BR now are more frugal than those in an IVA and the fees are shocking now as well.

I agree with BOL's post. Kazza needs to talk this through with her IP.

We all took out the credit with the intention of paying it back and I don't agree with people deliberately not working to get out of that, but that's just my personal opinion.

[thegripper]

Kazza,
all the O.R will do is ask you for your expenses, you will have to fill out a form so they can see what comes in, what goes out and if you have any capital.

They will be very fair with you just as they have been with me,they will tell you what allowances you are allowed.

At the end of the day it all depends what the total income is coming into the home, and you said in an earlier post that you are renting so you havent got anything to worry about.

My personal advice is obviously listen to what your IP says to you but from what I can gather from what you have said I strongly believe that if you can get together the money for BR then do it and get rid of all the hassle, then be open with the OR and just pay them what you can afford (I believe them to be quite fair).

When you have done this you will just have 3 years to deal with the OR. In a DMP it goes on forever and an I.V.A its 5 years. Dont put yourself through the hassle of it, why be tied to another legally binding contract like an I.V.A, just get rid and you will feel so much better because I did and do.

Take care and good luck.

p.s

Get of your high horse Kallis, just because you are an administrator on this forum doesnt make you an expert, I have tried every avenue, D.M.P, I.V.A even set up contracts with the creditors myself I had 2 years of crap and now its sorted. If you are trying to suggest that I have stopped work to get out of paying, you couldnt be more further than the truth, I do work 6 days a week and my O.R knows this but at this moment in time I just dont earn enough (yet).

I am breaking no laws cos my O.R knows all the facts so all the self righteous comments that have been made on here can just do one.