I am so nervous about appying for this IVA. I have spoken to 3 different companies and although clear debt made me feel better, i still can't help feeling that they are not helping me for my benefit.
Our Income as it stands even if my Housing benefit application is successful is £2200. Cleardebt have calculated my budget without the HB and suggested a repayment of £175 per month. I spoke to them today and advised that some of their estimates for our living costs were not correct and I was concerned that if we go ahead with the money as it currently stands without the HB, when the housing benefit comes in my payments would have to go up to almost £400 if this ends up being the case we will not be any better off and may aswell carry on struggling. which Cleardebt replied that things can still be amended and true figures put in at a later to ensure it is affordable.
I am so so worried. I am fast approaching not making my religious payments.
If you are not 100% sure then its not too late to try someboby else.
You really need to be sure before making such a big commitment. 5 years is a long time.
I think it is the process that I am not 100% sure with. Being perfectly honest if it was just me and my husband being affected by our debt then I would just carry on struggling meeting the minimum payments and robbing Peter to pay Paul, but it is affecting our children now with not being ableto put the heating on come October/November and not doing food shopping any more often than absolutely needed which at the moment is every 2 weeks.
I am sure once it all goes through and the figures are finalised then it'll be fine. I am just thinking it would be better to get the HB figures and the money coming in and start with the correct numbers rather than winging it and adding it on later. This way we start with a true income and a true budget for a family of 5.
Justs be sure and go into it with your eyes open. If there is anything at all you are unsure about then do speak to your IP as soon as possible.
clear debt have had a lot of positive feedback and an IP will only put forward an IVA they think will be accepted.
Always make sure you are happy with the proposal before making any committment to it.
Just to let you know, I am with ClearDebt and they have been great. When I first approached them they gave me a figure of approximately £370 per month to pay, but once the IVA proposal was drafted and all allowances catered for then this came down to £328 per month.
My only real gripe with them is that I spend £180 per month on fuel for essential travel, but they only allow me £130 per month and have told me that this is the maximum allowed. I manage this due to overtime at work, but worry as overtime is not guaranteed and if I lose it then I will struggle to find the money for fuel.
I am going to query this allowance at my annual review in November as I believe that there is no maximum and from an earlier thread was advised by an expert on here to save proof of fuel costs and challenge my IP.
Otherwise, your in good hands with ClearDebt, but do shop around if your not happy.
How long will it take before your HB application is looked at? Did they give you any guidelines? I'm sure it will work out in the end and in the meantime remember we're here x
Jtomo hope you get your fuel payment sorted. X
IVA final payment left the bank on the 26th January 2013...looking forward to a debt free future.
I have the forms filled in ready to hand in on Monday, I have to wait for a few things to come through lke a new tax credits notice and proof of child benefit, but generally i think it comes through in about 2 months, back dated to the date of the application.
I would certainly start the ball rolling., it can't hurt. As others have said, make sure you are totally happy with the company you are using.
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
jtomom64 we are also with cleardebt and they have been rally good with us and allowed us to reduce our payment after only about 7 months. If you keep the petrol receipts and provide them with the postcode for work I am sure that they can increase the fuel allowance - they have for us. Thanks to this forum, I have had the confidence to call cleardebt and speak to them without feeling embarassed at getting into this situation. Do contact them (or contact Mike Size5 through his link on here) and ask - I am sure they would not want you to struggle.
