www.iva.co.uk

Hi - I have been struggling with debt for the last few years. As things stand I owe approximately £60k in unsecured debts - about £34k of this to my mother, and the remainder to a number of credit card companies and two personal loans. This amount of debt was created by a good old fashioned set of circumstances: I took early retirement from a good job in 2001, but have had only a modest income since as a self employed person. My income from a previous business dried up and the debts grew, as did a gambling habit that was aggravated by the need for me to constantly try and rob peter to pay paul. I am deeply ashamed that I could have been so stupid, as in "real life" I am supposedly an intelligent and capable person!!

I desperately want to escape this nightmare, and do more with my life than constantly worry about debt - it consumes all of my time and energy and has created health problems. I have come clean with my mother to whom I owe the most, and she wants to support me in sorting things out, but cannot (and I wouldn't want her to) provide any further funds. I have begun to take steps to address my gambling problem and have stopped gambling - but that still leaves me with the mess I have created.

I negotiated a DMP with some of my credit card providers a few months back and have kept to these arrangements so far. I am mostly up to date with payments, but the money has now run out and I will fall behind again soon. My income is probably sufficient to fund a reasonable IVA, and I would hope to include my mother in this as she has bent over backwards to help me and is not getting any younger. I have also thought about bankruptcy in as much as I have no property and no assets of any value - but I am worried that my history of gambling could land me with a lengthy restriction order and/or effect some of my self employment activities. I think my gambling probably accounts for at least 50% of my debt. Also, I feel very much that I have an obligation to try and pay back what I can!

It is the gambling aspect that worries me most - not only does it make me feel ashamed and stupid - I also feel that it will stop anyone from wanting to make arrangements with me of any sort. I have been reading this forum for a while, but still feel stuck - and yes, quite afraid of having to admit my weakness. But I know that I can no longer ignore the problem as the psycological pain is too much.

Sorry that this is such a long winded post - but any advice would be really appreciated.

Hey PerfectStorm, welcome to the forum. First of all, there is no need for you to feel ashamed. If you have stopped gambling and are seeking help for this then you should hold your head up and be proud of the fact that you want to repay the money. You really need to speak to a professional to see what your options are and your Mum's debt will be included in an IVA or bankruptcy. She may be asked by the creditors to step aside until they are repaid, but this is best discussed with an insolvency practitioner or a debt consultant. Please keep posting as you'll get great advice and support here.

Hi and welcome
There will be a solution for you, it's just finding the right one.
As Viki has said take advice from a few companies and weigh up your options
Regards

Hi PerfectStorm and welcome. There are a few issues to be addressed but having taken the first step in stopping gambling everything else should be easier. Your mother may be asked to step aside in an IVA [as she would not receive any in bankruptcy]but depending on her age and personal circumstances creditors may allow her to receive a dividend.

In bankruptcy you could receive a Bankruptcy Restriction Order [or Undertaking] but it should not affect your ability to trade much unless you have a lot of trade creditors or are the director of a limited company.

Speak to a number of IPs about the possible complications and good luck and keep posting.

Hi PerfectStorm and welcome from me too.

As the others say, seek advice from an IP.

If an IVA is appropriate and it is the way you want to go, your history of gambling will not be a bar to you entering into an IVA. Your creditors will mainly be concerned that you have stopped and are seeking help, both of which you can say you have done.

Thanks for your replies and supportive comments - it helps to make me feel rational again!! Although I have just written a reply, forgot to log on, and lost it!!

The bones of what I was saying is that I think my mother would be happy to step aside in an IVA situation if this would improve my chances of success. She has been fantastic! My rough calculations look like I would only be able to offer something like 35% as payback, although an IP may have a different view on this. I don't know what would be realistic in terms of getting agreement.

I think it will be essential for me to find an IP that can feel comfortable dealing with the ruins of my delinquent past, and support me in the long term.

I looked up some BRUs online - it seemed like most gamblers ended up with these lasting for 3-4 years. OK - not as long as an IVA maybe - but the creditors would end up with nothing due to my circumstances. And from my own point of view, it makes me cringe to think that my own behaviour would be made public like that. Although I would deserve it.

If your mother is happy to step aside for a dividend in the IVA then that would be great. Personally I would put forward a proposal to the creditors on the basis that she would get a dividend and see what the other creditors say. I would ask for a letter from her confirming her agreement to stand aside for a dividend if the other unassociated creditors required it.

35 p in the £ sounds like a good offer to me. However an IP will want to verify your income and expenditure and will advise you on where the creditors will consider any items of expenditure excessive or unrealistic. This is done to ensure that you are making your best possible offer to your creditors and that any offer is affordable to you.

You are right to say that you want to deal with an IP that is comfortable in dealing with your particular circumstances, though I think that you will find that most of us are pretty non judgemental. It is also important that you deal with someone who you feel comfortable with, after all if your IVA is approved, you will be dealing with him or her for the next five years.

Hi, and welcome from me too.

There are a lot of IP's and debt companies who post on here, and are highly recommended. Their details can be found via the experts page link on the left hand side of this page.

Alternatively, check out www.iva.com where you will find details of a lot of IP's and companies.

Give two or three a ring to get a good idea of all of your options.

I am currently acting for a number of clients who have previously had gambling problems - one client was a qualified accountant with £150k of gambling debt and that case was accepted, so there is hope for everyone who genuinely wants to find a solution.

I agree with Elizabeth in that your mother ought to be included for dividend, but she will need to provide clear evidence of her claim as the other creditors will need to be assured that her debt is genuine.

Many thanks for this - I am glad that my mother should, in principle at least, be included in the dividend. Afterall, she has had to suffer as much as my creditors! And probably more so. Proving my indebtedness to her should not be difficult, as most of her loans to me are clearly shown on her bank statements as transfers to my name.

It is reassuring that there is evidence of some former "gamblers" achieving accepted solutions. I think that like most addictions, recovery really depends on the "all or nothing" approach - so I have even put away the idea of buying a lottery ticket! I am going to spend this evening with a (cheap) glass of wine and do a detailed analysis of my income and expenditure in preparation for making an initial approach to an IP.

Thanks for all of the messages I have received from you guys - the best thing is that you have made me aware that there is non judgmental help out there so long as I am prepared to be honest and objective.

You have a very practical way of looking at things and this will stand you in good stead when you approach an IP. It is definately not our place to be judgemental - to be so would make us very unsuccessful professionals, and I do hope that you manage to find the right advice as to the options available to you. The very best of luck!