www.iva.co.uk

Hi, I took a deep breath and made the call to enquire about an iVA today and immediately feel so much better. I've been burying my head in the sand for too long.

I would like to say a huge thank you to all who post on here as whilst I have been thinking about starting this journey, this forum has been invaluable to build up my knowledge. I've just completed an initial I&E ready for a conversation tomorrow.

Does anyone have any top tips of what I should do in the immediate future before I fully start this journey?

If your bank is one of your creditors ( or any of its Group members) you will need to open a new account elsewhere and it will be easier to do before a sniff of an IVA gets out. Avoid HSBC and First Direct as they close accounts of customers in an IVA.

Thank you

If you haven't already done so, talk to several companies before deciding which one to go with. This was the best advice I received before starting the journey. Good luck and well done for starting.

Yup shop around. Not all iva companies are the same. Be comfortable in your choice of firm to set the iva up, you have to work with them for a good few years.

Be realistic with your I and e, dont fudge figures just to make it look like the iva is the best option.

Paul

Make sure that any offer is affordable as this is key. Even if the payments are substantially reduced from what you currently pay ensure you can meet these as five years is a long time.

You should also ask as many questions as you need to and do not agree to anything you do not understand. Any firm will know that the whole procedure is scary for new clients and even confusing and will be happy to take time to explain everything.

Thank you everyone for your advice to my post. I've spent today talking to so many people, but have come decided on the IVA Company and the ball is now rolling. Strangely the worse thing that I have done today is try and open a basic bank account. Gone from feeling relieved when speaking to the IP to feeling sick and nervous again. However, I now have a bank account open, despite them wanting me to upgrade my account and even think about a mortgage and insurances!

They always try to upsell when you ask for a basic account ( they make more money from the packaged accounts).

Might I ask who you have settled on ?

Well done on getting things going. Once our budget was set we stopped paying creditors and set aside the payment amount we were to be making. This gave us an idea of what to expect. Decision to go ahead to acceptance was a couple of months and when creditors called, we just gave them Cleardebt's details.

Good luck!

Hi Foggy, I've decided to go with Melanie Giles team. I just felt at home talking to her and her team and feel I can work with them on this long journey.

Thank you again everyone for the advice on this board

You have an excellent team working for you -- a very good choice.

From every comment about Melanie that I have read over the past five and a half years, I am sure you will be fine. Unlike some IPs that I have read about, common sense appears to enter in to the agreement!

Melanie and her team are one of the best.