www.iva.co.uk

I have just checked on the IVA list and I am not on it. I had an IVA in 2010 which failed 18 months later due to circumstances beyond my control. This debt (from a bank) has been sold from one debt collector to another for the past few years. It has now gone to a solicitor. I cannot pay this. I am unemployed and care full time for my severely handicapped adult son. I then found out by phoning a debt charity that the solictors are not really solicitors, they are another debt collection agency under another name. Do failed IVA's have a time limit as to when you can carry on trying to claim the money? Or is this never going to go away?

The debt is unlikely to go away and they can continue to pursue you. If you have no assets you could consider a debt relief order or bankruptcy depending on the size of your debts but if you have assets you may need to reach some form of agreement with the creditors.

As Michael says, the debt will not disappear and will need to be dealt with at some stage to allow you to go forward without this extra worry.

I would suggest a chat with an insolvency firm to see what suits your particular circumstances or a visit to CAB in the first instance.

The assets question seems to be the real key here. If there are none then a DRO or BR look favourite. Even if it has to be BR due to the size of the debts then there are various organisations that can provide access to funds or grants to help with the cost of this, and of course there is no danger of any income payments with the OP seemingly solely reliant on state benefits for income. A DRO, of course, comes at significantly lesser cost than a full blown BR.

If there are assets to protect however, then more detailed professional advice would be in order.

Regards.

No assets of any kind. How much does a DRO cost and what is the procedure? Debts are £3500

Many thanks for all the advice

Church mouse

A DRO is £90 and is for debts of less than £15,000 and where there is low surplus income and minimal assets. You seem to qualify although I am wondering why you were put into an IVA for such a small debt or have the other debts been cleared?

there were 2 other debts which weren't pursued because of my lack of assets, I presume. This one has been relentless though.

If the total exceeds £15k you would likely still not qualify for a DRO as the debts are still owed. How much are the other debts?

The other two creditors could well surface at any time, so this is all best dealt with while you are still in the driving seat.

all together I think it was about £6000

Still well under the limits for a DRO, so that is still in the list of possibilities. And, incidentally, still on the low side to have warranted an IVA in the first place.

Advisor at the time suggested bankruptcy but I really didnt want to go down that route. IVA seemed do-able at the time and I felt more comfortable with that option, after all they were my debts and I felt morally obligated to try my best to pay them off. Unfortunately circumstances changed + payments became impossible.

Well, Mari, you tried. But now you have to get clear of this so that you can move forward. Pop into your local CAB and have a word with the debt advisor there. A DRO might be the best way now.

Thank you for all the support and great advice, I will definitely be going to my local CAB asap.

Have a lovely Christmas all and a Happy New Year