I am a Volunteer Visting Officer for the Civil Servie Benevolent Fund, dealing with a couple with both substantial joint and individual debts. The husband insists that he wants to enter in to an IVA and that his wife must go in to this arrangement with him. She does not wish to do this. What are the legal implications in this matter. Thank you
Hi Christine and welcome to the Forum.
The wife cannot be forced into any arrangement but she should take advice. If she is in a position to maintain her payments to creditors she can do this but she cannot do this if she effectively is using her husband's money.
It is important to do a joint income and expenditure to ensure that each party is paying their fair share of the household expenditure and what is left afterwards can go to the unsecured creditors. The wife can continue to repay her creditors, offer reduced payments, enter an IVA or go bankrupt depending on her financial situation and the husband can do the same. Each person is looked at individually and advice is given on this basis.
If there is a property and the wife does not enter the IVA she would have to agree to allow it to be remortgaged in year 5 should there be any equity available. There are other issues that need to be discussed but I think these are the main ones. Any other queries and let us know.
Hi Christine and a welcome from me as well. Glad that you have found the forum and I hope you will find it useful if you are counselling indebted members into the future.
Have you ascertained exactly what objections the wife has against entering into an IVA - indeed does she actually need one in her own right or could she make a sensible offer of settlement which would lead to her creditors being paid an affordable amount over a realistic timescale?
Hi Melanie
No I haven't got all the facts yet. Hoping to have a face to face interview with her next week. Seems, from the paperwork, that there are a lot of other issues going on here and it looks like a real 'head banger'! Apparently her husband has been in a relationship with someone else and has run up a lot of debt (circa £70k) within this extra-marital situation. They seem to have a crazy amount of debt when they have a joint income of £3,300. Examples being 4 mobile phones costing over £100 a month and a loan for £16,500 for a BMW car. Also a very young and very pregnant daughter to support.
I can say no more until we have had the interview and I have the facts to hand. Don't think this one will take half an hour!
Thanks for your interest and I will get back to you if I need any further advice. I am most grateful for your contact.
Kind Regards
Christine
