JSA is refusal for a DRO

bobsagat · 20 May 2017 at 1:42AM

Just thought i'd join and ask for some advice.

After a few emails back and fourth with a well known debt advice site, i was sent a final email stating that;

"Unfortunately as you are receiving JSA we cannot look at this at the moment as a solution for you as your circumstances are likely to change within 12 months."

Why, because my circumstances "are" (not might or could ) likely to change in the next 12 months.

So i had a quick look around for the qualifying conditions and have found that claiming jsa is not included as grounds for refusing a DRO. I've also sent a reply back for confirmation of that being factual and asking for details of where this is to be found on the insolvency service .

Are likely to change in 12 months .

On a further note, i was testing out a few other well known debt help sites that can also arrange DROs' and after completing their online tests, all of them recommended either a DMP or bankruptcy and not a DRO (even though i am left with about £14 a month to spare and my debts come to about £4k ) .

These were all the "free" sites. (don't they get their DMP plan fees from the credit industry ?)

wba31 · 20 May 2017 at 11:56AM

This isnt strictly true. An intermediary would advise you that if you did find work and the subsequent budget changes left you with a surplus over £50, your DRO would most likely be revoked.

The more i see on here the more i think the best way about getting advice is to speak to an advisor, face to face or over the phone, with a charity, CAB, NDL or StepChange (although they seem to have dropped the ball a bit with a few people on here recently...)

sourcrates · 20 May 2017 at 1:37PM

Are you actively looking for work at present ?

If your debts only amount to 4k, they can easily be resolved by a DMP, once you are working again.

I dont think a debt relief order would be suitable in your circumstances, likewise bankruptcy is a tad extreme, the process of debt collection can take a very long time, sometimes runs into years, just wait and see what your situation is in 6 months.

debt_doctor · 20 May 2017 at 7:29PM

Hi,

I have seen DROs be approved for anywhere from £1k upwards - it's not necessarily the amount owing that matters - it's the pressure the debt is causing. If you have half a dozen creditors all asking for cash then it doesn't really matter whether you owe them £300 each or £3k each - the stress effect is the same.
Of course you can enter in to a DRO on JSA, but what matters is what do you see happening within the next year? If you are responsible for running your own home then if you got a full time job on around minimum wage I would be highly surprised if that job would generate surplus income over £50pm following a recalculation.
If on the other hand you were living with parents, then such a job would almost certainly take away your DRO.

DD

[Deleted User] · 21 May 2017 at 4:57PM

Try another - I was always on the fine line with the 'charities' as they believed bennies should be maximised first.

In the end a private DMP company put me through. It might have changed now but the list back in 2012 had a few different intermediaries and I was minded to get as many different opinions as I could.

bobsagat · 22 May 2017 at 3:50PM

Thanks for all the input folks!

Many years ago when there were really only two options for us to take, which were to try and get a payment plan set up or bankruptcy, i went the bankruptcy route and found out the problems which came from not being able to have a bank account.

Finding out recently that there was a new route, that of a DRO, i prefer to go for a DRO . That is still an option, but i am also going to have a word ( using email and the paper method for proof of what's actually said and done) with the corporate entities spokesperson and inform them of what's what .

I did get an email reply back from the debt charity employee (r.e factual proof stated by the insolvency service that claiming jsa is a refusal for a DRO ).

"It is an internal policy that we don't look at DRO based on your current circumstances as we feel it is actually be bad money advice, if you were to find work in the next 12 months, it could fail and you would lose the fee plus debts would be re-instated. However, if it was an option that you want and are fully aware of the risks we can refer you for a DRO and you are fully aware it is against our advice. "

So, implementing internal company policy instead of following what is actual policy .

Sad to see, but it's disappointing to see this from a charity, and to see more so called charities creating problems with those they are supposedly there to help ( r.e workfare etc etc )

DorisTrousers · 22 May 2017 at 6:21PM

I have to say that I tend to take a more pragmatic view in these circumstances. If you are fully aware of any risk of the DRO being revoked and are happy to still pursue that option, then an Approved Intermediary CANNOT, repeat CANNOT refuse to submit it on your behalf. They can inform the Insolvency Service that they have recommended you do not pursue one, but that's it.

What is the worst that can happen? You get into work, the DRO is revoked (this is not a given, see Debt Doctor above) and you have lost £90. You cannot then apply for another one for 6 years. Losing the £90 may buy you, 2, 3, 6 months, or more, of some peace of mind. Is that a price worth paying? Only you can answer that, but a lot of people think that it is, especially with priority debts. You then enter a DMP to clear the debts, which is what everybody seems to want you to do anyway.

JSA is refusal for a DRO

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