Is bankruptcy the best option?

us,thecat&thedebt

hi all

im posting for my father in law.
his wife left in march this year and aload of debt in his name emerged!!!
it turns out that she hadent been payng car loans ect that were in his name for ages and hiding the letters..
my father in law works tremendous hours as his wife was **** so she dealt with all the bills to be honest he knows now that he was a push over
they had a joint bank account were his wages went in and she supposdly paid bills
well when she left finally!!!! there was no one to pinch his mail and he suddenly became aware of huge debts plus rent arrears

he is considering going bankrurt but isnt sure if this is the best route...

the rent account is clear but has had 250 worth of court costs added were they took to court then withdrew

his wife made a false clain to ir for tax credits and it was severly overpaid unfortunatly this claim was joint so affects him too..
she has left and he has custodey of there youngest son whom is 12.
she is on income support all though her new partner is loaded and she is enjoying lux lifestyle and contributes £5 a week to her sons up bringing..


any help would be so appreciated

current debts are

car finance for current car £10,000 currently paying £220 per month
car finance for previous car £8,000 currently paying £50 per month
credit card that is with debt agency £1750 paying £50 per month
tax credit overpayment of £1900 not paying back at moment
private credit agency £300 is £30 per week
bt unpaid bill at debt collection £400 currently paying £20 per month

income is £1100 take home every 4 weeks
child benifit £68 per month
maintenence £20 per month
outgoings
rent £354.12 per month
c/tax £176 per month (includes arrears)
current debts above £460
car insurance £15 per month
car expenses rfl/petrol ect £50 per month
food shopping £200 per month

the house is council and he has no equity at all
the only thing he has of value is the car which is on HP


ANY HELP IS APPRECIATED!!!

kevker

Probably the best advice is get expert help. This means talking to CAB and I would be inclined to get a solicitor involved.

Debras_Angel

I agree with Kevker - CAb should be his first port of call as it won't cost him anything except the time to put together a file with all the letters and outstanding debt details, and hopefully they can point him in the right direction.

He won't be the first or the last to get into this situation and in future he should always check out his finances if he goes joint again with someone else!

Hope it all works out.

Debs

diamondsky

Hi,

I'm a CAB worker and I would say he should gather all the latest debt paperwork and get down to the CAB.

Good luck.

Debras_Angel

diamondsky wrote:

Hi,

I'm a CAB worker and I would say he should gather all the latest debt paperwork and get down to the CAB.

Good luck.

Sorry Diamondsky..looks like we posted together!

Debs

Addicted2Chocolate

for info about process of bankruptcy see https://www.insolvency.gov.uk, publications, then ''Guide to Bankruptcy''.
I think that the overpayment of tax credit is not a provable debt, that means he is still liable to pay it after bankruptcy.
The car on HP: the OR will inform the HP company of the bankruptcy and it is liekly the car will be repossessed and the shortfall will be a debt in the bankruptcy.
the bankruptcy would include all his debts: including any council tax arrears, debts to friends or family, the rent court costs.
If his income is £1100 and the outgoings are less than £900 then he will be expetced to make a payment towards his bankruptcy under an Income Payments Agreement. He should work out carefully whats going out, including things like dental, optical, prescriptions etc. Any payment would certainly be much less than the £460 he is paying now.

us,thecat&thedebt

thank you eveyone for your advice i will get him down the CAB ASAP
The current car finance is in joint names with his wife how would bankruptcy effect this

his outgoings are more than 900 i only listed the basics

:xmassmile

southernscouser

Make sure you remember that the debt is in her name ASWELL! Make sure your father-in-law doesn't get lumbered with all the debt!

us,thecat&thedebt

southernscouser wrote:

Make sure you remember that the debt is in her name ASWELL! Make sure your father-in-law doesn't get lumbered with all the debt!

problem is she doesnt accept this and the finance company cant do nothing i asked if my father in law paid half and she paid half could that work and they said no cos if she dont pay then the acc is in arrears
she wont pay nothing
she has been moaning about the £5 per week the csa take out of her benifit for the upbringing of her child... she has contacted them twice to ask them to reveiw the case!!!!!
she even wrote a letter to the car company saying she had nothing to do with the car and not to contact her and remove her from the credit agrement the finance company were as shocked as we were if only it was that simple to et rid of debt lol

i thought i read that if a member of a joint finance goes bankrupt then the other party is liable for the balance anyone know if this is true

as for the tax credits i am going mad we informed them that the details were wrong when the reveiw came and they said they would asses my father in law as a single parent and close the joint claim down a week later they paid her over a grand which is part of the repayment they now want!!!

VenuS

Try to work something out with the debt companies first, via CAB, or CCCS etc. Remember bankruptcy isn't something to be done to clear debt easily, it must be a last resort.

Good luck

-VenuS

johnsmith_4

As I understand if one person of a joint debt goes bankrupt then the creditors will chase the other person for the debt and if there is a guarantor then they will chase them also.