Debt Relief Orders (DRO) - Information & help thread

redapples_2

Godiva500 wrote: »

For all of those who are considering a DRO - I applied when it came out last year, and last Friday my year was up. No problems or hiccups. Its well worth the initial aggro and wait - just keep going all of you and don't give up.

Hi Godiva, did you get an official letter from the DRO Unit saying you had been released and your debts cleared or something like that?
I've been wondering about this, I got a DRO in December and I know that people who applied when DROs came out last year will be approaching the year mark about now.

I'd definitly second what Godiva says, its difficult to take the plunge for a DRO but its worth it purely for the relief of stress in endlessly trying find money for your creditors. I may not have much money but I don't have any debt and I don't have the mountain of stress to deal with either.

elfieb

redapples wrote: »

Hi Godiva, did you get an official letter from the DRO Unit saying you had been released and your debts cleared or something like that?
I've been wondering about this, I got a DRO in December and I know that people who applied when DROs came out last year will be approaching the year mark about now.

I'd definitly second what Godiva says, its difficult to take the plunge for a DRO but its worth it purely for the relief of stress in endlessly trying find money for your creditors. I may not have much money but I don't have any debt and I don't have the mountain of stress to deal with either.

Sorry to jump on Godivas thread, but to answer you question, my DRO has recently ended, and no you dont recieve any official letter. It will however show on the IS website that the DRO moratorium period has ended.

My plan of action now is to clean up my credit file....making sure that all defaults show as settled from the day moratorium ended. Im going to print out my entry on the IS website to send to creditors as proof.

redapples_2

elfieb wrote: »

Sorry to jump on Godivas thread, but to answer you question, my DRO has recently ended, and no you dont recieve any official letter. It will however show on the IS website that the DRO moratorium period has ended.

My plan of action now is to clean up my credit file....making sure that all defaults show as settled from the day moratorium ended. Im going to print out my entry on the IS website to send to creditors as proof.

Its ok, thanks for the info! Re; the credit file, what you're saying then is that the entry from the IS site will stop the defaults showing if you write to the credit reference agencies but the fact that a person has had a DRO will still show on the file for 5 years won't it?

I was thinking of getting a pay as you go mastercard to start getting my credit file in better shape (cashplus Gold or something like that) I'm not bothered about having credit cards again but I could do with a small overdraft at some point, I have to watch every penny at the moment and always have to calculate into the future to make sure there's enough money so that I don't go 20p overdrawn or something.

thanks for the info again.

elfieb

redapples wrote: »

Its ok, thanks for the info! Re; the credit file, what you're saying then is that the entry from the IS site will stop the defaults showing if you write to the credit reference agencies but the fact that a person has had a DRO will still show on the file for 5 years won't it?

I was thinking of getting a pay as you go mastercard to start getting my credit file in better shape (cashplus Gold or something like that) I'm not bothered about having credit cards again but I could do with a small overdraft at some point, I have to watch every penny at the moment and always have to calculate into the future to make sure there's enough money so that I don't go 20p overdrawn or something.

thanks for the info again.

At the time of your DRO, all creditors listed on your DRO should show up as defaults on your credit report, and they should remain that way for the duration on the moratorium period, unless the DRO is revoked in the mean time.

Upon completion of the moratorium period (after 12 months), the creditors should then list all debts as settled on your credit file, but in reality they will probably need a little pushing to do this .

It wont change the fact that the DRO remains on your credit file for 6 years, but it does tidy it up for when the 6 years are up.......it also officially shows that the debts were written off upon completion of moratorium.

michellew_2

Sorry if this has already been asked I couldnt see it.
My husband and I have combined debts total around 13k, a lot are joint - overdrafts from joint accounts etc - due to the pension rule he isnt eligible for a dro but I am, is there any way to dissolve the "jointness" so these debts (50% I would guess) can be included in my personal DRO?
TBH the pension ruling seems a bit strange as he can't even access any of it (and trust me its not a lot lol but well over current limits) for at least another 10 years.
Thanks

fatbelly

michellew wrote: »

Sorry if this has already been asked I couldnt see it.
My husband and I have combined debts total around 13k, a lot are joint - overdrafts from joint accounts etc - due to the pension rule he isnt eligible for a dro but I am, is there any way to dissolve the "jointness" so these debts (50% I would guess) can be included in my personal DRO?
TBH the pension ruling seems a bit strange as he can't even access any of it (and trust me its not a lot lol but well over current limits) for at least another 10 years.
Thanks

The 'jointness' means you're each liable for the whole amount, not 50% of it. So with debts of 13k (or less), if there are no other problems, you can have a DRO. He'll have to wait for the outcome of the pension rule review.

immoral_angeluk

michellew wrote: »

Sorry if this has already been asked I couldnt see it.
My husband and I have combined debts total around 13k, a lot are joint - overdrafts from joint accounts etc - due to the pension rule he isnt eligible for a dro but I am, is there any way to dissolve the "jointness" so these debts (50% I would guess) can be included in my personal DRO?
TBH the pension ruling seems a bit strange as he can't even access any of it (and trust me its not a lot lol but well over current limits) for at least another 10 years.
Thanks

Only if you got divorced... lol

maroon_jelly

Would it be any use contacting my local MP to complain about the pension limit for DRO's?

Iv never contributed to my pension but my employer put some money in when it started, I don't know if its increased any but im only 21 so dont have access to it for a VERY long time but it could stop my DRO going through if its above £500.

Personally, I think they should be able to ingore pensions if you can't access it for the next 10 years or so.

I know one letter to my local MP wont change laws, but if enough people express their opinion, they might have a rethink.

Belows a link for emailing local MP's if anyones interested...
http://www.writetothem.com/

fatbelly

I was going to suggest starting an e-petition but the LibCons seem to have blocked them:

The new administration is currently assessing how best to proceed with the e-petitions service. We will update users as soon as practicable.

immoral_angeluk

maroon_jelly wrote: »

Would it be any use contacting my local MP to complain about the pension limit for DRO's?

Iv never contributed to my pension but my employer put some money in when it started, I don't know if its increased any but im only 21 so dont have access to it for a VERY long time but it could stop my DRO going through if its above £500.

Personally, I think they should be able to ingore pensions if you can't access it for the next 10 years or so.

I know one letter to my local MP wont change laws, but if enough people express their opinion, they might have a rethink.

Belows a link for emailing local MP's if anyones interested...
http://www.writetothem.com/

Not really. The insolvency service are aware of the problem and are looking at whether it needs changing. At the moment theres no real guideline time for when any such changes would take affect though.