Debt Relief Orders (DRO) - Information & help thread

caz2003uk

Alloneword wrote: »

It's not a case of wanting to use them more a case of having them there if i needed them, if cooker died or something like that, yea both the g/f and i are going DRO route I only have about 2k outstanding but it makes sense to do it given current situation.

All1

For 2k it might be worth seeing if you can set up a realistic payment plan, or do everything in your power to clear it instead of a DRO? (obviously I dont know your situation of if this would be possible) but a DRO will affect your credit rating for 6 years!! The CAB are pretty good with contacting creditors for you to try and set something up....

A DRO is insolvency, this means you dont have spare money to pay off lines of credit after basic living...There is no "back up" plan, that is what gets us into trouble in the first place...thinking what if all the time and by getting an emergency card or such just means there is available money...as you know doesn't always go on the intended emergency!

Post up your SOA (statement of affairs) and we can see if there is anything you can change to help...

JT87

I am in the process of looking into applying for a DRO.

I have had a Debt Management Plan with CCCS but couldn't keep up with payments, and currently have one with PayPlan but am really struggling.

I have nearly every Payday loan going (yes i know i'm stupid) but ended up in a spiraling mess trying to keep up all over the place. Plus a couple of other loans and a store account. This has been going on for years now and i just cant get on top of it and cost me my long term partner this year. Which has now made the situation even worse as i have to live on my own in rented accommodation which is very pricey whilst trying to keep on of so many debts.

I'd estimate my debts are around 8k, but with the payday loan interest rates i really couldn't be sure exactly how much, wouldn't be more than 10k i shouldn't think.
I've worked out that i would be left with around £100 spare income before any creditor payments, but with 18 creditors this isn't going a long way to getting anywhere.

My question would be is there any flexibility on the £50 to take in circumstances such as high number of creditors etc ? I qualify for all of the other requirements of a DRO so this does look like an option for me and seems to be the only option right now.

Any help would be appreciated.

caz2003uk

JT87 wrote: »

I am in the process of looking into applying for a DRO.

I have had a Debt Management Plan with CCCS but couldn't keep up with payments, and currently have one with PayPlan but am really struggling.

I have nearly every Payday loan going (yes i know i'm stupid) but ended up in a spiraling mess trying to keep up all over the place. Plus a couple of other loans and a store account. This has been going on for years now and i just cant get on top of it and cost me my long term partner this year. Which has now made the situation even worse as i have to live on my own in rented accommodation which is very pricey whilst trying to keep on of so many debts.

I'd estimate my debts are around 8k, but with the payday loan interest rates i really couldn't be sure exactly how much, wouldn't be more than 10k i shouldn't think.
I've worked out that i would be left with around £100 spare income before any creditor payments, but with 18 creditors this isn't going a long way to getting anywhere.

My question would be is there any flexibility on the £50 to take in circumstances such as high number of creditors etc ? I qualify for all of the other requirements of a DRO so this does look like an option for me and seems to be the only option right now.

Any help would be appreciated.

With a disposable income of £100 you would not be eligible for a DRO, it is strictly £50 per month

fatbelly

JT87 wrote: »

I am in the process of looking into applying for a DRO.

I have had a Debt Management Plan with CCCS but couldn't keep up with payments, and currently have one with PayPlan but am really struggling.

I have nearly every Payday loan going (yes i know i'm stupid) but ended up in a spiraling mess trying to keep up all over the place. Plus a couple of other loans and a store account. This has been going on for years now and i just cant get on top of it and cost me my long term partner this year. Which has now made the situation even worse as i have to live on my own in rented accommodation which is very pricey whilst trying to keep on of so many debts.

I'd estimate my debts are around 8k, but with the payday loan interest rates i really couldn't be sure exactly how much, wouldn't be more than 10k i shouldn't think.
I've worked out that i would be left with around £100 spare income before any creditor payments, but with 18 creditors this isn't going a long way to getting anywhere.

My question would be is there any flexibility on the £50 to take in circumstances such as high number of creditors etc ? I qualify for all of the other requirements of a DRO so this does look like an option for me and seems to be the only option right now.

Any help would be appreciated.

Caz - you're doing a great job on this thread and what you say is correct.

However...

although there's no 'flexibility' based on the number of creditors (why would there be - you're not going to be paying any of them) there is flexibility regarding your expenditure. Without looking at the fine detail no-one here is going to be able to say yes or no to whether you qualify. But the difference between £100 per month and £50 per month is only a little over £10 per week, which isn't much.

I would suggest that you get chatting to an intermediary from CAB, CCCS, Payplan or similar - probably start with Payplan and see what they say.

How much are you paying on the Payplan dmp?

caz2003uk

Thanks fat belly! I have 1 month left of my DRO now!

I know what your saying and I thought that myself but I presumed as JT87 was on a DMP that their SOA had already been looked into and hence knowing they had £100 disposable.....

JT87 maybe you could post up your SOA so we can have a look and see if there is anything you can do to help your situation?

fatbelly

caz2003uk wrote: »

Thanks fat belly! I have 1 month left of my DRO now!

I know what your saying and I thought that myself but I presumed as JT87 was on a DMP that their SOA had already been looked into and hence knowing they had £100 disposable.....

JT87 maybe you could post up your SOA so we can have a look and see if there is anything you can do to help your situation?

Yes , you're right that if the creditors already have an inc/exp statement from JT showing £100 surplus then there might be some objections. But I'm not sure that's what JT was saying and that's why I asked how much the current dmp payment was.

Of course if there's been a change in circumstances then that's an easy answer to why the statement has changed.

caz2003uk

Fair enough

Owls-Nick

Hello - I have a question with a DRO. I have been to see Citizens Advice and have been advised a DRO is the best option for me. I am in receipt of JSA and Housing Benefit, and have paid the £90.

My current situation means that I qualify for a DRO.

However, in a couple of months, I want to move in with my fiance! who is in a full time job, has a mortgage and pays all the bills. I don't want to move in with her if I am unemployed as I don't want it to feel like she is paying for everything for me.

The solution that we have both worked out is that we have worked out her monthly outgoings (For ease of explanation, lets say it is £1000). One of the criteria of a DRO is that I am not allowed to have more than £50/month disposable income, so would it be ok for me to find employment that pays a net income of £549? (Half of her household expenses + £49)

My debt advisor expressed concerns about me contributing towards the mortgage (although surely I can't be expected to pay nothing towards my house expenses - I'm not being added to the mortgage of course!), and said that there are certain trigger figures that the insolvency service wouldn't be happy with (I've looked online and found a guide which lists commonly accepted expenses, but the debt advisor says that the actual numbers are confidential and evaluated on a case-by-case basis)

Of course, in this scenario, if I had £549 of net income, I would pay my fiance £500 a month, leaving me with £49.However, as we're a couple and she currently pays for the household bills herself, this sum in itself will become disposable (yes, we've increased household bills such as groceries to accommodate my staying there) - so is this allowed? Do they look at her income/expenses at all?

As a couple of finer points, am I allowed to contribute towards bills such as car tax and insurance (I'm insured for the car as an additional driver, but don't own it)

Thankyou for any help you can give.

caz2003uk

I have had a similar situation in that my dro ends in 9 days! Me and my fianc! have lived separately as we were from my dro approval date and after the dro is done then my past can stay where it belongs and our future will well and truly begin! It's been a long year and proved hard for both of us living apart when we have wanted to live together but from next month he will be finding a job in my area and moving in!

I was told he could probs move in and still be in the terms of my dro but i didn't want to risk it so we made the decision to wait until its all over and start a fresh!

Rent/mortgage and house hold bills will be worked out on the total income to the household, as your partner is the bigger earner they will have a bigger proportion to pay than the lower earner.

If you have a car it needs to be less than £1k and yes you can calculate in insurance, mot/maintenance, tax worked out per month from yearly costs!

One thing though, you say you have paid the £90 this means your application has been completed (normally) it might be worth contacting your intermediary and asking these questions as they know your personal situation and also can advice on what to do with your plans

Owls-Nick

Oh dear

If it goes on household income, then I'm stuffed. She already has quite a lot of disposable income, and her car is worth well over £1000- she just lets me drive it.

(Oh - and on another note - we got engaged on the same day )