Ask a CCCS counsellor a bankruptcy question

StepChange_Pavan

BaldEagle wrote: »

I will be filing for bankruptcy in a couple of weeks time. Already have a Barclays Cash Card account. What is likely to happen to this? Will it get frozen?

I've deliberately picked a date which falls in between regular outgoings from the account but am concerned if it does get frozen that my housing benefit won't get paid in.

Any advice?

Hi BaldEagle and thanks for your post.

Your bank account will be frozen whilst the Official Receiver investigates your finances. I can’t guarantee how long this will be for so it’s best to ensure that you have access to your funds and make alternative arrangements for your income.

As you have a basic bank account, you should be able to continue to use this account afterwards.

You could ask for other people’s experiences on the forum and this leaflet gives you more information about what happens to your bank account in bankruptcy too.

I hope this helps.

Kind regards,
Pavan

StepChange_Pavan

Shiva wrote: »

Last June, I was unable to make the minimum payments (over a thousand a month). I defaulted on 35K of debt. I have been in California since then - I got married at Niagara Falls to my true love, whom I had met July 4th 2009. This is a marriage of love, not arrangement.

My long-suffering parents have been fending off calls and returning the letters to the Credit-Card companies. I was living with my parents when I took out the credit cards. My Barclays account (3K of debt) directs their mail to me in California, which I ignore, along with the rest of the letters back home. I know from their letters - of course I read them - that this debt has been passed to a debt-collecting agency. I have not responded or tried to contact any of my creditors - I am unsure if this is wise - I would welcome any advice. I have no green card, so do not earn any money, although my support for my wife"s work helps her earn a great deal more than previously - we are just about making it through and we have no credit cards or debts.

My Orange phone was disconnected and they demanded I pay the 600 remaining on the contract - I had tried to work out arrangements but they could not shift from protocol, despite me being a Premier level 5 customer. So I am uncontactable by phone.

I have had no contact from any of them. I am returning to England in April and must stay for 5-9 months while my wife files papers to petition for my change of status in the US after which I can live in the US and get a green card.

What is my status when I return to England in April? Am I a fugitive? Am I a criminal? The money was borrowed with the genuine intent of paying it back, so there was not an attempt to gain money by deception? Do I have to declare bankruptcy? I would welcome any and all advice as to my legal status - and thank you in advance for not judging me.

Many thanks,
Shiva

Hi Shiva and thank you for your post.

It’s not a criminal offence that you are not currently in a position to repay your debts. There may be several different debt solutions available to you, but it’s difficult to say without knowing the details of your situation.

Bankruptcy could be an option but I’m not sure how this would affect your eligibility for a green card and is something you would need to consider.

I’d really recommend that you give us a call so that we can explore all of the options that are available to you.

You can call us on +44 113 297 0126 to book an appointment with a counsellor. Lines are open Monday to Friday 08:00-20:00. It would be helpful that when you call you have details ready regarding your income, expenditure and creditors, as this can help speed up the referral process. If you have this information ready it may be possible to refer you directly to a counsellor if one is available, otherwise we will arrange a time that is convenient for you to be called back for an appointment.

I hope this helps.

Kind regards,
Pavan

Zacky4

Hi To all here...Would appreciate a view on my financial position if poss please!

Last year I got myself in debt to the tune of around £30k on cards and loans with 4 creditors. I was advised to take out a debt management plan rather than bankruptcy or an IVA ,which i did but now I am out of work and cannot afford the repayments..
My position now is that I have no earnings or savings but have a house worth £170k with about £30k equity in it..
I would like to consider bankruptcy if it clears everything but afraid I will lose the house or equity in it...

Any advice here much appreciated!

CCCS_Sue

Zacky4 wrote: »

Hi To all here...Would appreciate a view on my financial position if poss please!

Last year I got myself in debt to the tune of around £30k on cards and loans with 4 creditors. I was advised to take out a debt management plan rather than bankruptcy or an IVA ,which i did but now I am out of work and cannot afford the repayments..
My position now is that I have no earnings or savings but have a house worth £170k with about £30k equity in it..
I would like to consider bankruptcy if it clears everything but afraid I will lose the house or equity in it...

Any advice here much appreciated!

Hi zacky4 and thank you for your message

Bankruptcy is a serious step to take and you really need to get some further help and advice on all your options before you decide on this solution.

Your share of any equity in your property will be regarded as an asset and if your property has over £1000 equity at the date of the bankruptcy, then the case is referred to an IP.
The IP may ask you to either get someone to buy out the equity or ask you to sell to release the equity.

I have attached a link to a leaflet from the Insolvency Service which gives you further information regarding your home in bankruptcy which may help.

http://www.insolvency.gov.uk/pdfs/guidanceleafletspdf/home.pdf

If you would like us to provide you with advice on your financial situation you can either use our online advice facility Debt Remedy, or ring our free Helpline to book a telephone appointment with a counsellor.

Debt Remedy will assist you in completing a financial statement which includes information on your household, employment, income, expenditure and debts. All this information is used as a basis to determine the options available to you to deal with your situation.
Alternatively if you would prefer to talk to a debt counsellor about your situation, you can book a telephone based appointment by calling our helpline free on 0800 138 1111. Lines are open Monday to Friday 08:00-20:00
If bankruptcy is your best solution, then we do have a bankruptcy support team who can support you further.

Kind Regards
Sue

ktb17

I'm sorry if this has been asked before.

I have got all my forms ready for bankruptcy and am ready to take to court on Monday. Anyway suddenly had a panic about my childrens savings accounts. I have 3 children and I set up accounts for all of them when they were born, my Mum sends them each £5 pocket money a week which goes into these. I haven't put any of these accounts on my forms, should I have? My eldest has £1000 in, 3 yr old £600@ and youngest about £250.
I am trustee on all 3 accounts but they are in the childrens names. One is with Nationwide and the other 2 with Halifax. I also have a joint account with Halifax with my partner (he will not be bankrupt) the childrens accounts show on my internet banking as if they are somehow linked to my current account as does MY credit card. So Halifax is one of my creditors.
Will they try and take the money from the childrens accounts? Will they close the accounts? Should I have put these accounts on bankruptcy forms? What would be my options if they insisted on closing them? If my partner (childrens father) is not bankrupt can he just open another account for them?
Also will they definitely withdraw the overdraft on a joint account or will they just transfer the account into his sole name?

Sorry lots of questions.

Thanks

Kate

tigerfeet2006

Halifax seriously hate BR and will close any account associated with one. I would recommend you change the 2 childrens accounts to another bank. The money in these won't be taken from them as they do not belong to you.

If the joint account has no OD then get you name taken off it, if he wants to keep this account, or close the account and he can get a new one. If it has an OD then you can't get your name removed and the Halifax will close the account and chase your OH for the balance.

TanyaN29

Apologises if this is in the wrong place. Can anyone advise me.

I spilt with my ex-partner over 2 years ago and went Bankrupt, naively believing that my name would automatically be removed from the mortgage. On trying to rent a new property I failed a credit check, which prompted me to check my credit reports, to which I find that although I havent been anywhere near the old house for two years or more I am still on the mortgage and my ex is 3 months in arrears. How do I go about removing myself from the joint mortgage?

I am in desperate need of help as I am awaiting the OR's response to the same question but cant see how I can start to improve my credit file and get my life back on track if I remain attached to my ex and the mortgage for the next 17 years and he continues to be in arrears.

PS I dont want anything out of the house or him, just the freedom to rebuild my life and do whats best for our child.

Did inform the bank when we first split, but ex made me feel pressurised into remaining on the mortgage, (since which I've learnt he's renting it out, so cant understand why he not paying)

StepChange_Pavan

ktb17 wrote: »

I'm sorry if this has been asked before.

I have got all my forms ready for bankruptcy and am ready to take to court on Monday. Anyway suddenly had a panic about my childrens savings accounts. I have 3 children and I set up accounts for all of them when they were born, my Mum sends them each £5 pocket money a week which goes into these. I haven't put any of these accounts on my forms, should I have? My eldest has £1000 in, 3 yr old £600@ and youngest about £250.
I am trustee on all 3 accounts but they are in the childrens names. One is with Nationwide and the other 2 with Halifax. I also have a joint account with Halifax with my partner (he will not be bankrupt) the childrens accounts show on my internet banking as if they are somehow linked to my current account as does MY credit card. So Halifax is one of my creditors.
Will they try and take the money from the childrens accounts? Will they close the accounts? Should I have put these accounts on bankruptcy forms? What would be my options if they insisted on closing them? If my partner (childrens father) is not bankrupt can he just open another account for them?
Also will they definitely withdraw the overdraft on a joint account or will they just transfer the account into his sole name?

Sorry lots of questions.

Thanks

Kate

Hi Kate and thank you for your question.

It’s best to be honest about the accounts and what they’re for. You should declare them on your forms and provided that the Official Receiver can see that the money has built up steadily and you’re not avoiding paying your debts by hiding money in there, you shouldn’t have a problem. It’s best not to start moving money from one account to another, as the OR will investigate this and it will look more suspicious than if you are just upfront about the situation.

With regards to your joint account with your partner, this will be frozen at the time of your bankruptcy. If there is an outstanding amount owed on the overdraft you should include this in your list of creditors. Your partner should open up a bank account elsewhere but needs to know that he is liable for the overdraft and they could chase him for the full amount.

I hope this answers your questions, but I’d really recommend that you call our helpline so we can discuss them with you if you have any more.

Kind regards,
Pavan

CCCS_Sue

TanyaN29 wrote: »

Apologises if this is in the wrong place. Can anyone advise me.

I spilt with my ex-partner over 2 years ago and went Bankrupt, naively believing that my name would automatically be removed from the mortgage. On trying to rent a new property I failed a credit check, which prompted me to check my credit reports, to which I find that although I havent been anywhere near the old house for two years or more I am still on the mortgage and my ex is 3 months in arrears. How do I go about removing myself from the joint mortgage?

I am in desperate need of help as I am awaiting the OR's response to the same question but cant see how I can start to improve my credit file and get my life back on track if I remain attached to my ex and the mortgage for the next 17 years and he continues to be in arrears.

PS I dont want anything out of the house or him, just the freedom to rebuild my life and do whats best for our child.

Did inform the bank when we first split, but ex made me feel pressurised into remaining on the mortgage, (since which I've learnt he's renting it out, so cant understand why he not paying)

Hi TanyaN29 and thank you for your message


Did you get some professional advice regarding your joint property when you went bankrupt?


I don’t know your full circumstances, but just to be aware that if the property was in negative equity when you went bankrupt two years ago, and you own a share, then the OR still has some time left to realise this.
The OR used to have the ability to watch a property for three years to see if it came into positive equity.
This changed to 2yrs 3months this January.

Any equity in your share of a joint property could be seen as an asset.

Again, I don’t know your full situation, but you may need to take this into consideration.

I would recommend that you wait and see what the OR says regarding this before trying to remove your name from the mortgage.

It is possible to remove your name from a mortgage, but your ex partner may have to refinance the mortgage into his name only. The fact that he is renting out the property and is in arrears may indicate that he would struggle to do this which is why he tried to persuade you to remain on the mortgage.
You need to speak to your ex and your mortgage lender about this and I would recommend that you get some legal advice from a solicitor.
I have attached a link to Community Legal advice. They give free legal help and may be able to assist you further.
http://www.communitylegaladvice.org.uk/

Regards
Sue

battyboimatt

Im quite shocked really, I did the CCCS debt remedy the other day and it said I should go for IVA, however I forgot to add something to it, went back updated it and now it suddenly says bankrupty shame I have just had my light bulb moment, I know I need to address this, but I live with paretns and dont want them finding out, I guess the chases are dwindling