Ask a CCCS counsellor a bankruptcy question

CCCS_Sarah

lauren_1 wrote: »

Due to the recent changes regarding CSA payments and Income support a DRO is no longer suitable for me, what is my next best option?

I will have more than the £50 surplus, infact the changes pushes me to £120 surplus but this is still not enough to pay all my creditors.

Hi Lauren,

Are you a CCCS client? If so, I would recommend that you call back so that we can make the changes to your budget and see what your new options are. The support counsellor’s number will be in your pack.

If you are not an existing client then you can call our helpline free on 0800 138 1111 and they will book you in for an appointment with a counsellor.

Thanks
Sarah

CCCS_Sarah

uptomyeyes1984 wrote: »

Hi, we've (myself and husband) been looking into our options on how to deal with our debt, at the moment bankruptcy seems to be the one were swaying towards. The only thing that is stopping me is our car. I'm so worried we'll loose it. we have a peugeout 206 (2003) parkers guide says its worth private good 2,120 and private poor 1,395.

Do they allow you so much for a car? I mean before we decided on this we have been trying to sell it to upgrade to a bigger car (2kiddies we need it) but wasnt going to spend anything extra on one only use what we get for our car. We share the car my husband uses it for work he works 2miles from home but ocassional travels between stores, and i use it on a friday when i go to work and i take my 2 babies with me.

Thank you in advance.

Hello,

You car is very borderline on what the official receiver would class as an asset. Whose name is the car in? It maybe possible for one of your to go bankrupt it this is your best option and the other one to look into a different option. Or you could look to downsize the car and the extra money use for fees.

I would recommend that you have an appointment with a debt advice charity to look at all your options as there are always solutions, it just finding the right one for your situation.

If you would like an appointment with the CCCS, please call our helpline free on 0800 138 1111.

Sarah

CCCS_Sarah

emcon wrote: »

Hi
I am in desperate need of advice. My Husband and I currently have a debt management plan with Payplan. We pay £282 per month and are really struggling to pay it. My husband is in around £100K due to faliure of his business. At the moment I can't see and end as we will be paying £282 for around 30 years. He is seriously thinking about going bankrupt as we see this as the only option. My debts are manageable, so it would only be my husband going bankrupt. We don't have any assets, but have around £15K equity in our house. We have 3 children and loosing our house would be the worst thing for all of us, and really isn't an option.

Please could you help me, I really don't know what to do for the best.

Hi emcon,

You would need to speak to Payplan and insist on a review, 30 years is a long time to be clearing debts. Have you looked into all the possible routes of maximising income i.e. overtime, part time job, and benefits? Also reducing your costs?

If you have looked into all these, and there are no further changes you can make you need to see what other options are available. The problem you would have if your husband went down the route of Bankruptcy is that the house would be classed as an asset. I have attached a link to a booklet that explains what happens to properties in bankruptcy for you to have a read through

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

If you and your husband would like an appointment with the CCCS, you can call our helpline free on 0800 138 1111 and we can look at your options for you.

Sarah

CCCS_Sarah

uptomyeyes1984 wrote: »

Hi, sorry for all my questions we will finially make a decision regarding our debt and it is looking like bankruptcy is the best option for us. the only thing is how do we come up with the £1200 needed? (as myself and hubby need to do it) we have no savings and the only thing we have of value is our car which we are selling anyway to downsize (below £1000) to prepare ourselves. my question is can we take the money from our credit cards and overdraft? its what were using to live on anyway and i dont see any option nor a light at the end of the tunnel at the moment.
Thanks

Hello,

You wouldn’t be able to use credit to pay for your bankruptcy fees. Are you currently paying the creditors? Is so, drop these down to a £1 token payment as this would help you save.

There are some trust funds available, however these are very hard to get but worth a shot. If you are on a low income then you maybe eligible for a reduction in the fees – for this you would need to complete a form called an EX160a.

Sarah

unquiet-mind

Hi,
I'm considering BR at the moment, but have a few questions. My situation is complicated because I am a small business owner. I am 50% owner with my business partner. I understand that I couldn't be a director anymore. How long would this be for? WHat would happen to my shareholding? If I sold it now to my mum in exchange for the BR fees, would this be looked upon as dodgy by the OR? The actual value of the business is impossible to estimate so it would be hard to say if it was market value or not. It has no physical assets apart from our computers, though it does have some IP (we're a software company), and it has debts. I'm not looking for advice on the business itself (I understand this isn't your area) but rather how it affects my personal situation.

I'd also like to know how my income would be treated. My income from the business is extremely erratic (which is the source of my problems). My regular income is only a couple of hundred per month, but when we get a sale we can take in a few grand which means we can pay ourselves more that month. This is highly unpredictable though. How would this income be handled? The business obviously doesn't need to actually pay me the full amount when it comes in if that's unhelpful.

I hope that makes sense!

CCCS_Sue

unquiet-mind wrote: »

Hi,
I'm considering BR at the moment, but have a few questions. My situation is complicated because I am a small business owner. I am 50% owner with my business partner. I understand that I couldn't be a director anymore. How long would this be for? WHat would happen to my shareholding? If I sold it now to my mum in exchange for the BR fees, would this be looked upon as dodgy by the OR? The actual value of the business is impossible to estimate so it would be hard to say if it was market value or not. It has no physical assets apart from our computers, though it does have some IP (we're a software company), and it has debts. I'm not looking for advice on the business itself (I understand this isn't your area) but rather how it affects my personal situation.

I'd also like to know how my income would be treated. My income from the business is extremely erratic (which is the source of my problems). My regular income is only a couple of hundred per month, but when we get a sale we can take in a few grand which means we can pay ourselves more that month. This is highly unpredictable though. How would this income be handled? The business obviously doesn't need to actually pay me the full amount when it comes in if that's unhelpful.

I hope that makes sense!

Hi unquiet-mind

Thank you for your message

The OR would look at all your affairs in detail with regard to your business.
He will be able to get a valuation of the business and your earnings will be worked out on an average over the years of trading.
If you were to sell your share of the business to your mother, then this would be investigated and the OR could look to see if it was sold as a ‘transaction undervalue’, or whether you sold at a fair price and he would also need to know what the money obtained was used for.

Whilst you are an undischarged bankrupt, you would not be able to be a company director or be involved in the management of a company without leave of the court. Nor would you be able to trade in any other name.

I would recommend that you contact Business Debtline
The Business Debtline website is designed to help any self employed business people who have debt problems.
They can give you advice on what to do with your share of the business and also help you to work out an average income.They will help you prepare a budget.
They can also advise on other options that may be available for your situation
All their help is free and confidential.
I have attached a link for you

http://www.bdl.org.uk/englandandwales.asp

Regards
Sue

LouR

Hi,

I recentlyreceived my application pack for a DRO and have a few questions..

1. My creditors are not threatening court action so was wondering on average how long does it take for a DRO to go into effect?

2. I'm currently applying to receive Job Seekers Allowance (benefits) and do not have any past proof of income (there is none), so do I just send a letter from the JobCenter stating that I'm receiving benefits?

3. The pack says I need to send back an income and expenditure form, but I gave this info to a CCCS councellor on the phone and he sent (along with the pack) a form stating my income/outgoings, is this what they want?

4. I'm just unsure of what I need to send back to be approved. Could you please give me a checklist?

5. My credit card (Santander) have now passed the debt over to a debt collection agency (CodeRed), Do I list the debt to Santander or CodeRed??

Thank you so much,

Lou

CCCS_Sarah

LouR wrote: »

Hi,

I recentlyreceived my application pack for a DRO and have a few questions..

1. My creditors are not threatening court action so was wondering on average how long does it take for a DRO to go into effect?

2. I'm currently applying to receive Job Seekers Allowance (benefits) and do not have any past proof of income (there is none), so do I just send a letter from the JobCenter stating that I'm receiving benefits?

3. The pack says I need to send back an income and expenditure form, but I gave this info to a CCCS councellor on the phone and he sent (along with the pack) a form stating my income/outgoings, is this what they want?

4. I'm just unsure of what I need to send back to be approved. Could you please give me a checklist?

5. My credit card (Santander) have now passed the debt over to a debt collection agency (CodeRed), Do I list the debt to Santander or CodeRed??

Thank you so much,

Lou

Hi lou,

Sent you a PM with the info on.

Sarah

LouR

CCCS_Sarah wrote: »

Hi lou,

Sent you a PM with the info on.

Sarah

I din't get my questions answered but thanks none the less. I think maybe bancrupty will be the best option as perhaps I will be taken to court before the DRO takes affect, not to mention the time Experian will take.

Does anyone have experience with my above questions? I have no proof of income for CCCS And I'm not even receiving benefits yet and I'm just living on handouts.

Also, my original debt was £12000 but I've paid of most and only owe £4000 for one of the debts.. do I list the original £12000 or the £4000 as Experian will probably show the £12000, right?

I strongly suggest those that fit the criteria for a DRO not to get your hopes up as there's many hoops to jump through which I'm sure the goverment made on purpose. I'm not prepared to pay £90 of borrowed money (that could go to my debts) just for a chance of 18 weeks down the line being refused.

Just my opinion.

barbs5491

I went bankrupt 2000, was discharged 2002, but the credit ref agencies still have it on my records and its preventing me getting a bank account (they say due to my insolvancy) I cannot afford to pay to get copies of my discharge , but have a letter from the Court stating I was discharged in 2002. This obviously is not sufficient proof for NatWest . I applied for a basic step account , dont want visa, overdraft or loans, but after them taking 6 weeks, they declined my application. What can I do please?