Ask a StepChange (formerly CCCS) counsellor a bankruptcy question

joa1210

Hi, i have just been through the step change form and bankruptcy is coming out as advised (which i already knew in my heart) but i still have so many questions.
i have no equity in my house so may not lose it, however i am 8 weeks pregnant ( the reason that i have been given the push to get my head out of the sand) and we need more room, can we consider moving before the bankruptcy? we can find a bigger house for the same cost as my mortgage and secured loan combined.
what happens with phone/gym contracts?
i am sure there will be lots more over the next few days
Thanks

Jo
*edited to add that so far i am not in any arrears and never have missed mortgage or loans, but my husband is currently out of work and my outgoings are more than my current incoming, the only thing that will change in the future is that i will be on mat leave from sept/oct so while m husband may be in regular work my income will significantly drop

StepChange_Kirsty

Hi Jo,

Thanks for your post and welcome to the forum.

If you’ve completed our online Debt Remedy tool I would recommend you give us a call and we’ll be able to go through your questions over the phone. This will enable the Debt Advisor to log in and see the information you’ve completed in order to give you more detailed advice based on your individual circumstances.

Our contact number is 0800 197 1704 and we’re available Monday to Friday 8am to 8pm and Saturday 9am to 2pm. Please have your web reference number to hand when you call.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Kirsty

joa1210 wrote: »

Hi, i have just been through the step change form and bankruptcy is coming out as advised (which i already knew in my heart) but i still have so many questions.
i have no equity in my house so may not lose it, however i am 8 weeks pregnant ( the reason that i have been given the push to get my head out of the sand) and we need more room, can we consider moving before the bankruptcy? we can find a bigger house for the same cost as my mortgage and secured loan combined.
what happens with phone/gym contracts?
i am sure there will be lots more over the next few days
Thanks

Jo
*edited to add that so far i am not in any arrears and never have missed mortgage or loans, but my husband is currently out of work and my outgoings are more than my current incoming, the only thing that will change in the future is that i will be on mat leave from sept/oct so while m husband may be in regular work my income will significantly drop

Violet1881

Hello

I am currently bankrupt and my credit file shows me as still financially linked to my ex partner who isn't bankrupt but possibly in debt due to our joint debts of many many years ago. These are the debts I have declared myself bankrupt for.

When am I able to disassociate myself financially from my ex? Can I do it now during my bankruptcy or after the 12 months is up? or will we remain linked for the whole six years of my bankruptcy?

Thank you.

Former_StepChange_Linsi

Hi,

Thanks for you post.

If these accounts are now closed which is likely due to your bankruptcy, you’ll need to contact the credit reference agencies to break the link on your credit report.

Here’s a link explaining how, for each credit reference agency:

Experian: https://www.experian.com/uk/online-dissassociation-form.html

Noddle (Call Credit): https://www.noddle.co.uk/f-a-q

Clear Score (Equifax): https://help.clearscore.com/index.php?/Knowledgebase/Article/View/198/7/how-can-i-add-a-notice-of-disassociation-to-my-report

I hope this helps.

Linsi

Violet1881 wrote: »

Hello

I am currently bankrupt and my credit file shows me as still financially linked to my ex partner who isn't bankrupt but possibly in debt due to our joint debts of many many years ago. These are the debts I have declared myself bankrupt for.

When am I able to disassociate myself financially from my ex? Can I do it now during my bankruptcy or after the 12 months is up? or will we remain linked for the whole six years of my bankruptcy?

Thank you.

Violet1881

Thank you for the links.

Are the accounts closed even if only one party has gone bankrupt? They were joint loans.

Thank you.

Former_StepChange_Linsi

Hi

I’m glad you found the links helpful. I forgot to mention that you only need to update one of the credit reference agencies listed. Whichever you choose will then update the other two.

Joint accounts can be closed if one person goes bankrupt. Having said this, if your ex-partner is still maintaining the contractual payments then the account may remain open.

However as you’re not liable for these debts anymore, you should still be able to remove a financial connection.

All the best,

Linsi

Violet1881 wrote: »

Thank you for the links.

Are the accounts closed even if only one party has gone bankrupt? They were joint loans.

Thank you.

toddie1982_2

Hi there, I have sent you a private message, hope it was received ok

Former_StepChange_Linsi

Hello

Thanks for your post.

We've received and replied to your private message. If you have any other questions please feel free to reply to our message.

I hope this helps.

Linsi

toddie1982 wrote: »

Hi there, I have sent you a private message, hope it was received ok

parisayo

Hello

I hope you will be able to give me a little advice here.

I was declared bankrupt in July of 2010, so as far as my credit history is concerned it should be clear. I am however having trouble getting my previous mortgage company to ammend my default date to the date of my bankruptcy. I have sent the letters from here requesting that they change it, but their reply states;

"Whilst the mortgage was included in your bankrupcy order dated 20 July 2010, it remained a fully secured debt and at that time we had not claimed repayment.

The banks policy is to record a default against the mortgage only when repossesion has taken place. On this occasion, 19 May 2011 and will remain on record for 6 years"

Is this correct? Should I take this further as this is the one outstanding debt on my record which is stopping me from moving forward at the moment.

When I declared myself bankrupt I moved from the property and handed all the keys back to my mortgage provider informing them that I was no longer there. I obviously had no control over the timeframe of the repossesion of the property.

Thanks for your time,

Regards

Kev

StepChange_Allen

parisayo wrote: »

Hello

I hope you will be able to give me a little advice here.

I was declared bankrupt in July of 2010, so as far as my credit history is concerned it should be clear. I am however having trouble getting my previous mortgage company to ammend my default date to the date of my bankruptcy. I have sent the letters from here requesting that they change it, but their reply states;

"Whilst the mortgage was included in your bankrupcy order dated 20 July 2010, it remained a fully secured debt and at that time we had not claimed repayment.

The banks policy is to record a default against the mortgage only when repossesion has taken place. On this occasion, 19 May 2011 and will remain on record for 6 years"

Is this correct? Should I take this further as this is the one outstanding debt on my record which is stopping me from moving forward at the moment.

When I declared myself bankrupt I moved from the property and handed all the keys back to my mortgage provider informing them that I was no longer there. I obviously had no control over the timeframe of the repossesion of the property.

Thanks for your time,

Regards

Kev

Hi Kev

Thanks for your post.

My understanding is that any creditor which had not defaulted before the date of the bankruptcy must add a default date no later than the date of the bankruptcy order. This means all record of debts incurred before the bankruptcy should disappear from your credit file six years after date of the bankruptcy order. I'm not aware of any difference with mortgages as any negative equity in the property is technically included in the bankruptcy.

It may be a good idea to speak with the insolvency service or the credit reference agencies to query this further. The worst case scenario is that it drops off in a couple of months.

I hope this helps.

Allen