Who helps you do this?

Seagray

Who helps u thru the bankruptcy/sequestration process?

The more posts I read the more confused I am getting....do you consult a financial advisor or similar? I know the debt advice people are helpful but they cant get u thru it step by step. I feel like if I take this step...I wont ge able to do it....there is so much to do, find out & manage. Did u all do it alone?

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sniggings

The helplines and here are all you need.

It may not seem it now but going BR is really a very easy process, all you really have to do is fill in the form, pay your fee and your BR, the OR does all the hard work.

Maybe say what you are having problems with?

the hard part is moving if you're giving up a mortgage, but moving is always a stress.

coolcait

In a lot of ways, I think that the bankruptcy process is easier in Scotland - the form seems to be a lot shorter; you don't have to do an SoA at the application stage; it's a lot cheaper! And you don't have to go to court, you just send your form in by post.

It's a little bit more complicated for people who - like yourself - have property. Unless you've received a Charge for Payment, or similar, then you'll have to get a Certificate for Sequestration before you'll be able to apply for bankruptcy.

You can get one from many money advisers, or from an Insolvency Practitioner.

I'd always recommend that you go to see a money adviser at CAB or at their local council 'money matters' or 'welfare rights', to check out your options. And, if bankruptcy is the right thing for you, to get support in applying for it.

It makes even more sense to go and see them if you need a Certificate for Sequestration

A lot of advisers will also help you fill in the bankruptcy application form.

doseduk

Hey Seagray... I'm a 25 year old student (that works part time) that went bankrupt earlier in 2012..

I guess the wealth of experience and details about the process on here can be both very helpful, but no doubt daunting to look at from the onset. As sniggings, a wonderful source of good advice and info, says, it is actually a very straight forward process. And, if you think about it, it has to be accessible and available to people regardless of their background, and especially to people that don't exactly have lots of money to spend on private legal advice.

My advice is based on what I've heard here, and what I know from experience.. I haven't dealt with the CCCS, but I understand them to be excellent, there may be other help lines too... I booked an appointment to see a financial advisor/solicitor, at my local Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) - they are particularly useful if you can access them, as they are free to use, you can usually go in in person and spent a reasonable amount of time getting face to face legal advice about your affairs. They will work out if bankruptcy really is appropriate, and/or inform you of all the implications, options and so on, to leave you able to make an informed decision. It is worth noting that if you haven't sought PROFESSIONAL ADVICE about going bankrupt, before doing so, then you may not be allowed to by a judge (you could of course lie and say you have, but, this is meant to be for your benefit, so best take what is available!).

Ultimately, if a debt relief order or IVA is not suitable or appropriate, and your affairs are such that bankruptcy is an option and right for you, then it is very simply a case of filling in (you can get the CAB / helplines to help you with this) the debtors' bankruptcy petition, which includes your statement of affairs... This will work out whether you have any money (once your credit payments are taken out the picture) left to pay into an IPA/IPO (a way of taking excess income you dont need for essential, reasonable living costs, bills etc and distributing it around your creditors)... again, this could affect your affairs for up to 3 years so its worth making sure you dont miss off things that you need, and dont miss any income sources or anything - all of this will be the kind of thing an advisor at the CAB or other helpline/service could help you with.

Once the form is filled, there are some fees involved, I really forget how much they were for me, some people, like me, are exempt from paying court fees (I think they were maybe a couple of hundred pounds) - there are criteria for that, certain benefits and so on that qualify you.. but then there are fees for the bankruptcy, i forget what these were, or are now, but hundreds.. once you have these in place, you are ready to attend the country court for a hearing on your bankruptcy. You ring them up, make an appointment, and turn up then and there.

For me that took a few hours on the day, see a clerk, everybody was very professional and pleasant, especially the judge - we had a quick chat, and he declared me bankrupt.

Thereafter, you are a bankrupt. From the second you leave the court, you can at least feel that your obligation to repay your debts on the bankruptcy, is gone... its a good release. The phonecalls etc might not stop straight away, but you can just explain the bankruptcy, give them the info and they should leave you alone. Some might not, but they will in time and meanwhile, you can do anything from ignoring them, to telling them where to go each time they call..

The process is a bit more complicated after that as some people will have assets etc... others wont, and the Insolvency Service will take each case and do different things.. but they are reasonable and decent people that are not trying to twist the knife, punish you, or anything.. they're just doing a job with many laws telling them what to do and how to do it. The official receiver will contact you shortly after the hearing at the court, and have probably a quick chat on the phone, and arrange a more formal interview within a few weeks maybe, which will probably be telephone based, but sometimes in person.

You might hear very little from them after that, you might be asked to go back for a second interview (like I was, due to misconduct leading up to the bankruptcy) - but, from then on, everything is fairly obvious and clear. They will tell you some restrictions which are legally enforced and must be followed.. such as telling the O.R. about increases in income during bankruptcy, not trying to obtain credit of £500 or more without telling the creditor you are bankrupt (even if they dont ask!).. and some other important things you must do.
Other than that, you don't really need to do anything, except for live within your means as far as you can, and take it as an opportunity to turn stuff around and make up for the hell of out of control credit that usually precedes bankruptcy.. If that is what you're going through now, I sympathise and really hope you can get things in order as soon as you can.

Anyway - I know I've probably not gone over things that systematically or in bullet points but, I just thought I'd throw over to you my experience. It took a while to type, but just because I didn't want to be so vague you didn't really find anything out, but as you can see there are just a few main steps: Getting advice, filling in a form, getting some money, booking an appointment at court, turning up at court. Being bankrupt...

You're doing the right thing coming for advice anyway, but make sure you get some professional advice from the CAB or similar service soon! There are a few companies out there that will gladly take money off you for them to take care of your bankruptcy - unless you really want to, avoid them like plague, the CAB and other free services are excellent, and the process is really something that its easy to put on a pedestal, but its very simple and not all catastrophe and evil!

Good luck, hope this is in some way some kinda help, and keep us posted with how things are going. -a
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coolcait

doseduk - what a great post! Have you thought about doing a blog or diary, or something like that - to share your experiences with other people who are going through bankruptcy?

The system for applying for bankruptcy will be different for seagray, who lives in Scotland.

But, once bankruptcy is awarded, it generally runs in a very similar way to bankruptcy in England - with some exceptions. Like property :eek:.

Mostly, though, Scottish and English posters will have a similar experience to yours, so they will get a lot of good information out of your post! :T

doseduk

oh crap! I didn't pick up the scotland thing until now, I hope I haven't just complicated things more then, or seemed ignorant towards that.

and well, thank you... i type too fast for my own good, and it sort of helps me think through things a bit to write stuff down, so I just end up with quite long posts with, actually fairly little effort... I actually worry far more than people will not like the posts.. so thank you very much..

I'd worry far too much with a blog or something I think - I'd just find it hard to strike a balance between being anonymous or identifiable, and between being quite general and not divulging really personal stuff, or being very open. Here, I have been fairly open since I'm pretty anonymous, and since earlier I've actually tried to make myself even less identifiable - I actually got a bit scared that I.S. people might look here and take what I was saying as misconduct or something so I thought best rule that out, although I doubt this forum is involved in their normal proceedings in reality..

I just worry a lot I guess.. and I would respond so so badly to knowing, or even just being able to think, that people were upset, or angry, or condemning or making fun of things I said - I was diagnosed with BPD/Emotionally Unstable P.D. recently, which sums up quite well how sensitive I can be to all that, and how odd and difficult I can be at the same time, it would be lovely to think one day I might be confident enough to do something like that though.

Anyway, sorry to hijack this thread a little! I hope if nothing else I'm bumping it up the board, and thanks again for your nice words about my post, and to the Original Poster for their question. In the process, I've learnt something about the differences between bankruptcy here and north over the border, so I'm grateful for you asking on that front too.
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