increasing income

betterlatethannever

not sure if this should be here or the benefits board but thought i'd start here.
I've spoken to CCCS (excellent service) and as i have more outgoing than incoming i can not be considered for bankruptcy until i increase my income.
As i receive £266 pm in housing benefit and £2 a month council tax benefit and £160 pm wtc, am i right in thinking that i would have to increase my income above £420 pm to make myself better off. e'g 266+2+160=420. otherwise, surely these benefits would decrease with any earned income?
Sorry if this is the wrong board but thought maybe someone else here has had a similar problem.

allofadither

betterlatethannever wrote: »

I've spoken to CCCS (excellent service) and as i have more outgoing than incoming i can not be considered for bankruptcy until i increase my income.

I have never heard of this before Is this what CCCS told you? As far as I'm aware bankruptcy is open to anyone regardless of what your income and outgoings are. My outgoings exceeded my income and I was told I wouldn't be eligible for an IVA or DMP, and that BR was the only option. Maybe someone else can shed some light on this.

savagevixen

betterlatethannever wrote: »

not sure if this should be here or the benefits board but thought i'd start here.
I've spoken to CCCS (excellent service) and as i have more outgoing than incoming i can not be considered for bankruptcy until i increase my income.
As i receive £266 pm in housing benefit and £2 a month council tax benefit and £160 pm wtc, am i right in thinking that i would have to increase my income above £420 pm to make myself better off. e'g 266+2+160=420. otherwise, surely these benefits would decrease with any earned income?
Sorry if this is the wrong board but thought maybe someone else here has had a similar problem.

Hi
We had a similar problem. Keep logging on to the website and tweaking your outgoings. Basically if your income is £1089 and your outgoings are £1100, their system will not cope with the information, as you can't spend more than comes in (it's impossible apparantly:rotfl: )
Anyway. You can go bankrupt, it's your choice/right.
The problem on the forms is not your income it's your outgoings. Reduce them, even if they are not quite accurate.
Ours wasn't right, because we get DLA, which doesn't count. Which meant ours was more outgoing than incoming, I removed the amount and the service worked properly.

betterlatethannever

Thanks for that info.
Maybe i misunderstood, though i thought that i couldn't apply for BR until i balanced things out, but maybe what he meant was i would have to sort out my income because after BR i wouldn't have any credit to live on then i woud be in real trouble.
Still got the benefit prob though.

savagevixen

Whats wrong with the benefits?

allofadither

betterlatethannever wrote: »

Thanks for that info.
Maybe i misunderstood, though i thought that i couldn't apply for BR until i balanced things out, but maybe what he meant was i would have to sort out my income because after BR i wouldn't have any credit to live on then i woud be in real trouble.

Yes, that does sound more likely. Will your outgoings still exceed your income if you don't have to pay your creditors? If so, you will definitely have to increase your income or reduce your remaining outgoings. This might be a good time to let the DFW board have a look at your outgoings to see if they can trim it down.

If you do opt for BR though, there will be plenty of support here for you too.

savagevixen

allofadither wrote: »

Yes, that does sound more likely. Will your outgoings still exceed your income if you don't have to pay your creditors? If so, you will definitely have to increase your income or reduce your remaining outgoings. This might be a good time to let the DFW board have a look at your income and outgoings to see if they can trim it down.

If you do opt for BR though, there will plenty of support here for you too.

I think this is the key. You would have to hugely increase your income to change things, because as you say every little extra you get will cancel out some benefit. We are in the same position, because OH's wages fluctuate so do the ben.s, but we still always get them.
Basically if you still don't have enough money, you will have to somehow reduce your outgoings. Because once bankrupt (and if you are paying your debts off) you cannot spend more than comes in.

savagevixen

If you go bankrupt and do receive a lot of benefits, you will not get an IPO/A. Most of them don't count, but they also prove that you are on a very low income, as only low incomes get benefits like this.

betterlatethannever

yes my income does exceed my outgoings even if i don't pay my creditors.
As you rightly say Vix, my income is going to have to go up an awful lot, more than i can make it go on my own.
Sorry Vix whats an IPO/A? please

savagevixen

If you have an excess income you may get an Income Payment Order/Agreement. These are payable for 3 years. most people worry abou getting one, but in your situation, you are wrestling as it is.You will have to find an extra £500 at least to make any real difference.
Perhaps DFW can help with your expenditure.
Good Luck

betterlatethannever

thanks Vix, luck, well if it wasn't for bad luck i'd have no luck at all!!!