Coming to the end of BRO – the journey so far and a quick question please

newstart2014_2

Hi all

I posted on here a very long time ago but can't remember my username so have re-registered (seems a complete different life ago as it was pre bankruptcy).

I thought it may help some people who are starting the journey to hear that there is a light at the end of the tunnel and although 6 years seems a long time, once you start on that journey, it's incredible how your mindset changes and you learn to adjust your way of thinking; not to mention the relief of not waiting for THAT phone call or yet ANOTHER demanding letter.

I declared bankruptcy in Nov 2007 after running up ridiculous debts – I make no excuses (nor ever have) for why I ended up owing so much; I did have my reasons but will be the first to admit that running up massive debts was not the way to deal with them. Anyway, because of my circumstances, I also had a BRO placed on me (quite rightly so to be honest) and that will fall off my credit file on June 16th.

I am absolutely counting down the (29!) days to when I can log onto Experian and no longer see it posted on there. It has been a long hard slog but definitely a very strong lesson learnt. I am so much better at managing my finances now – to be honest you are forced into having to make changes which, for me in the long term, was exactly what I needed. I won't pretend it's like someone waves a magic wand to make it all go away - it can feel extremely humiliating when you have to tell people what you have done, it can feel demoralising when you feel mistakes from what feels like so long ago are still hovering around to bite you back but you learn to take a deep breath and look at the long term benefits.

For those already on the journey, like many others have emphasised on here, please do take the time to clean up your credit file – there were a few errors on mine which were cleared up once I flagged them. I was able to get a letter from the Insolvency Agency (for which there was no charge) confirming my discharge date – I then sent this into Experian and Equifax then kept an eye on my files to make sure they were updated. The settled accounts then automatically fell off after 6 years from my bankruptcy date. As I had a BRO, this notice will fall off my credit file 6 1/2 years after I actually declared bankruptcy – this is because my BRO was only decided a few months after the bankruptcy date.

Personally as I wanted to make sure my records were being kept up to date, I have been paying the fee to check my Experian record regularly – it does feel a bit extravagant at £15 a month but for me it's been a useful tracker over the last nine months or so.. Doing things to help build your credit rating post bankruptcy are a definite benefit – for me I took out a Vanquis credit card. Initially the credit limit was set at £250 but if they see you can borrow responsibly, they may then increase your limit (which then reflects better on your credit file). Mine was increased to £500 after 6 months and will be further increased to £1500 at the end of May. I've no intention of using it to that limit but again, it does reflect better on your credit rating. One positive kick which I did get was seeing my credit score increase over the months on Experian – I seen it go from 'fair' when I first signed up 9 months ago to 'excellent'.

For me, declaring bankruptcy it allowed me to put my hands up, admit I'd made some very serious financial judgement calls but the gave me the chance to start again and the chance to feel I could breathe again. People do make mistakes and I for one would never judge anyone who feels that bankruptcy is the only option available to them.

I do have a question I'd like to ask and would be interested in hearing peoples experiences of – once the bankruptcy / BRO record falls off your files, do you need to declare you have ever been bankrupt if asked? I've read mixed opinions on this therefore would like to know what people's own experiences have been. I would never be dishonest and say no if the question asked 'have you ever declared bankruptcy' so my question really is have people ever found that it has caused any significant problems? I suppose one example would be for a mortgage as I suspect they are likely to ask, but if the bankruptcy is no longer on file and they can see you are a responsible borrower now, would this go some way to hopefully the likelihood of a more positive response?

Best of luck to anyone who is starting out on this journey or is currently on it – it can be scary and daunting but also gives you the opportunity for a fresh start.

Thanks

Rrushi_Shqiptar

Great post and encouraging for others. I am on the journey with 18 months left to go and it feels ages away. Good luck

longtermplanner

newstart2014 wrote: »

]I do have a question I'd like to ask and would be interested in hearing peoples experiences of – once the bankruptcy / BRO record falls off your files, do you need to declare you have ever been bankrupt if asked?

Yes. of course you do. Of course you could lie and may get away with it, but you sensibly don't want to do that.

Mortgage is much the most likely situation where you will be asked this. You should not expect to get a great mortgage offer, you may need a larger deposit that the average fist time buyer. But you should be able to get a mortgage if you have a good deposit and it is affordable.

newstart2014_2

longtermplanner wrote: »

Yes. of course you do. Of course you could lie and may get away with it, but you sensibly don't want to do that.

Mortgage is much the most likely situation where you will be asked this. You should not expect to get a great mortgage offer, you may need a larger deposit that the average fist time buyer. But you should be able to get a mortgage if you have a good deposit and it is affordable.

I'd certainly never lie about it (I did put "I would never be dishonest and say no if the question asked 'have you ever declared bankruptcy' " in my original post). My question wasn't so much regarding whether you should / shouldn't lie about it as personally to me it's a no brainer (apologies if it came across that way - certainly wasn't my intention!)- it was whether when asked and saying yes, whether people have found it has caused problems. Obviously during the period the BRO is on file it causes problems getting credit but I wasn't sure how much of an impact it has once it has been knocked off (and you have answered yes on say a mortgage form). Thanks for your advice

newstart2014_2

Rrushi_Shqiptar wrote: »

Great post and encouraging for others. I am on the journey with 18 months left to go and it feels ages away. Good luck

Many thanks Rrushi; you don't have long to go now - think how far you've come already. Best of luck with your fresh start

Rrushi_Shqiptar

newstart2014 wrote: »

Many thanks Rrushi; you don't have long to go now - think how far you've come already. Best of luck with your fresh start

Thanks very much, all the best for the future for you too