Ipa

FixitM

Hello. We sent the OR an Income & Expenditure form, and we had an amount of £9.80 left each month after everything is paid out. Today we received an IPA agreement to pay £44.00 per month for the next 3 years. Has anyone else experienced this? Surely they can't make us pay what we can't afford, especially as we're currently not even able to afford to put money aside for an emergency fund for house repairs/ appliance repairs/ replacements etc, and not buying any clothing or anything for ourselves?

tigerfeet2006

Email and ask for a break down on what they have allowed you. When you get it let us see it and we'll help you argue your case.

An IPA is an agreement and if you don't agree you don't have to sign the papers. The OR's clerk has to justify what he has allowed and if he insists that you are to pay it or won't send you a breakdown of the SoA then you can complain to the Assistant OR and if you have no joy the OR. If the OR still thinks you need to pay this he has to go to court and argue in front of a judge why he thinks you have to pay this. I would guess for £44 it won't get that far.

Anyway that's getting waaaaay ahead of ourselves. Start with step one and request a breakdown of the SoA.

debt_doctor

I very much doubt there is any justification in this proposed IPA. It won't generate any money for the creditors but would (rather conveniently) generate enough funds to pay the Insolvency Service Case Management Fee. So boost the government departments income!


DD.

FixitM

Thank you for your replies. We've been really worried as we are low income, so haven't included anything like emergency fund, anywhere near enough for clothes for us all, and no holiday fund (like I've seen others include). Council Tax have agreed to a payment of £60 per months for now, but will be reviewed if income improves, as it's not covering the bill. And after everything we pay out we have £9.80 left, so I don't understand how they have calculated that we can afford to pay £44 per month, when we can't. I was also under the impression that if income did improve, we'd be allowed to add in things like an emergency fund (for house/ appliance repairs, or essential things), so is this not the case?

So do we just email and ask what they have allowed, or how they have calculated that we can afford £44 per month, when we dispute that we can? What's the best way to put it?

Thank you for your help.

elljay

I just emailed and asked for a breakdown of the amounts (I think I said something like 'to help me set up a budget' or similar) they had allowed and received a spreadsheet in return with a complete breakdown under the different categories and a friendly message. It had links to several helpful notes (presumably for their own use) and has really been useful as I've been asked for updates several times during the course of my IPA.

Good luck.

National_Debtline

Hi FixitM,

FixitM wrote: »

Council Tax have agreed to a payment of £60 per months for now, but will be reviewed if income improves, as it's not covering the bill. Council tax for the year you declare bankruptcy is written off – even if you are not in arrears. So, assuming you declared bankruptcy after April 2016 you should not be paying council tax until April 2017 – unless you are a couple and only one of you has gone bankrupt? And after everything we pay out we have £9.80 left, so I don't understand how they have calculated that we can afford to pay £44 per month, when we can't. I was also under the impression that if income did improve, we'd be allowed to add in things like an emergency fund (for house/ appliance repairs, or essential things), so is this not the case? It is up to the discretion of the Official Receiver. You would send an updated budget when things improve and argue why you need an allowance for these things, but it will be done on a case by case basis.

So do we just email and ask what they have allowed, or how they have calculated that we can afford £44 per month, when we dispute that we can? What's the best way to put it? That’s right. Email them and ask for a breakdown of the figures they have used to calculate the £44 and how that differs from yours. Post the breakdown and then people can give you more guidance.

Laura
@natdebtline

FixitM

Thank you for your replies. My bankruptcy was pre April 2016, so it's my council tax bill, and my husband went bankrupt in September 2016. He has emailed and requested that, thank you.

He's been offered a new self employed position where he would have a bit less of a fluctuating income and not have to pay all his own travel costs (lot of driving involved). However it would mean we're slightly better off (but obviously tax credits would reduce & council tax payable for me would go up). But now he's wondering whether to accept it if it means we will have an IPA for the next 3 years, as he'll still be working really long hours and we'll be no better off? Especially if they don't allow us an emergency fund, a reasonable amount for clothes, holiday fund perhaps. because we don't already have that as we're low income. It's a dilemma, as all we want is a fresh start and for things to get better for us as a family, and our kids not to have to suffer too much because of our problems. Has anyone else been in a similar situation please? He needs to let them know whether he intends to accept the position or not, and we're stuck as what to do. TIA.

FixitM

So they finally phoned my husband back and left a voicemail (he was in an appointment) saying that they'd just put the figures into their database and the £44 is what it came up with. Surely we're entitled to a breakdown of that information, to see why it differed from our calculations?

peterkay369

You're entitled to a breakdown, don't just accept them saying "that's what it is".

tigerfeet2006

Just tell them you will not sign the agreement as you don't agree with their calculations. Please can they tell you what figures they entered? If they don't reply with the figures then you will write and complain to the Assistant OR.

Can you pop up the SoA you sent originally please.

FixitM

Well my husband spoke to him and he said he wouldn't send a breakdown, but would tell him there and then over the phone (my husband had pulled over in his van to take the phone call). He said he'd adjusted some of the figures to allow us a holiday fund and more for clothes, and it still leaves £44 per month excess. I can't understand how he's done this, when our calculations of excess are only £9.80 a month (without holiday or emergency fund), and he said he'd allowed everything we'd claimed for? I can only assume he's massively overestimated our income. Then he said, we don't have to agree to the IPA, and if we don't it will just go to court. Then finally said, as husband is changing jobs in the next couple of weeks, we'll forget this and submit new figures at the end of February. But surely if there's such discrepancies between our figures and his, the same thing will happen (my husband is self employed with variable income)?

Thanks