IVA finished, questions remain

robmxv6

1st post here so please bear with me, this may be complicated!

We started an IVA in 2014 with Harrington Brooks, in 2018 HB went into administration and the IVA was taken over by Freeman Jones, now called the Financial Wellness Group. Total debt was around £16k. My wife is a self employed costume maker, I work in the automotive industry. The debt came about from a failed attempt to open a high street shop. We both work now in the same industries. 

Due to serious illness towards the end of 2017, my wife was unable to work for 4 months so we requested a payment break (deferrment) for that period. Due to coronavirus, I have been furloughed and my wifes work fell off a cliff. So we had to ask them to drop our payments. This means that although the 5 year term was completed late last year, our IVA was in arrears and we were now paying off around £2300. Fortunately, due to the first SEISS paid to my wife and a little help from my parents, we paid off the arrears earlier this month. This is where it gets complicated.

We were made aware that we were able to claim back tax on any PPI claims made in the last 4 years. Any of them were dealt with by the IP. We were told there were only two, in 2016 and 2017, totalling around £1300. However, I have paperwork for a Santander store card PPI for £1565 dated and cheque sent in June 2019. FWG claim not to have received this and investigation revealed that Santander sent the cheque to an old address of HB. FWG apparently never received it. We don't know where Santander got the old address from.

We have been told that this money should go into the IVA as although we have effectively finished the IVA and paid off all arrears, until we get the completion certificate, any money that comes in should go towards it. Whilst normally, we accept that this would be true, our contention is that FWG never followed up on Santanders' letter that stated where they sent the cheque to, that they also never queried where the cheque was, that it is now over a year since the claim was paid out, and it was only our investigations that alerted them to it. It could be that we may not have needed to pay as much in arrears or our payments may have been lower in any case. We may have even finished and complete in late 2019 as originally it should have been. So where do we stand? Do we have a chance of a claim against them? TIA

sourcrates

This doesn’t make a difference. You had the right to reclaim PPI at the point your IVA started and it is this right which is an “asset” of your IVA even if you didn’t realise it.

robmxv6

sourcrates said:

This doesn’t make a difference. You had the right to reclaim PPI at the point your IVA started and it is this right which is an “asset” of your IVA even if you didn’t realise it.

I'm not sure what you mean by "didn't realise it"? We probably wouldn't have signed up if we didn't want them to claim it. In a way it took the admin work out of our hands! Knowing how many creditors there were at the time, it took a lot of stress away.

That said, they seem to have made a bit of a hash of this particular claim so knowing what they told me, just needed some advice. 

sourcrates

Green v Wright, recent appeal court case, in almost all cases PPI claimed during or after an IVA, will be regarded as an asset of that IVA, and used to repay your creditors, until the point you recieve word in writing from your IP that they have no further interest in your buisness.

At that point you would be released from further obligation, but as the claim was made during your arrangement, and the time for claiming has now passed, it would go to your IP, so no point in pursuing this.

fatbelly

I can't see there is anything in this for you - however, you may want to  find another source of independent advice to confirm this. Maybe try National Debtline or post on  Debt Camel's site.