Discharged IVA

matte134

So I entered into an IVA in July 2021 with about 30k worth of debt. At the time I was being hassled by debt collectors so I thought it was a good idea to stop the visits. I didn't quite understand the fees etc and how it worked at the time. In Jan 2024 I decided to discharge myself from the IVA. I had had a substantial pay rise and bonus payment coming up and I didn't want it all to go towards fees. The process to discharge from the IVA took a while but it officially was complete in May 2024. 

I have been tracking my credit score since deciding to discharge from the IVA through all the different credit agency apps. I was very surprised I was able to apply for a credit card in March 2024 with a limit of £600, even with my IVA still in play.

My debts consist of mainly small (less than £500) defaults which expire in 2026 and then two bigger defaults for £10k each. My plan is to pay off the smaller defaults over time until I am able to apply for a loan with a reasonable interest rate to then use that to pay off the bigger ones. I have also made affordability complaints with a number of credit cards and loans to try get interest taken off balances or defaults removed. 

My question is does anyone have experience of leaving an IVA couple years early and how long did it take to get your credit score back to a reasonable level. I know the IVA will stay on there til 2027 but my score is slowly increasing. I have another credit card which I was able to apply for in June 2024 after my IVA was discharged and I am maintaining them both under a 10% credit utilisation. 

fatbelly

All your creditors should show default dates that predate the IVA. Therefore everything will drop off your file by July 2027. Your score could be anything but your history will clear.

The only thing that would mess up your history is a creditor succeeding in getting a ccj, which would set up a fresh mark