BBC News

[thebear29uk]

Saw on tonights 10 O clock news that Experian have released figures showing where insolvency is greatest in UK. Torquay came out top and South West in particular. There is a "Have Your Say" discussion running tomorrow on News 24 and you can post your comments on BBC.co.uk/haveyoursay. Looked at the few already posted and so far mostly from people who dont have a debt problem at all.

Pasting a section of relevance from the news report:

IVAs have recently become mired in controversy.

Under IVAs, the debtor - normally through an intermediary - comes to an arrangement with creditors to pay back part of what is owed.

Debtors do not lose their homes, as can happen under bankruptcy. But they can find that they have to live to a very tight budget until their debts are repaid, while their credit record is also damaged.

Lenders have argued that IVAs are becoming too common, with a whole multi-million pound IVA management industry springing up, spending large amounts of money on TV advertising.

The Office of Fair Trading is currently examining how IVA management firms advertise for clients.

The most recent set of government insolvency figures suggests that the rate of increase in the numbers of people going bust is largely due to people taking out IVAs.

Maybe the bad eggs within the industry will be brought to book some time soon

Dave

[MelanieGiles]

I hope you are right! It is such a shame that a few companies have tainted the image of this wonderfully useful product, which has been around for over 20 years and is not the latest "quick fix" many people are accusing it of being.

Regards, Melanie Giles, Insolvency Practitioner for over 20 years.

For further details contact me at http://www.melaniegiles.com and view my IVA blog at: http://melaniegiles.blogs.iva.co.uk

[thebear29uk]

Hi Melanie

Well some of tonights offerings beggar belief!! How can somebody owing less than 9K be offered an IVA then find 4 years down the line the supervisor's fees are more than the original debt. Also people being told payment amounts are provisional and will reduce. Some sort of regulation of these companies which have attached themselves to your regulated industry would be welcome.

Just to add a further posting from the "have your say" site.

My high school in America required every student to take a class on household budgeting and finance. None of us finished the class as an accountant, but we were all able to see the necessity of consciously planning our spending rather than letting money drip away like water. The class was less than a semester long and placed little (if any) additional burden on staff or school budgets. I don't see why it couldn't be added to the national curriculum in this country.

I seem to recall that the meeting in London during National Debt Awareness week touched on this.

Regards

Dave

[MelanieGiles]

Absolutely - it was a hot topic at the debate, and one which I am extremely supportive of. I am afraid I am old enough to remember the home economics classes of my schooldays - it wasn't just about learning how to make jam! - where we were taught the value of money, household budgeting and saving to spend.

I am sure that an awareness of the need to operate simple household mathematics would go some way to address the debt issue - but as I say whilst the banks are still also heavily investing in advertising and other methods of selling, there will be people who will borrow.

Regards, Melanie Giles, Insolvency Practitioner for over 20 years.

For further details contact me at http://www.melaniegiles.com and view my IVA blog at: http://melaniegiles.blogs.iva.co.uk

[coco]

I have just read alot of the comments on the BBC have your say. The comments are quite hard hitting and although some of us are in debt due to our own faults that does not give people the right to judge everyone as reading alot of topics here some debt has be incurred due to circumstances out of thier control. Dont read it i am now even more depressed.

51 payments to go
(I apologise for my keyboards poor spelling and grammar)
http://coco.blogs.iva.co.uk

[Oliver]

I totally agree that it is hugely important to teach "life" skills in school. I would argue that teaching people how interest rates and APR's work would be far more beneficial than learning Pythagoras' theory!!!


Best Regards
Oliver

Thomas Charles and Co Ltd.
Experts in personal debt solutions.
Read customer feedback at: www.thomascharles.com/about_us.asp

[Skippy]

I totally agree Coco - what gives those people the right to judge us?

Onwards and upwards!!!

[thebear29uk]

Hi Oliver

Sadly I have to know what happens to light when it passes through a lens and Pythagoras comes in quite handy. Lol.

Seriously though not everybody is going to sympathise with us about our circumstances. Thats why this forum is so important so that we can support each other. Dont get depressed by these people Coco and Skippy. The majority of them sound like buy to let property owners who in another time would have been called yuppies and parodied by Harry Enfield as "Loadsamoney". They take the simplistic view that "I can manage why cant you?" but life is never that simple. Lets see them still smiling if the property market takes a downturn.
Most think that BR and IVA's are the easy way out - nothing to pay and you are free to start doing it all over again. Yeah right.[:(!]

Each to their own opinion. Everyone knows (or think they do) the answers to: should we have gone to war in Iraq? Who are England's best 11 and should we get rid of the monarchy. They are individual views and as they dont agree with us we dont have to agree with them.

We fortunately do care about each other on here so, although I'm working tomorrow I hope the rest of you have a good weekend.

Dave

[freelili]

But we do not need their sympathy do we guys, we are paying for our mistakes and we will not walk down this road again, will we? You guys are mint and I am pleased to be amongst real people.

LILY

[PoorbutHappy]

I now regard money like crack cocaine. (No dont go smoke £5 notes!)

That helps me understand more what the "pushers" are up to and why.

Not for my benefit that's for sure.

Stands up & waves flag for the South-West! (didnt we come top or something?)

[batawi3]

Amazing how people not affected by debt can just mouth off without knowing the reason behind why people get into debt. It's not everyone who is reckless with their money, and we should pat ourselves on the back as we have admitted we have debt and are facing it head on. One year down, four more to go