Yes I agree that some requests are unfair and to be honest unworkable. Some stories on here are also quite disturbing, however we just need to keep a balance and perspective because the vast majority of IVAs run smoothly and most IVA companies/IPs are very reasonable and fair.
Regards
That was my concern when I read your post Andy that instead of coming over impartial you looked in the pockets of the IP companies which is never a good look on a forum. I personally think you was just trying to balance out the good and bad as you say but it's very easily perceived in the way that George quite clearly has.
I do feel Andy was quite fair in his views. Some stories do seem appalling, however without the full facts all we can do is advise the poster and suggest they get back to their IP.
If some choose to not accept the forums opinions then that is their right and hopefully they can sort their problems out with their IP.
Having said that, if Jan is even having problems it doesn't sound good at the moment.
I agree with Andy's sentiments but I also can see how it was perceived how it was. If the horror stories turn out to be a load of rubbish then I am sure the posters who was appalled and replied would quite happy post again saying how bad it was for the poster to slur the companies name. I certainly wouldn't have any issue doing it if they gave their side of the story and things were very different. In the meantime it's very quick to assume that the IP being a professional body are always going to do things right and in your interest. The bottom line is they are a company to make money and they're not always going to look after you and I have found with my IP that during my IVA three times they have tried to stitch me up so far and its only been me doing the hard work of proving I am right and they are wrong and on one occasion actually threatening to take them to court that I ended up resolving it at all. I know there are lots of IVA's running without a hitch and as Andy says this forum will highlight bad case scenarios but if the company in question are also on the forum and getting as many bad stories as PayPlan are recently then if it was my company I would be straight on the case of resolving all issues and the posting on here that everything has been rectified in order to protect the company name.
I know what you are saying. I feel that maybe some of these companies take on a lot of work and maybe it's too much for the admin teams to manage...only time will tell with this I'm afraid.
I doubt if I will get through the 5 years without moaning about my IP company but then I do like a good whinge sometimes!!
I had more than a whinge when it was my turn 2.5 years ago seriously I was livid. Made my blood boil at the time I tell you and I had to seek legal advice the lot, complete nightmare. The annoying thing is though they soon admitted I was right when I threatened to go to court so why try it on in the first place I'm supposed to be able to trust these people.
I fear I am going to give a "political" answer here .....
First, Andy, can I take issue with "They post mainly for the PR and to appear to be transparent, not for new business."
Some do, I agree, however, most of our regular professionals post from a genuine desire to assist forum members, many of whom are not their clients.
With regard to "whinging" ... a whinge is often good for the soul and also allows people to see how companies REALLY work, outside of the publicity blurb they might themselves publish.
However, when problems get too heated and / or specific, the detail is best dealt with privately between poster and IP, with the initial problem and how it is dealt with being posted by the client if they so wish.
Much of the advice on here can only be general as each IVA is different ( even though they might be protocol compliant). They are often drafted differently to suit individual circumstances, as well as being amended by creditors.
OK ... I have completely lost my thread here ... am off for a cup of tea !!!
My opinions are merely that .. opinions based on experience. Always seek professional advice.
IVA Completed 23rd July 2013 .... C.C. 10th January 2014
OK - seems a shame that you have been so dissatisfied with the outcome of your own IVA, which undertandably may be tempering your view towards IVAs generally as your experience is only of one case - yours.
If firms get things wrong - and we do within my firm as well - they have to be prepared to put things right. If we choose to take a public position by becoming a professional representative on forums like this to represent our firms, then we have to be prepared to publicly defend our position and should do so.
Payplan are taking an awful amount of stick at present, on this and other forums, and do need to look into the issues being raised - given that government backed agencies and creditors themselves are seriously promoting that firm to consumers perhaps to the detriment of commercial firms who actually do the job for exactly the same rates.
That said, they have thousands of IVAs under supervision, and the vast majority of those clients will be entirely happy with their cases and the way that they are being supervised. I know Nick Payne personally, and can categorically state that client care and satisfaction in extremely important to him and the rest of the team. In larger firms, the IPs cannot possibly personally be aware of the issues of every case - and whether that is right or wrong is probably a larger debate and one down to personal choice at the end of the day.
I am sure that Nick and his colleagues will work hard to resolve the issues their clients raise on the forum, and like me occasionally would rather that they had been directed to us properly in the first place. If that has happened and a client still does not feel satisfied, all firms have complaints departments and ultimately our regulators to resort to.
It will be good to see positive posts on here from people once payplan do rectify these issues. I do have major concerns with the amount of people being given letters last minute demanding more money or they will be made bankrupt. I also disagree with some people getting payment breaks with relative ease and pay them back at the end whereas other people have a genuine emergency and struggle to get a break and then told to pay back over 2 months the extra money which is not a realistic time frame to pay the extra over. I also find it highly unprofessional to demand people make PPI mis-sold clzaims even if the debtor does not feel they were mis-sold. As an IP you are responsible to get a fair deal for the creditors but you are also making money from the unfortunate situation we are in and by us choosing your companies to supervise our IVA's we are bringing you business and therefore we should be treated as clients and not threatened down the phone or faced with moving goalposts causing us uncertainty, stress and grief during what is quite likely a very dark time for many of us during our IVA term.
My posts are straight to the point I agree but I am the first to acknowledge when people do a good job. What I do not want to see especially on an open forum is some very serious horror stories coming to light and people quickly swooping in to defend the IP straight away or saying its unfair to judge without knowing all the facts. We won't know all the facts because they won't release them to us but we can use the situation almost in a rhetorical sense and what solutions would be available to us should we someday find ourselves in a similar predicament. It's not about attack or even blame it's about people not bowing down to pressure through ignorance, lack of confidence and a particularly aggressive IVA representative scaring you down the phone or via letter. Some people are vulnerable in general, people in IVA's are even more vulnerable, psychologically as well as financially and everything should be done by the book to ensure people feel safe and protected in an IVA and proud of their achievements and not backed into a corner with no-where to turn.
I could not agree with you more Daveyboi - but just a couple of points:-
No IPs are demanding that their clients lie about mis-sold PPI. It is an IP's duty to maximise the return to creditors, and if there is mis-sold PPI to reclaim then this is perfectly acceptable and in the best interests of creditors generally. I agree that some firms are more active in promoting these benefits than others - and if they are then they deserve to be paid for the additional work undertaken to achive an enhanced return. But no firms should be bullying their clients into making false claims - and I do not believe that this is happening. If it is, then this gives grounds for a serious complaint.
If clients had direct access to be able to speak with their IP - as they do in many firms - a lot of these misunderstandings would not occur - because the advice would come from the horse's mouth and the reasons for the IP's decisions would be fed back to the client at the time. Often, staff who believe they are doing the right thing, make mistakes - which won't always be brought to the IP's specific attention and therefore confusion and resentment can arise.
The choice of IP firm is paramount and should be well researched in advance. It is vital that you choose a firm who will look after your interests right through the IVA and not just in the early days. Check that you can speak with the IP who will be reprsenting you - IVAs are personal appointments to these people and not the firms they work in or own. You will all need to make contact with your IP for help and support at some stage during the arrangement - it is important that you have direct access so that any decisions made can be fully explained - and whilst many of the IP firms in practice have very good staff at both senior and junior level, it is often important to speak with the person directly and ultimately responsible.
Even if people choose to use a debt management company as the conduit between them being introduced to an IP - check the IP firms that they deal with and see what feedback they receive on forums and comparison sites. It is an important decision, it will be an important relationship over a number of years, and you have to be able to access ongoing professional advice and support at all times. Some of the issues described on this post with regard to payment breaks and requests for increased payments could be easily resolved in just a quick call with the IP I feel sure.
How did you come to the decision of choosing your own IP firm as a matter of interest?
In Reply to your first point we have posters who recently have been told unless they put a PPI claim in they won't get their completion letter whether they felt they were mis-sold or not. As you say not the norm but definitely concerning to say the least and definitely bullying/threatening behaviour.
I personally have never been able to speak to my IP they simply don't let me speak to him throughout my whole IVA. I have dealt with floor managers etc but never actually spoken to my IP. I agree they should be available but at the debt people my one is not.
When I admitted to myself I could no longer afford to pay the bills and my debts anymore then I was so desperate for an answer I jumped at an IVA as soon as the debt people provided it as a potential solution. We briefly discussed DMP and Bankruptcy but really looking back it was most definitely a very positively sold IVA. On the whole however I never wanted to go bankrupt because of my job and the credit recovery from an IVA appears to be better than bankruptcy and for future mortgage potential also. With my level of debt a DMP even with frozen interest was looking to last anywhere between 8 years pluis also. Whether an IVA will be looked at more favourably than bankruptcy or not I don't know because this was never discussed with me at the time due to me being so scared and desperate at the time I leaped and then investigated. If I had access to this forum when I made my decision I am sure things would have been very different.
Finally re the issues mentioned, they are going to their IP and still being told that they have to pay it back in this unrealistic time frame so unfortunately it doesn't seem to always have the desired effect actually speaking to your IP.
From comments on here Mel you appear to be contactable, accomodating when you can and in general a fair IP but you are one of many and if mal-practice is occurring amongst some of the others or within the companies they are affiliated then people should be taught their rights and how to defend themselves in these situations rather than end up back at square one after paying so much money into their IVA's.
Daveyboi - please direct me to those posts. I am not aware of anyone who has advised that this has been the way their IP has discussed the PPI issue with them in the manner you describe - but I may well have missed something and of course neither you or I will get the full picture on the forum, merely the posters own interpretation.
I note your comments, but in reality the forum only represents a minescule portion of the population in IVAs, and in reality it is very unlikely that anyone is going to sign up to a forum like this merely to sing the praises of their IP.
IPs generally do a very good job, and if you saw the way our fee income has been squeezed over the last four years by greedy and unrealistic creditors, you would actually be astounded at how we manage to run good practices with staff who on the whole really do care about their clients - after all we have not conjoured up some of the rules to which we now have to abide, creditors and their voting representatives have.
We try to do our best for our clients, and on a daily basis repatriate thousands of pound to creditors who probably were unwise lending the money in the first place, thus contributing to keeping the economy of this country ongoing. I will always defend my profession, and those who choose this route as a career. We may not always get it right, but the huge pressure we are all under at the moment from income squeeze, dealing with creditor demands - which are often unrealistic - and flak from a naive press and government agencies who appear to continually mock and critisise the work of the commercial sector, against the allegedly "free" and "charity" organisations - it is a wonder we don't all pack up and leave them to it. I wonder where the economy would be if that happened.
