Hi
just wondered if anyone knows the answer. When you do the i&e on an annual basis do you have to show/prove that you did indeed spend your allowances? And are the allowances based on your actual expenses from the year before or just as standard if nothing changed?
Do you need to provide the whole years statements etc?
In case you do manage to save a little bit say for Xmas or birthdays can you keep this money in your account?
Can you have a savings account at all?
Or can our kids have a savings account? For other family members to pay into it?
Also what if I sell bits & bobs on eBay & get the payment from Paypal into my bank account - do you have to count that as some sort of additional income?
Sorry for all these questions, in a process of applying & all these thongs keep bugging me...
It is generally a good idea to keep a record of your expenditure in case your IP queries anything unusual at the end of the year. Savings accounts are always encouraged, as if you do manage to save a little from your allowances this is a good place to put the money.
Most IPs will turn a blind eye to a little e-bay selling, so long as you are only trading personal unwanted items and not buying for resale.
Thanks again Melanie.
When you say to keep a record - how detailed should this be?
Are you supposed to pay for everything on card to keep things simple & can u just withdraw the cash & pay cash, would we need to keep the receipts for everything if paying cash?
I keep the receipts of all the main household things food, petrol, etc etc - that way at review time I can add it all up for the year and take an average per week - especially useful if things have gone up through the year and you need to ask for a higher allowance. At the end of each year these are then bundled together and they are in a box in a cupboard until the last day of our IVA when we are planning a celebratory BBQ and they will be burnt !
Sharing from experiences of dealing with debt
There is a solution for everyone .... Just need to stay positive !
Sash..
I was wondering exactly the same as you, its worrying isnt it. Ive got my creditors meeting this week to see if my IVA will be approved.
I have all sorts of questions that keeping popping into my head.
So does a saving account not get treated as additional income and put towards the IVA payments?
Also, a savings account in your childs name (would have to be opened by you if you could get it!) and would that be taken into account at all??
Debt free by 2015 xx
Wants to thank this great forum for the help so far
I never keep receipts at all - my IP has never asked for them and I know how much I spend on everything anyway.
Claire - a savings account won't be classed as additional income, and you will have no problems with a savings account for your kids.
Sharing from experiences of dealing with debt
The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively.
Bob Marley. http://kallis3.blogs.iva.co.uk
thanks Kallis3 and one more thing - does it matter how much their savings are?
Also I cannot get my head round the idea that you can save money whilst in an IVA and it won't be touched - surely any surplus money you can save will be required to pay the outstanding money you owe your creditors??
Debt free by 2015 xx
Wants to thank this great forum for the help so far
Clairbare - that is exactly what I am thinking!
mumofthree - good luck with your meeting, when exactly is it?
I am just thinking all these things as the initial allowances we were suggested to put through are more generous than the budget we have been trying to live off up until now. But then I am sure all sorts of things pop up when you least expect them so it is good to have a contingency.
Your childrens savings will not be touched at all.
If you can make savings from your allowances, and from any overtime or bonuses, then it is yours and you will not be required to hand it over.
Sharing from experiences of dealing with debt
The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively.
Bob Marley. http://kallis3.blogs.iva.co.uk
I thought i had read that any extra income a percentage would be used towards IVA - isnt that what annual reviews are for? So if my husband got a bonus and we popped it into a savings account, does he keep it all?
Sorry for all the questions but need to get it all straight
Debt free by 2015 xx
Wants to thank this great forum for the help so far
thanks Clairbare and Sash, will post on here whether im successful or not!
I wonder about all these questions too, if you manage to save some, is it taken off you to be paid towards your creditors. Im getting so confused about it all. How much are you allowed to save (if at all).
we have never managed to save , but if you are taking a little from your monthly allowances then its not a bonus or salary . you need a contigency in case things go wrong ... like washing machine !! i have had 3 since being in my iva and the last one was bought xmas eve . but i have 4 kids , both me and hubby have to wear uniforms so washer on about 3 times a day !!!
i have never kept reciepts, but these guys know how much shopping , petrol etc is .except they did query our petrol cost one year but im a community nurse and use a lot of petrol, it is then paid back into my salary. on my last review i had totalled my shopping at £600 pm but to be honest thats prob low . i also put down the cost of school milk for my over 5,s who like their milk , brownies , beavers, school trips . £2.50 here and there a week soon add up a month and school trips are a killer . £40 for their xmas panto trips . it crippled us that week !!! if your husband got a bonus then that is classed as extra and you will be expected to pay 50% of it over after the 1st 10%. to be honest thou , i send all my docs to company , then they get in touch if i need to pay anything extra.
