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Hi all, wonder if someone could help with this question.

I have entered into a single IVA but also included in the IVA is two 'joint' debts with my wife - an overdraft on our joint current account and a loan. When calculating how much to repay the IP has included my wife's income as well as mine even though she is not in the IVA. This means we are now left with very little spare money after all our monthly expenses.

My concern is that I have been reading up about joint debts and from what I can understand the creditor (HSBC) are still entitled to pursue my wife for the unpaid overdraft and loan for the period of the IVA. However as my wife's income is included in calculating my IVA payments we won't have any spare money to pay anything on top of what we are paying into the IVA.

Sorry if that doesn't make sense? Feeling quite confused over this issue so any help would be much appreciated.

Thanks

Hi

I'm sorry but it sounds as is you were very badly advised - your wife is jointly liable for the debt and can/will be chased for it seperately.

Can you say which company you are with (but I think I can guess)?

Its a firm local to me, maxim business recovery.

So what is likely to happen if my wife is chased for payments? As mentioned we don't have the spare funds for this.

Thanks

Hi

You're correct in that you're joint creditors will be able to pursue your wife as you have joint and several liability.

If I were drafting that case, I would have built in an allowance into your monthly budget for her to service her own debts - sounds like this didn't happen though.

I'd be having a word with your IVA provider if I were you. Seems to me they were short sighted in their planning of your case

Never heard of them and I thought you were going to name a different company.

Not often that I agree with Dave but his advice is spot on:)

The company that you are with sounds more creditor focussed taking into account full household income.

Thanks for your advise both. I have have just spoken with my IP and he has advised to call HSBC and explain the situation and they may be willing to take a smaller payment each month from my wife. Don't feel like I should have to do this but the IVA is set up now so guess there isn't much else I can do.

You can fail the IVA if it has just been set up and go with another company in 3 months.

I'm not advising it but it is an option - real concern is that 1) all of this should have been explained as you went into the IVA and 2) this is not good because I'm not convinced you are getting allowances that could be feasible.

Your IP can normally reduce the monthly IVA payments by 15% which may be enough to service these debts. However when calculating the IVA payment the IP should look at the overall household income and whatever your wife's fair share would be is what she should be repaying. For example if she is a bigger earner than you then she would have a larger percentage of the surplus income and could even make the full payments whereas if her only income is child benefit then she would only have a small surplus to offer.

This should not be left for you to resolve so personally I would go back to the IP.

Looking through the income and expenditure budget they have prepared their is spouse's credit commitments, however at the time this was put down as my wife's credit card payments and it isn't enough to cover her credit card and the loan payment. Just don't think this has been explained clearly to me and feel like I am going to have to go begging to HSBC to reduce the payment on the loan my wife will be required to make as we simply can't afford it.
I did ask about reducing the monthly contribution by 15% but my IP said although its a possibility it wouldn't look good as the IVA was only just approved last Monday (7th)
I am starting to feel like they were great to begin with in setting this up but now its approved and they will be getting their money every month I am kind of left to it!

I would assume they discussed the option of a joint IVA with yourself and your wife from the outset?

If for whatever reason she declined to be involved in the IVA, then your IVA provider knew full well that she would have to service the debts herself and no doubt with the evidence you provided before the case was drafted, they would have known how much it would cost her each month.

I would suggest the 15% reduction doesn't look good on THEM, not you.

There was a thread on here not long ago by a guy who had completed his IVA and about a year later his wife started getting demands from a former creditor of his. It was for a joint debt which they thought had been settled through the term of the IVA, but she had not been in an IVA so was a "fair game" target so to speak and they were sending her solicitors letters for the debt less IVA dividend amounts plus an oil tanker load of statutory interest !! (He was going to get some advice about things like statue barred debt etc, can't find the post anymore, either my searching is poor or it has been removed, I was going to link to it for you).

As your IVA isn't even a week old and your IP has slopey shoulders can you give them an ultimatum, either resolve it or I file a formal complaint, fail the IVA and go with someone else that will give you proper advice and set it up properly ?

Would your wife be opposed to being in an "interlocking IVA", google it, it prevents the very scenario described above if your joint debt is large and likely to not be fully settled come completion and they come after her, also what happens to the debt and interest in her name is it still accruing but only assigned to her now ??

I was in an interlocking IVA with my Mrs, she wasn't overly happy about it but as advised by The firm above Michael worked for it was the safest route for us.

I will keep looking for that thread....

Ah, found it.... http://www.iva.co.uk/forum/topic.asp?TO ... ms=Statute

longslog - I dread to think what your real job is.

I can't keep up!

General busy body bod sticking my nose in everyone elses business, lol[:p]

Hi - I'm sorry I havent read all the comments so apoloigiues if I am repeating something here. The disposable income and the joint debts are two different things. The IP will have worked out what your wifes contributions to your joint expenditure was in order to calculate what YOUR disposable income was and what contributions you could therefore afford to pay into your IVA. The whole point of a joint and several debt is it is exactly that so your wife will remain liable for the whole debt unless and until a dividend is paid in the IVA. They could pursue your wife for the full amount and then not claim in your IVA. Suggest you tell your IP that your wife's contribution was not calculated correctly as you did not allow for her payments towards this debt, which in a roundabout way will therefore affect the disposable income that you have available for your contributions. Clear as mud...?!