www.iva.co.uk

Myself and my wife are considering going into an iva , we have about 27k of debt that includes my car that is financed , would they take the car away from me ? I need it for work , I think after all our out goings we have about 250 a month left from our wages , any advice on an iva is much appreciated we are so unsure what to do

Hi and welcome,

Sometimes it depends upon the car finance company.

I would speak to some experts for some free advice.

Andy Davie/Vincent Bond can be found under the 'Ask an Expert' link on the left hand side of the page and give them a call. They can point you in the right direction.

If I were going into an IVA today, I would speak to Michael Peoples first.

It will be up to the car providers and also whether your chosen IP would allow the payments as reasonable when working out what contributions you can afford to pay in.When calculating the £250 is this between you and when arriving at it have you ignored payments to creditors?

When your in an iva do the companies expect you to give them all spare moneys left after your bills are paid or are you allowed to have something left for yourself

Hi,

You will have allowances for all sorts of things which will be sorted out whilst you apply for an IVA.

If you have not already spoken to anyone then you could give Andy Davie/Vincent Bond a ring for some free advice and they will hopefully point you in the right direction.

How you spend you own money is your own concern but some firms are known for squeezing every penny out of their clients. This is because fees are usually based on contributions so it is in the IPs short term financial interest to do this. Long term it is a bad policy as clients will struggle and fail so shop around before you agree to go with anyone.

Good luck with the IVA and make sure you speak with different companies to get the best help you can. I'm with Stepchange and a few people warned me against them, but they have been really good with me and advised me fully with all of the allowances I am entitled to.

It's pretty tough being in an IVA, don't expect an easy ride. But with good support from family and friends and an acceptance that the luxury items will not be available you will get through it.

It can also be tough on your marriage, mine has been, just make sure both of you are fully aware of the IVA impact before you start and let love get you through it [:)]

font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica">quote:<hr height="1" noshade>Originally posted by Derekh1982

When your in an iva do the companies expect you to give them all spare moneys left after your bills are paid or are you allowed to have something left for yourself

You are allowed sufficient monies to pay for your reasonable living costs within reason. Creditors can rejected or modify your proposed contributions if they think your expenditure is not fair or realistic.

Make sure you speak to several different companies (we didn't and wish we had) think long and hard before taking the plunge especially if you or your wife have anything to do with the finance industry or deal with banking, accounts etc for your employer, I personally would not have entered into the IVA had I been given all the facts, but when you are in such a mess any solution seems great at the time. after saying that a lot of people find its the best answer for them as this forum (which is invaluable at whatever stage you are at) is fantastic. Good luck with what you decide.

Don't expect it to be a 5/6 year 'sentence', the impact goes on far longer.
Choose a smaller, more personal company who you can actually speak to.
Expect it to be tough, really tough at times but the positive is that you learn to manage your money more efficiently possibly for the first time ever.
See if it is possible to take an insurance policy out to cover your payments. I always worried what would happen if we had to deal with redundancy or illness.
Be honest about your outgoings. If you smoke, tell them, don't think you will find the money from 'somewhere'.
I think that IVA's are probably easier than they were a decade ago in that the rules have been tightened up so you should know what you are signing up to. So finally, read your proposal.
Best of luck with whatever route you take.

Hi,

I'm mid-IVA so I cannot speak of the impact post IVA but reading on here people have gone on to better lives, getting mortgages, car finance etc... post IVA.

Not saying it's easy but this forum is a life saver

Are your debts joint?

be sure to choose a firm who do NOT use the 2014 protocols, don't include stat interest (in event you had a windfall) and who will release you at the end with a deed of assignment even pending PPI completion, wont screw you to the wall on allowances and expenses and take look at how your situation will change over the 5 year term. as someone else has suggested above speak to Michael Peoples above (I did and was glad I did), not only can they inform you about IVA's but they will also check it is indeed the best route for you and, most importantly, you're a person, not a number.....

most importantly, spend a day or two reading pages on here to GeT a good idea of who to avoid !!

Echo the comments around taking time to speak to several companies before you decide who to represent you. They all have their good and bad points like us humans but you do need to be comfortable with them as the next 5 or so years they will become your best friend and be on speed dial for you. Its not easy but it is rewarding and a way to being debt free .. look at it as a loan payment period ... break it doen into smaller junks and it will go relatively quickly once in the swing of living on a budget. We found ours a great rehabilitation programme and seven years after it we are smiling and still debt free with exception of mortgage !

My personal advice would be to speak to several companies and ask if you can speak to the IP direct.

Ensure your Income and Expenditure is viable as if it's unrealistic, you will be setting yourself up to fail.

Read and read again any paperwork, any questions ask.

Take recommendations from other people.

Pay no money up front (unless it's first months payment with a guarantee to be returned to you in the unlikely event of a NO at the meeting).

Take your time to decide, like me I'm sure you didn't get in to debt over night so therefore it won't be a quick fix to get out of it.

It's tough in an IVA but worth it.