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News

Foggy’s money saving tips

Foggy’s money saving tips – straight from the mouth of an IVA survivor If you’ve been impacted by an IVA, you may be struggling to cope with the change in circumstances. Getting to grips with a budget can feel daunting and overwhelming. But there is light at the end of the tunnel. Your IVA will not only help you to repay your debts, but it will give you an opportunity to reset your relationship with money. It can give you a clean slate and help you to develop long-lasting positive habits that you’ll take with you long after you’ve received your final completion certificate. To help you make new positive changes, here are some of the top money saving tips from Foggy, one of the admins of The IVA Forum. Like you, Foggy has had direct experience with IVAs; after combined debts of £65,000, Foggy entered an IVA back in 2010. You can read his personal story here. Foggy has kindly shared his own money saving tips he learned during his IVA. He has continued using the same tricks and techniques long after achieving financial stability, showing it is possible to successfully reframe your relationship with money. If you have any questions about Foggy’s money saving tips, why not post a message here on the forum chat? Tips for Living in an IVA Budget These tips were used by Foggy to help him get to grips with his IVA repayments. While everyone’s circumstances are different, and there is no right or wrong way to save money, these helpful hints may give you some support as you stabilise your finances. Identify your disposable income The first thing to figure out, is what is your disposable income. This is something you will establish with your IVA provider. You will identify how much income you have coming in each month, and what your essential outgoings are. Your disposable income will be the remainder, and this will be used as your IVA repayment. When creating your list of essential outgoings, you need to be realistic. You want to be able to focus on the necessities, but you do not need to be needlessly strict with yourself. Living in an IVA isn’t about living in luxury, but neither should you feel forced into a Victorian poorhouse. Life should feel relatively comfortable – after all, you want to be able to create a manageable lifestyle that allows you to develop positive financial habits. Check you’re on the right tax code An often-forgotten tip is to make sure you have the right tax code. You don’t want to be paying more money than is necessary to the taxman. Nor do you want to have an unexpected tax bill land on your doorstep! Checking your tax code is a quick and easy process. If you do think your tax code is incorrect, a quick call to HMRC should help you figure out the correct code. Another useful tip is to make sure you are claiming all of the benefits you are entitled to. The gov.uk website can pinpoint you to some reputable benefits calculators to check if you are eligible for state support such as Universal Credit, tax credits, Council Tax Reduction or Carer’s Allowance. If you are entitled to something, make sure you claim it! Different bank accounts can make budgeting easier When Foggy was going through his IVA, he set up two distinct bank accounts. Bank Account A was where his salary was paid in. This was the account that paid for the non-negotiable expenses, such as rent, council tax, car insurance and utility bills. Foggy spoke to all of his suppliers and arranged for payments to be taken out by direct debit within a week of his salary going into his account. That way, he could guarantee all the major bills were paid for immediately after pay-day. Bank Account B was used for day-to-day spending. At the start of each month, Foggy chose to transfer a set amount to bank account B to pay for everyday expenses such as petrol, food, household goods, bus fares, haircuts etc. By knowing exactly how much he had to spend each month, he made sure he could cut back where needed. Keeping two separate bank accounts was useful for helping Foggy to budget effectively. Making the most of cash payments Paying with cash may feel almost obsolete right now, but the truth is, it’s a fantastic way of sticking to a budget. After all, you can’t pay for something if you physically don’t have the money in your hand. Foggy suggests using cash to pay for essentials such as petrol, food shopping or bus fares. Each week, he would withdraw a set amount of money, and separate that money into an individual named envelope for each essential. That way, he knew exactly how much he had available, and was less likely to fritter away funds on an easy (and forgettable) Apple Pay or Google Pay transaction! Online shopping can help you keep control of your budget While cash will help you retain control, as more and more shops start to focus on card-only transactions, you may need to find ways to make this work to your advantage. Choosing to do your food shop online will allow you to keep control over your spend, with no hidden surprises at the checkout. You can make sure your final tally is within budget, and if it’s slightly over, you can easily remove an item from your basket. What’s more, shopping online can help you to avoid those pesky impulse purchases. To make this work to your advantage, why not create a food plan at the start of each week, so you know what you plan to eat, and what ingredients you need. Sites such as Trolley.co.uk will help you to check for special offers across the wide range of supermarkets, so if you have a specific preference for an item, you know where to go. Make sure you’ve signed up for various reward schemes. Asda Rewards, Tesco Clubcard […]
... Continue reading →
The role of the mortgage broker if you have adverse credit

If you’ve got a history of poor financial decisions, or you’ve been affected by an IVA, you may feel securing a mortgage is an impossible dream. Many high street lenders are still reluctant to lend to those with poor credit histories, even if you’ve taken proactive steps to regain control over your finances. You may feel like you are alone. But the reality is a whopping 7.91 million adults in the UK could be classed as having adverse credit (source: Specialist Lending Study, Pepper Money, March 2023). More worryingly, “A third of people with adverse credit say the level of their unsecured debt has increased in the last 12 months” and “31% of those with adverse credit are concerned that their level of outstanding debt will make it harder for them to get a mortgage.” With that context, we want to reiterate to you that having an IVA isn’t an automatic barrier to getting a mortgage. It might make it slightly harder, but as experienced IVA mortgage brokers, we’ve seen how competitive the specialist mortgage market is becoming. More independent and niche lenders are now actively lending to those with a poor credit history. Rather than using a straight-forward computer system to make key financial decisions, these smaller, niche lenders are relying on personal trained underwriters to look at each individual application on a case-by-case basis. This is positive for anyone who has been impacted by a CCJ or IVA. It means there are more options than ever before, and your mortgage dream may become a reality. A mortgage broker plays an essential role in securing mortgages Worryingly, the research from Pepper Money indicated “Only 24% of people with adverse credit who are looking to buy a property in the next 12 months say they would speak to a broker to help them get a new mortgage.” We understand in today’s cost-of-living crisis, every penny counts. You might be worried about spending excess pounds on a mortgage brokers fee. But the reality is, working with an experienced mortgage expert could save you thousands of pounds. A mortgage broker could secure you a much better mortgage deal than you could find yourself and give you the best possible chance of being accepted for a mortgage. With spiralling costs affecting almost everything at the moment, if a mortgage broker could secure you a deal with a lower interest rate, you could free up significant amounts of cash each month. Beyond this, there are also some more hidden benefits to working with a specialist mortgage broker. Access to the whole market At IVA Mortgage Experts, we work with high street, independent and niche lenders across the UK. Our relationships with mortgage lenders mean we know who to turn to based on your personal credit history. Advice and guidance Our knowledge and understanding of IVA mortgages means we can answer any questions you have. Mortgages can be complex, and we don’t expect you to have all the answers. That’s why we’re here. You might have questions about what rising interest rates could mean, or you might want to know how long you need to wait after an IVA before applying for a mortgage. We guarantee, there are no daft questions. We’ve been providing adverse credit mortgages for over ten years, and we’ve seen and heard it all. Our team take the time to explain all of your available options, and we figure out a positive solution that helps you to own your own home. We save you time as well as money Your time is important. You don’t want to spend hours glued to the internet researching mortgage options. Let alone filling in lengthy application forms or spending ages on hold trying to get through to a person to speak to. But we do. As experienced mortgage brokers, we can handle all of the paperwork on your behalf. We’ll submit the application for you, speak to the underwriters and even chase up any documentation or missing information for you. You can sit back and relax, secure in the knowledge we are doing everything possible to secure you a mortgage on your dream home. Your mortgage journey begins with a short phone call Applying for a mortgage should be exciting not daunting. If you’ve got a poor credit history, book a call back from a member of our team. We’ll chat through your personal financial history and discuss all of the options available to you and your family. Once we’ve figured out your affordability, the search begins. We’ll focus on finding the right mortgage lender. You can focus on searching Rightmove to find your dream home. There’s never any harm in giving us a call to discuss your options. You might be surprised to discover how easy it could be for you to take those first steps onto the property ladder. All you need to do is phone us on 01582 405010 or fill in your details through our application form and we’ll take care of the rest.
... Continue reading →
New Kid on the Block – Statutory Debt Repayment Plans (on hold)

Will Statutory Debt Repayment Plans be the new kid on the block? Not yet! Find out more after the government’s latest announcement.
... Continue reading →
Complaints – Times, they are a’changing.

By Kevin Arndell For many years now, I have been complaining about the current system (although ’system’ is probably to grand a description) for complaining about the way your Insolvency Practitioner (IP) is conducting your Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA). Currently, if you have an issue, the advice is to chat with your IP (who is ultimately responsible, as an individual, for the supervision of your IVA). However, increasingly, IP’s are ‘protected’ from clients by telephone operators or advisers and, in some cases, such calls are handled by offshore call centres who are the epitome of a chocolate fire guard. If that approach fails, the next step is to invoke the firm’s complaints process, which is often so laborious in its requirements it seems designed to discourage complaints. If that fails to solve the issue, the ‘coup de grace’ is to refer the matter to the IP’s Regulatory Body (known as a Recognised Professional Body (RPB)) for assessment, via the Government Gateway online. The Regulatory Body will look at your complaint and the relevant circumstances and will either find for you or against you. They will not intervene or advise the IP what should have been done or what to do in the particular case. Nor will they change any action the IP has taken on the case. If they find for you, i.e against the IP, they might issue sanctions ranging from a slap on the wrist to a, sometimes quite hefty, cash fine. It is the prospect of a hit in the pocket that will often focus an IP to address the problem in the earlier stages of a conflict. Where this money goes is anybody’s guess, but it does not go to creditors or clients and, from the client’s point of view, nothing changes if a complaint gets this far. This, I suspect, is why many clients do not bother to escalate complaints. I have long argued for a revised system where, if initial correspondence between client and IP proves fruitless — and that is not all doom and gloom as, with a contactable and sympathetic IP / advisor many issues can be ironed out – the Regulatory Bodies be replaced with a Government backed regulator, similar to the FCA, Offgem, Offwat, et al , with teeth to intercede, mediate and amend actions and outcomes as well as compensating parties if so indicated. On 21st December 2021 the Insolvency Service published an open consultation on The Future of Insolvency Regulation. This document highlights the inadequacies of the present system, dating from 1985 and outlines proposed changes to bring the industry up to date with best practice. In a nutshell they propose replacing the four current regulatory bodies, which are industry led, with one independent, government backed, regulator under the umbrella of the Insolvency Service. They also suggest introducing regulation of the insolvency firms themselves. The consultation is also, importantly, seeking views on the implementation of a formal mechanism for compensation where a party has been adversely impacted because of poor service or an error by an Insolvency Practitioner or a firm. This consultation is ongoing until the end of March 2022, and any proposals going forward will be subject to legislative change and parliamentary capacity, so changes will not happen overnight. For those interested in reading the full consultation document, it can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/the-future-of-insolvency-regulation/the-future-of-insolvency-regulation The consultation also refers to dubious advice given to consumers seeking debt advice and miss-selling of IVAs in the Responses to the Call for Evidence section, Chapter 3. This is also being addressed by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) who oversees the activities of Debt Advisory Companies and has found the advice given by many of these companies as sorely lacking and, possibly, fee led. Many such companies are what is described as ‘debt packagers’, who basically collect the details of those seeking debt advice and pass these ‘leads’ on to IVA providers for a fee per lead. Having paid a fee for the lead, many IVA providers are then keen to get a conversion to a debt solution and there appears to be a tendency to advise the fee producing solutions such as IVAs, as opposed to, maybe, more consumer suitable solutions such as a Debt Relief Order (DRO). The FCA have conducted their review, their consultation period closed 21 December 2021, and, subject to that consultation, they plan to implement changes as soon as possible, maybe within the next few months. They are proposing to ban debt packagers from making fees from referrals to, in essence, remove the reason for many of these firms to exist. Their full proposals can be found here: https://www.fca.org.uk/publication/consultation/cp21-30.pdf
... Continue reading →
The new 2021 IVA Protocol

By Kevin Arndell The majority of the insolvency industry use the Insolvency Service Protocols, which are regularly updated with input from industry experts and creditors alike. This provides a standardised framework, with the capability of being also tailored to an extent to individual consumers needs and situations. Over the years remained pretty much the same, with minor tweaking. But the latest, published in April 2021 has seen a shift to the use of more plain English in its wording and an attempt to make the terms of the arrangement less open to interpretation and to give the consumer more certainty regarding everyone’s roles, responsibilities and obligations going forward. The last revision of the Protocol – the 2016 Protocol – should not be used after 1st August 2021. For those thinking of entering an IVA, the full details can be read on the www.gov.uk website here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/individual-voluntary-arrangement-iva-protocol/iva-protocol-2021. It might look a bit daunting at first glance, but, armed with a cup (or two) of coffee it is relatively easy to get through if you take it easy. I would strongly recommend you have a look and get ‘on the front foot’ before talking to a IVA providers. In a nutshell: They have tried to address miss-selling putting a responsibility on the IP to ensure any lead generators they use are duly authorised. The general principles also advise IPs to pay attention to indicators of potential vulnerability. This is, possibly, a bit like whistling into the wind, but it is work in progress and a step, albeit a small one, in the right direction. Importantly, it has clarified the equity release provisions, which appear to debunk the new methods of calculation recently appearing. The position regarding equity is also now to be decided at the start of the process and written into the proposal, as are the fees for the arrangement. Note also, the property valuation is to be produced by the consumer. We are no longer ‘debtors’, but ‘consumers’, a welcome move away from the old image of the debtor being pelted with rotten fruit in the village stocks. The fabled ‘IVA Trust’ will now be severed at the end of the IVA, so post 2021 arrangements will have no mechanism for the processing of things like PPI anymore (though, I suspect, us oldies on earlier Protocol versions are stuck with it). This could induce IPs to introduce other methods to capture future PPI claims. Although these are now nearing the end of their ‘shelf life’, I am sure similar sources of compensation will be found by claims management companies. Other coffee fuelled thoughts on the new pro-forma agreement template: Section 5.1 of the pro-forma proposal seems to indicate that, for a full and final offer, if the consumer is paying the remaining agreed payments (as they usually do) but without trying for any reductions for time / admin effort saved, then the IVA can close without a variation meeting. And, at 5.4, if circumstances make payments going forward nonviable, successful closure on payments made to date is an ‘official’ option to be considered by creditors. Home equity release clauses 6.2, 6.3 & 6.4: it is interesting the proposal itself only specifically refers to remortgaging (not secured lending). However, the Standard Method of Calculation issued to IPs does refer to “Secured borrowing”. Might be a loophole. This will need to be clarified in the course of time. Assets clause 7.1 specifically excludes pension schemes and settlements from insurance policies. Hopefully, this will cover lump sum pension draw downs and injury claims. Windfall clause at 7.4 could now be read as the first £500 can be retained by the consumer. Previously the clause allowed for windfalls under £500 to be kept, whilst the total of any over £500 were paid over, in full, to the IVA. This will also need to be clarified in the course of time as I imagine many IPs will still be wanting to cling to the old ways. Good to see the £500 limit on new credit now specifically excludes utilities and insurances. In the past the whole £500 leeway could have been swallowed (and then some) by monthly paid car insurance. Fees, as briefly mentioned above, are back to being a set figure, agreed at the outset, and IP’s will now only get 5% of windfalls etc. on top and no extra income from the payment of your half of your hard-earned overtime and bonus payments. I am sure, over the course of time, some IPs will push the boundaries and re-interpret some terms, but, as ever, the consumer (you) need to sit down at the outset, coffee in hand, and read, then re-read, your proposals, so you can push back, if needs be. Every IP will have active cases, in the hundreds or even thousands, spanning several Protocol versions and will inevitably mix up terms and conditions when put on the spot. But you? You only have one. So become the expert on your IVA.
... Continue reading →

News Flash

Last year, the government announced a long awaited, and much needed, review of the personal insolvency framework. At the time, they called for evidence to be considered.

A year later, they have published the results of the review, which can be read here:Government review findings

The Government has concluded it “should examine how to reform the personal insolvency framework to align with the needs of 21st century stakeholders. It therefore intends to work with stakeholders and other interested parties to develop proposals for reform for further public consultation.” Proposals are likely to be presented “early in 2024“.

They also intend to re-open consideration of the currently shelved, Statutory Debt Repayment Plan which we discussed here: New kid on the block blog

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