If you are worried about your IVA because Coronavirus has affected your household finances, this article looks at
- the extra flexibility to help people in IVAs. This help has been extended to April 2021; and
- how things may change in the next few months, with furlough and payments breaks likely to end.
Your IVA firm and your creditors will not want your IVA to fail because of a temporary Coronavirus problem.
Don’t assume your IVA will fail and just stop paying. You can contact your IVA firm and talk to them about what help they can give – for many people that will be an IVA payment break.
It may be a good idea to talk to a debt adviser as well.
Contents
Extra IVA flexibility to help
New guidance
In April 2020 the Insolvency Service issued guidance giving extra flexibility for Protocol IVAs where the borrower has problems because of Coronavirus.
In September 2020 this was updated and extended. It now applies until April 2021 – see Coronavirus (COVID-19) Guidance for the Straightforward Consumer IVA Protocol.
An IVA firm can always go back to your creditors and ask them to approve changes to your IVA. This is called “a variation” but it can be a slow process.
This new guidance gives situations where the IVA firm can give more help immediately with no need for a variation.
IVA firms should be sympathetic to all the Coronavirus problems that can occur. It may not be you who has lost their job, has to self-isolate, or whose business is struggling. It could be your partner or someone else in your house that normally pays some bills, so your expenses have risen.
Most IVAs use the Protocol standard set of terms and conditions. If you aren’t sure if yours does, ask your IVA firm. If your IVA doesn’t use the Protocol, your IVA firm should still be sympathetic if you have Coronavirus financial problems and try to find a way forward that will work for you.
More flexibility to reduce payments or have longer payment breaks
The April 2020 guidance said if you have Coronavirus problems – either a reduction in income or an increase in expenses – you could reduce payments by up to 25% and take payment holidays for up to three months without a variation being required.
In September 2020 this has been extended to allow you to reduce payments by 50% and take payment holidays of up to 6 months.
These new options are in addition to the standard IVA Protocol provisions which allow your IVA firm to reduce your payments by 15% and to give up to 9 months of payment breaks, see What happens when you can’t afford IVA payments for details. So if you have already taken payment breaks you can still get these extra months.
Payment breaks are added onto the end of your IVA, so you will be paying the same amount in the end. They are a good option if you expect to be able to get back to paying your IVA at some point, but you can’t manage it at the moment.
Flexibility around redundancy pay
The standard Protocol says if you get redundancy pay you can keep 6 months worth of normal pay but have to pay the rest into your IVA.
This lets you carry on making the normal IVA payments for 6 months. See What happens in an IVA if I am made redundant? for details, including what happens if the amount is large or if you get a job within the 6 months.
The guidance says:
The supervisor has discretion, in relation to whether any redundancy payments in excess of six months net take home pay are required to be brought into the arrangement as set out in clause 10.6 during the duration of the pandemic.
That is a bit vague. If you have lost your job and think it will take you more than 6 months, ask your IVA firm to be allowed to keep all your redundancy pay for now.
You don’t have to pay in overtime if you are a key worker
This is the clause in the 2016 standard Protocol about overtime:
10.4 Where the individual is employed, the consumer must report any overtime, bonus, commission or similar to the supervisor if not included in the original surplus calculation, where the sum exceeds 10% of the consumer’s normal take home pay. Disclosure to the supervisor will be made within 14 days of receipt and 50% of the amount (over and above the 10%) shall be paid to the supervisor within 14 days of the disclosure.
The guidance says:
Paragraph 10.4 of the protocol should not apply to critical workers’ overtime during the COVID-19 pandemic. A critical worker is defined by the list published by the Government and determined by the employer. Additional proof of critical worker status may be required by the supervisor.
This very good news for key workers.
No equity release
The guidance says that no attempt should be made to release equity during the pandemic unless the debtor wants this. Instead, the supervisor can extend the IVA for 12 months.
This applies to all debtors, even if you are not affected by Coronavirus, because getting good house valuations can be difficult.
I think you should not be asked to extend your IVA unless it is clear that you have more than the minimum amount of equity. See How does Equity release work in an IVA for details. I suggest you should object if you are told to extend your IVA by 12 months when you don’t think your house is worth enough.
I think you should also object to an extension if Coronavirus has badly affected your household finances.
Your IVA firm can choose to put forward a variation to your creditors saying that your IVA should be treated as closed at the end of the term, with no extension. Ask for this if you don’t think an extra year is suitable.
Autumn 2020 – will you be able to manage your IVA?
Less help from government and creditors
When the new IVA guidance was first published in April, there was a lot of other help on offer from the government and creditors.
Now in mid-September, it seems likely most of this help will be phased out or reduced over the next couple of months:
- It is likely that furlough will be ending.
- The FCA has decided mortgage lenders don’t have to offer another mortgage payment break. (If you’ve not taken a mortgage payment holiday yet, you can apply for one until 31 October 2020, or if you have had one payment break you can apply for a second one up until that date. )
- The FCA has not said anything about extending car finance and other loans and credit card breaks. But as mortgage payment breaks aren’t being extended, my guess is that these other breaks won’t be either.
Lenders may have to offer you help, what the regulator calls forbearance. But for mortgages and car finance, if you get arrears you could potentially lose your house or car.
Is your situation likely to get better or worse?
This may feel you are being asked to predict a very uncertain future, but some people will now have a much better feel for what may happen than they did back in the early days of lockdown.
With furlough ending, you may be back to full-time work. Unless there is a new lockdown that will change things again, but for now you are ok.
You may have been told you are being made redundant. Or you may think this is likely to happen in the next few months. Or you may be worried about how fast your self-employment income will recover.
Your partner or someone else who you share household bills with may be looking at a difficult future, so you may have to plan on paying more or all of the bills.
Should you take a further IVA break? Or talk to a debt adviser?
Your priorities need to be your mortgage/rent and priority bills such as council tax, utilities and car finance. These must be paid, even if this means paying little or nothing to your IVA.
Unless your finances are fine again, for most people taking an IVA break – or a further one if you have already had a few months – is probably their best option. This break gives you longer to get back to normal.
If you aren’t sure you can pay your essential bills and normal expenses, your IVA is not your main problem! Ask for an IVA payment break but you also need to talk to a good debt adviser as soon as possible.
The other case where you should talk to a debt adviser now is if you were having difficulty paying your IVA even before the pandemic. If you are in the first couple of years of an IVA and you didn’t have a house with equity to protect, you may be wondering if there is better debt solution for you then an IVA, so get some advice.
These breaks only postpone the problem if your finances don’t recover. But for most people they are a sensible choice at the moment. By April next year, it will be clearer to you and to your creditors what your financial position is.
Redundant with an IVA & a mortgage
Your 5 options when an IVA fails
End your IVA and get a DRO?
Changes for Aperture & Vanguard IVAs
Alan says
I am into my 4th year, having paid 4yrs 3 months of a seven year IVA. I received a call today saying that the IVA company was calling a creditors meeting to look at requesting me to look into releasing equity, If my IVA is over such a long period do they have the right to request even more from me.
I currently pay £475.00 a month which is difficult to say the least, I was told when I took out the IVA by the IVA company (Since sold to another IVA firm) that it is very rare that they request me getting a loan to pay more to them. but this does not seem the case.
I have no credit rating and I will be 62 when the IVA comes to an end the thought of having to get a loan concerns me greatly.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Why is your IVA so long?
And when does your current mortgage end?
Alan says
Not too sure, I believe they missed a creditor off originally so said to add them would increase the terms of my IVA. Our mortgage has another 11years 1 month to go.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Is your mortgage repayment?
What are your pension arrangements like?
Has paying the £475 become more difficult – have your expenses gone up or your household income down?
alan says
Mortgage payments 850.00 per month
I have pensions from various companies that will be available when I retire not a lot in the pot though.
The last four years have been really tough with another 2years and 11 to go then the idea of having to get a loan, after an IVA so we don’t lose our house just seems wrong. It completely goes against the whole idea of an IVA agreement as this was brought about by a failed business.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So is it fair to say you will struggle to pay the current mortgage when you retire?
Have you asked your IVA firm if your current payments can be reduced?
Alan says
I am more concerned with the possibility of the IVA requesting me to release equity from my half of a joint mortgage. At 62 when the IVA comes to an end.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes I understand, but your IVA will have had a provision in for releasing equity.
You may be able to argue that you were told by your IVA firm this would not happen – that was why I asked why you IVA was 7 years – some people originally had an IVA set at 6 years as equity release would not be possible.
One of the best defences against having to release equity is to be struggling to make the current payments.
And if the current payments can be reduced, that in turn reduces the amount you could be asked to pay in equity release.
Alan says
They are looking at reducing my monthly payments currently.
What I don’t understand is why I got a call last week to say they will be arranging a meeting to discuss equity release options with the creditors when I still have 2 yrs 10 months to go.
Thank you for your replies, to my questions really appreciated
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Have you looked at the terms of your IVA? A standard clause would be “Six months prior to the expiry of the IVA (hereinafter referred to as the review date), there should be an attempt to release the debtor’s net worth in the property.” But yours May say something different. If there was an actual date there then I suppose your original IVA firm may not have updated it when your Term was extended…
Or of course thus may just be an error! In which case tell them and this subject will be dropped for now.
Lyndsey says
Hi
Can you offer advice pls?
I have just been put at risk of redundancy. I have paid into an IVA for 8 months @£210 a month. I owed approx £23,000.
I’ve just received a PPI payment of £3850, and my parents have offered to give me £2000. With the job market being difficult I’m concerned I may not get another job. I have not equity in my property and currently quite depressed hence my parent offering the money.
Do you think the two payments together totalling £5850 would be enough to clear my Iva?
Any guidance would be appreciated.
Thank you
Lyndsey
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Has this PPI payment been sent to you? It has to be paid into your IVA now. This isn’t optional. And it doesn’t reduce what you have to pay.
So this doesn’t really help you settle your IVA. :(
At this early stage in your IVA, £2000 doesn’t sound enough to settle it.
Are you likely to get a redundancy payout? Do you live on your own?
If you are made redundant, then your priority has to be paying your mortgage, will this be difficult?
Fresh Mind says
Wouldn’t recommend an IVA to anyone. I’ve been in mine 2 years but am woefully behind on payments and have made the decision to just let it fail. Separated myself emotionally from debt and I feel free as a bird. There should be a ban on credit applications for anyone under the age of 30 with the exception of mortgages. We’re all warned about our credit file but what ever happened to saving for stuff?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Too many IVAs are being missold to people and the failure rates were high even before the pandemic.
Feeling free is good, but read https://debtcamel.co.uk/when-iva-fails/ to see what your possible options are after an IVA failure.
Alison says
I am getting notice of redundancy on 31/12/20. I have 15 payments of £110 left in IVA which my friend said would lend me the money for a full and final payment plus £300 costs. The creditors meeting is on 21:12/20. I am currently isolating as I have a lowered immune system due to lymphomas so am unable to work in school due to COVID. I am 54 years young. I do not think it will be easy for me to get another job due to my health and COVID as employers face having to pay me to isolate which they won’t want to do. I am being offered enhanced redundancy of 16,300 plus 12 weeks lieu of notice. Basically what can I keep and what can I pay because I honestly do t think I’ll be able to work during the next 12 months at least. I’m in rented accommodation. My children are adults but at uni and/or furloughed and facing uncertainty about their jobs.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
did Creditfix agree to put forward the final settlement offer before you were told you would be made redundant?
Molly says
Hi Sara,
Interested in your advice re equity release. I have a protocol IVA with a large firm with equity clause. My 5 years is May 21 – in September 20 my IP advised the equity release process needed to be completed by Dec 20 in accordance with T&C. I did see the Guidance on the Government Portal and in a simple plain english email asked my IP to clarify this and how it related to me and my equity back in Sept 20. The wording of guidance was quite specific, no attempt to realise equity etc. No direct response in writing and prolonged delay till now Jan 21 that they need a physical valuation of my property as the equity process must be completed.
The IP advisor stated the physical survey of my home would need be carried out by their independent assessor paid out of the IVA pot. This was to ensure fairness – but I may have to wait several weeks even months for this to take place.
My question is this; can an IP or their advisors really behave like this? Is it normal? How long can this go on for – my concern is the process will just be rolled on until the guidance ceases to apply April21? Are they just waiting to insist in May 21 that I attempt to refinance? Should I pay for my own independent survey?
Any advice would be appreciated.
Molly
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest you send them a formal complaint and say it will be taken to the Insolvency Service’s Complaints Gateway if this is not resolved.
Neil Jones says
My IVA was approved in June 2016 on agreed term of 7 years. The seventh year was extra payments to purchase the property equity as we made it clear that my wife, who is not included in the IVA, would not agree to a remortgage or any funds raised on the property we own. Jarvis have now passed my details to a specialist mortgage provider to investigate equity release because a clause was added into the IVa that stated the equity would be dealt with in line with PCIVA guidelines if the equity is not realised in the first twelve months. If the creditors agreed to the extra twelve months payments how can we now be asked to look at equity release ?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You need to tell Jarvis this. It is a great shame you did not get the reason for the 7th year in writing from Aperture. But 7 years is very unusual and there would need to be a reason for this.
Neil says
The seventh year was added to purchase the equity, these payments are specifically listed in the IVA with the note ‘ to purchase equity’ next to it, so in essence, we have already agreed to an extra year of payments as my wife would not agree to a remortgage or raising of any other funds from the property. I suppose this could be seen as being in line with the PCIVA guidelines ?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
In that case you should be OK. Send Jarvis a formal complaint pointing this out.
M. says
Please if you can help me I would appreciate it, I am in my 3rd year of Iva and I have applied for a settlement loan. I previously worked two jobs (1 main 1 side) my main job was furloughed so I made my side job my main and then I got an agency job to fill as my side job (care assistant). Obviously with my agency job I have no guarantee hours, however I have earned much more money due to the statement of key workers overtime. I was semi interrogated on the phone today regarding this. They are arguing that the amount of money I have made is not classes as overtime but as salary (definition of salary is a regular fixed amount). Please can anyone help??
Weatherman says
Hi M
This is a tricky one. Because you’re paid hourly at your agency job, you don’t have a ‘salary’ plus ‘overtime’, but an hourly rate and a variable number of hours. Ask them to average your earnings from this job over a six-month period – that might still mean your IVA payments increase, but it’ll mean that one or two high-income months don’t have a massive impact.
The advantage of this of course is that if/when your earnings fall again, your IVA payments should drop again.
As for the settlement loan, that can be a good solution in some cases, but have a read of this before finally agreeing to it! https://debtcamel.co.uk/perinta-loans-end-iva-early/
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So is your current income – furloughd , old side job, new side job – more than your previous income?
Can you say something about this setlement loan?
M says
My current income is two jobs 1 main which used to be my side and the agency job which I just got to fill the rest of the money that I needed to earn to hit my previously agreed income of around 1300. I started in September and in November they asked if I could do more to help out.
I agreed because of the following information from the gov.U.K. Website which states ‘ 1.11 Paragraph 10.4 of the protocol should not apply to critical workers’ overtime during the COVID-19 pandemic. A critical worker is defined by the list published by the Government and determined by the employer. Additional proof of critical worker status may be required by the supervisor.’
And the Iva protocol states ‘ 10.4 Where the individual is employed, the consumer must report any overtime, bonus, commission or similar to the supervisor if not included in the original surplus calculation, where the sum exceeds 10% of the consumer’s normal take home pay. Disclosure to the supervisor will be made within 14 days of receipt and 50% of the amount (over and above the 10%) shall be paid to the supervisor within 14 days of the disclosure.’
M says
I have earned a considerable amount of money since November therefore even averaging will not help much, they will want to argue that it is a salary which means that it is not covered by the government statement. But surely if anything my salary is what me and Iva had agreed is my income (1300) and anything after should be classed as overtime. Especially with an agency job. Anymore thoughts Sara?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I think you should go back to the IVA firm and argue that in the spirit of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Guidance for the Straightforward Consumer IVA Protocol you should not be penalised because you had additional hours of work as a key worker, even though this were not strictly overtime.
If they will not change their mind, ask for a variation to be put to your creditors saying that this extra work should be disregarded.
M says
I will keep note of what u have said, I am definitely arguing this. My email to them yesterday provided the links they requested and asked them to write in due time as to wether or not they were going to go against government advise and penalise me as I would seek legal advise on the matter. I am awaiting their response still. (I appreciate what you are doing on debt camel to help people) i am now with jarvis
Sara (Debt Camel) says
ah. So Jarvis are continuing with the Sprout loans are they? I think you should be very wary of this. Your work has been erratic but good recently. If later it is erratic but poor, you can ask for your IVA to be completed on the basis of what you have paid so far. If you have taken a settlement loan, then you end up defaulting on that and having unmanageable debt again.
M says
That’s correct Sara, I asked sprout if I can repay the loan quicker and not be penalised or charged with the full amount of interest which they agreed (does that sound ok)? My thoughts are that I would do a lot of overtime and pay it off very quickly
I am currently waiting for a variation due to the settlement loan which I want. I want to get out of this Iva which causes me so much in anxiety and stress with annual income and expenditures. I want my debt to be sorted and not have the risk of failing. I am currently arguing that the home which is in my husbands name only should not have been an asset on my Iva. I have provided all documentation to them based on the house, none of which have my name on any. Thank u
Sara (Debt Camel) says
But it is still risky in case you can’t get that extra overtime. If you are confident, it’s your decision!
M says
Thank you so much Sara for what you are doing here, you have been so helpful, I just hope that they will not penalise me for the agency care work, and hopefully the creditors will take the property of the asset and agree to early settlement.. do u think it’s likely?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I think they should be helpful. But you can insist on your creditors being asked to vote on this if Jarvis won’t change their mind. It is money that you have worked hard for during a very difficult year.
M says
Thank you, I didn’t know that! I am about to do my 5th night in a row, so many vulnerable people need to isolate In care home and so many care staff have been off with covid. With agency I am contacted last minute and asked to drive to various locations. I have literally worked in places where there is more agency staff on duty than regular employees. If they cannot get agency staff to work then these places run on reduced staff to CARE for elderly people who literally need fed washed and pads changed.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You could also point out that your driving costs have gone up a lot?
The country needs good care workers…
M says
Hi Sara, after waiting 6 days (mostly sleepless nights to say the least) Jarvis have finally replied to my email. Only to say that this is the last day for me to submit my income and expenditure. And to ask again for 6 months payslips so that they could average my income. (Which will be substantial).
————————————————————————–
I replied with the following.
To whom it may concern.
I have submitted all payslips that I can find.
Do be aware that the only guaranteed income I currently have is approximately £750 each calendar month. I rely on the agency work for the remainder of my salary. Totalling approximately £1440.
The remainder is overtime for frontline work in the care sector.
I am currently (almost 1 week later) still awaiting on your reply regarding whether or not you will be forgoing the governments instructions and penalising me for this overtime.
You may or not appreciate that over a number of years I have suffered with ill mental health. Your delay in responding to my email is causing significant emotional and mental distress.
———————————————–
Please excuse my honestly. I suffer quite a lot with mental health problems. Unfortunately this has been one of the worst times in my life. I have not wanted to go on, multiple times. Not that it is of any concern to Jarvis of course. Unfortunately for people like myself in debt but with life insurance I am worth more dead than alive. I can understand why people Jill themselves in such circumstances. Again, apologies for the frankness Sara.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I am very sorry that they haven’t been more positive so far. I am thinking it would be good for you to ask your local Citizens Advice for an appointment now, because if Jarvis carry on being difficult it may help if Citizens Advice could write on your behalf.
As i said, it is your right to ask your creditors to vote on not requiring you to make extra payments because of this extra income. But sometimes standing up to an IVA firm and insisting on your rights is very stressful, especially when you have mental health problems.