If you are in the last few months of your IVA, you will be looking forward to making that last payment. It may feel a lot like getting to the finishing line of a marathon – and you may not be running so much as staggering over it.
But when should you cancel your standing order? How long does it take to get your completion certificate?
And when exactly are your debts written off, and how long until your credit record is clean?
This article looks at what happens at the end of an IVA.
Contents
Are you sure that is your last payment?
With a simple five or six year IVA, possibly with a further twelve months added instead of a remortgage, you may know exactly when your 60th or 72nd payment is going to be made.
But sometimes it’s less clear:
- there may be some payments outstanding if you had a payment break or extra months were added because of additional income;
- admin problems can happen – especially if your IVA has been transferred to a different firm so there is more chance that payments are outstanding;
- if you have a house but your IVA firm hasn’t spoken to you about releasing equity, don’t assume an extra year isn’t needed.
So it’s worth checking with your IVA firm a couple of months before “the end” that March 2023 or whenever really will be your last payment.
If your IVA confirms that is your last payment, you can cancel the Direct Debit or Standing order (or tell your bank by phone to end the Continuous Payment Authority).
It’s a good idea though to try to put a couple of months more payments into a savings account in case the final review (see below) turns up something.
A final review by your IVA firm
Your IVA firm will do a final review. Most firms have a special Closure Team that deals with this. Some firms do the review in the last couple of months, but many wait until after your final payment.
This is a bit like your annual reviews. Some firms ask for bank statements, payslips or a P60. They want to check if you had a lot of overtime, a pay rise, a bonus or some other windfall that you haven’t told them about. If you have, you may have to make some additional payment.
Hopefully after this, the firm will confirm that no more payments are needed.
What if they don’t get in contact?
If you haven’t heard from your IVA firm a couple of weeks week after your last payment, I suggest phoning or emailing them. Ask what you need to provide for the final review. The more you are proactive at this stage, the quicker this will all be over.
If they still don’t talk to you, then send them a weekly email. After a month put in a formal complaint.
If you want to cancel your payments in this situation, do put the money you would have transferred into a separate savings account. Don’t spend it! That way if it turns out there is still some money owing, you have it right there.
Your IVA firm starts the closure process
Once the Closure team confirms that you have made all the payments, they will distribute the last money to your creditors.
This closure procedure should in theory take a month or two. But there were major delays a few years ago caused by the IVA firm wanting to make PPI claims. And in 2022 things are getting worse again – over three months is common and some are over six months.
If your Completion Certificate hasn’t arrived after three months, I suggest asking every few weeks what is happening and whether you need to provide any more information.
If it gets to five months after your last payment, put in a formal written complaint to your IVA firm. At six months put in a complaint to the Insolvency Service about the delay in closing your IVA.
What happens when the IVA is finally completed
At last you will get your Completion Certificate!
At this point:
- Your IVA is over. The last payment – sometimes called “the final dividend” – has been sent to your creditors and the remainder of your debts have been written off.
- Your IVA firm will update the Insolvency Register. Your name stays on the register showing as “completed” for three months, then the entry is deleted.
- The Insolvency Register sends the information that your IVA has completed to the three Credit Reference Agencies. The IVA marker will remain on your credit records until 6 years from the start of your IVA. or until it is completed, whichever is later.
- If you have a house, your IVA firm will remove the restriction placed at the Land Registry so you can sell it.
This doesn’t look like an official certificate. It is just a letter on normal paper. But it’s very important – you should aim to keep this not just for a few months but forever. It is your proof that your IVA has finished – it may be hard to get a replacement if you need it in several years time, especially if your IVA firm no longer exists.
Check everything has been updated
You should check that the whole completion process has worked properly. This normally works fine but it’s sensible to check up on it.
Leave it a couple of weeks and then look up your details on the Insolvency Register – if this isn’t correct, call your IVA firm and ask them to correct it. Until this is corrected, your credit records won’t be updated.
Once the Insolvency register has been updated, wait another few weeks and check:
- Experian, Equifax and TransUnion – you do need to check all three credit reference agencies. Check the statutory reports from the CRAs as they are updated daily – most free reports are a snapshot taken once a month. If your IVA still shows as active, send a copy of your Completion Certificate to the credit reference agency and ask them to correct it.
- Land Registry – if the restriction is still showing, call your IVA firm. Make sure you do this. If you find out in 12 years time when you want to sell your house that the restriction is still there and your IVA firm has gone bust years ago and you can’t find your certificate any more you will have a major hassle getting this resolved.
And you need to wait another month or two to give your creditors time to update their records.
So that’s the end. Except…
You can start the process of cleaning up your credit file, see How to improve your credit rating after an IVA for details. This will ensure that your defaulted debts disappear when they should and that new credit starts to improve your credit score.
You shouldn’t hear from your IVA firm again. There are two exceptions.
- you may be sent a cheque for “uncashed dividends”. This is rare and it is good news if it happens to you. If this happens, your IVA firm will explain why – there normally isn’t anything you have to do except cash the cheque.
- the other one is lingering claims that your IVA firm may have made. Most PPI claims have now ended, but some IVA firms are trying to collect on a variety of other claims including affordability and pension mis-selling. You may still get some correspondence about these.
If you have a house, some people are reporting being contacted by a lender offering a remortgage or a secured loan after a few months. These are usually expensive bad credit lenders – you should think twice about doing this, especially with cost of living problems continuing. It may be better to wait a bit longer and clean up your credit record some more.
How equity release works in an IVA
More than a third of IVAs fail
Options when you can’t pay bills & debts
david h. says
I have had an iva since aug 2007 which stopped after 60 payments and have recently been recontacted from the company saying i should have paid for 66 months and it was their fault for not taking tje payments but are now wanting the other 6 monthly payments or they will not complete the iva last payment was sept 2012
Sara (Debt Camel) says
hi David, 66 payments is an unusual number. Had you missed any payments so extra ones are being added on after the end of the original 60? Has the IVA company explained why you have to make these payments? If not, I suggest you ask for an explanation. If it seems that you should, then can you now afford to? Perhaps you could have a couple of years ago, but now your income has reduced or your expenses have risen and you can’t afford them now. If this is the case, I think you should explain this and ask your IP to propose to your creditors that your IVA is completed, as your IP has admitted the delay is their fault.
Lee C says
I have had massive problems getting my certificate and finally got it sorted today after finishing the IVA October 2012 and being promised several times by debt free direct. They asked in November 2014 to get Representative to come round my house and take three months wage slips and three months back statements I wasn’t very impressed. I spoke to financial ombudsman today and they said find out which group dfd was under it was fairpoint group spoke to them and complained and said I had spoken to the ombudsman and within 3 hours I had my certificate emailed to me and hard copy in the post. If anyone else has this problem go his way as after nearly 2 and half years of worry it finally sorted ;-)
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Wow, 27 months, that is outrageous. Thanks for sharing – it’s good to know what works.
claire says
Hi there,
I had the exact same problem. Making my final payment in March 2012, it finally got completed in Feb 2014. Absolutely ridiculous…Technicaly according to my certificate my IVA Lasted 7 years!!
Roberta Poole says
I made my last payment after 6 years with Grant Thornton (Originally Blair Endersby) in May 2015. I was told that it takes 6 months to get Clearance Certificate on the telephone but subsequently after sending an email got a reply that I did not complete until August and that this was being handed to closure dept and would take 6 months. This will take me to February, which will be 7 years, if it happens. I also received a request from a legal firm to sign PPI claim forms (this is the third company appointed) in June 2015. I am not amused and have decided to give them until February and then, if nothing happens, to get in contact with the Financial Services Authority.
Chris says
I am having similar issues with GT now Aperture. I paid my last payment (after 75 months of being in the IVA due to a variation) in August and was told that it would be sent for review. As I have heard nothing from them since except more PPI claims forms when I have already done it twice and they have managed to get a small amount back in 2014. I called today to be told they need another income and expenditure form. Not entirely sure why as they only had one 4 months ago as part of my annual review and nothings changed. And it will take 2-4 weeks to send it to me after already been 2 and a half months since the last payment. They have then told me upon receipt it will go for final review and that could take 6 months and then a further six months to close if its deems it can be closed. I am so sick of them dragging their feet with everything. These IVA’s were supposed to be a way of getting debt free, not keeping you in insolvency for as long as they can.
I asked to speak with a manager and they refused to allow it, so I am now going to write a complaint. 3 months just to send out a form to me that they claim they need back is unacceptable. Then it could take up to a year at best to get closed, that’s if they don’t wait for more PPI.
I just want it done. After 75 months of paying for this and a further 3 already waiting for news of closure I am sick of the stress of it all.
Harry says
Hi I finished my iva in dec & now I get a phone call saying I have to send wage slips & bank statements so that they can complete, I asked why is this then ,he said it’s just to make sure u have not come in to any money etc ,
Sara (Debt Camel) says
hi Harry, this is perfectly normal. Most firms do this.
Anita says
I finished my 7 year (still not sure why it was 7) IVA with DFD last September, so almost 7 months. I didn’t realise at the time and continued paying by standing order until November, so paid two months more than I should. I was told I wouldn’t get a refund of these two payments until my IVA is closed.
My PPI is resolved, I wasn’t owed any. However, I received an email this week to say that the delay in my closure was due to ‘industry wide issues’. I can’t seem to find any details of these issues on the internet. Does anyone know what these issues are or are they just flannel?
They now say I’ll received my completion certificate and refund in 4-6 weeks. Is it worth me complaining to the ombudsman and surely I’m entitled to interest on the £350 overpayment of mine they’ve had for 6 months?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You can complain if you feel fed up with the way this has been handled. Plenty of other IVA firms are managing to close IVAs promptly – “just flannel” seems an accurate way of describing DFD’s excuse. It’s perhaps worth getting some perspective though – the lost interest on £350 over this period is probably less than £10. Complaints have to go through the Insolvency Service’s Complaints Gateway to the regulator though, as described in this article. They don’t go to the Financial Ombudsman.
Anita says
Thanks Sara. I’ll wait the 4-6 weeks and then ask them two questions. What was the industry wide issue that caused a 7 month delay? Why did my IVA last 7 years and not 6?
TBH, I’m terrified of rocking the boat beforehand. I just want my certificate and my refund.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The 7 years – sometimes a creditor insists on 6 years not 5 at the start – NRAM had a habit of doing this. This could then have had another year added if you had equity in a house but couldn’t remortgage? In other words there may be a good explanation but you are entitled to know what it is so do ask.
Sandra Habberley says
Hi I completed my iva with debt free direct in January 2012 still hadn’t got my completion certificate . Different reasons were given – in March this year I put a formal complaint in with insolvency office and guess what I received my certificate today 39 months after completing my iva
Sara (Debt Camel) says
39 months – that takes the top spot for reported delays so far! Good to see putting in a formal complaint kicked them into action.
Robbie says
Hi
Completed 5 years + 1 extra year of IVA with Grant Thornton (Originally with Blair Endersby) in May this year. Have been told it could be 6 months before receiving completion certificate.
I am 71 and want to retire from part time job and still have a mortgage, free myself of some of financial burden, want to sell up and move away to be nearer to family. How long have I to wait.
After reading some of the above I feel that I may not last long enough to do this!!!
Do we all really have to wait for such a long time after complying with all initial regulations? Particularly in view of the fact that in my case the IVA providers took more of the IVA payments that went to the creditors!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Hi Robbie, I agree it is absurdly long – 6 weeks is reasonable, 6 months isn’t! You could ask Grant Thornton if they could speed up this process if you agree to let them carry on collecting PPI after your completion certificate.
Robbie says
Hi Sara
Thanks, will try and let you know a) if I get a reply and b) what they say
Robbie says
I am not going to contact GT until the 6 months is up. I have received a report from them which is dated end June but does not include the final payment made in May!. As far as PPI is concerned, I contacted companies before the IVA started and was assured that there was none payable. GT have appointed 2 different companies to claim PPI and they managed to secure a small amount from 1 company in 2014. Nothing since, and, they appointed the 2nd company thereafter. No mention of PPI since other than on the bottom of the report, where they say they are still chasing. As far as I am concerned I have completed and complied with my IVA contract and shall write to them at the end of 6 months for CC and if not received shall take matters further. I have had enough of the stress of it all and I am sure that many others feel the same. The matter that concerns me is that BE/GT have taken more than half of the contributions which is not as I understood it originally when explained before I signed up for the IVA. We live and learn! I wish I had taken bankruptcy instead!
Lisa says
Hi, I’m not sure if you remember me ,TODAY I received my completion certificate!
This has taken 1year after our last payment to dfd, we have put in a complaint with icaew and we are waiting the out come because we had been treated really unfairly.
I wanted to say thank you for all your advice and to tell other people that there is light at the end of the tunnel !!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
At long last! I hope you have a small celebration and a very chilled out weekend :)
mark wattam says
Hi Sara,
we are with it was grant thornton but now called Aperture. Trying to contact them is a nightmare neither email or phone calls are returned.
The only information we have received was on Sept 1st 2015 stating “I wish to confirm receipt of your income and expenditure documents” considering they received them in June! It states “I can confirm that no additional income is due into your arrangement, as a result of my review”. That is all we have had barring the PPI papers and our final payment was made in March 2015.
We are at our wits end. My wife who is disabled with a spinal injury cannot wait for the end of this situation as its driving her mad.
May I add I came across debt camel purely by chance and find many others are in the same situation, our hearts go out to you, as with my wife and I our debt was not one of choice, my wife had an accident whilst I was away on contract, and as I had not completed the contract had to pay another contractor to finish the work, that led to our borrowing the funds in the first place, but got out of hand, and we hoped the PPI would help alas a big no to that one :(
Sara may I congratulate you as to this website as it give some hope and advise to so many, thank you.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Hi Mark, as this post says, put in a formal complaint to Aperture and then go to the Insolvency Service Gateway if the delay is over 6 months. I really don’t think some of these firms understand how hard it has been for many people to get to the end of their IVA, only to find that completion doesn’t arrive!
Steve Spencer says
My IVA should have finished this month April 2016. I have had no contact from Credit fix and am due to make another payment of over £500 on May the 1st.
Will I get this back or should I stop the standing order?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It’s too late to to stop the STO! You need to phone Creditfix and say what has happened. If they agree your IVA should have finished, you can stop June’s payment and should get the May one back.
sharon says
Hi all, I successfully completed my IVA in May 2008 and received my completion certificate within weeks of completion. Two years ago I received a letter from santander stating I owed £4500 in interest. I have never had any dealings with santander. Upon telephoning them I was told it was interest from a loan I had with allience and leicester which was included in my completed IVA. I contacted my IVA practitioner and they told me to send them the letter and they would deal with it. Twelve months later another letter came from santander stating I now owed over £5000 in interest again I sent it to the IVA practitioner who again told santander that the debt was included in an IVA. I also rang santander myself and was given an apology and assured they wouldnt be contacting me again. Yesterday I received a third letter from santander stating I now owed nearly £6000 and they were about to begin recovery of the debt. As I have moved house and received this letter 6 weeks after it was posted I am now concerned that it will have a negative effect upon my credit status. I also don’t have the completion certificate anymore as I completed my IVA over 6 years ago. I have again contacted my IVA practitioner who are sending me another copy of my completion certificate. Do I have grounds to complain about santander and if so, who should I complain to? What can I do to stop them sending me letters as its now starting to get on my nerves that a mistake I made around 13 years ago that I thought I had legally rectified by entering into and successfully completing an IVA is still causing problems today. Any help will be gladly accepted.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Yes, you have good grounds to complain! I like using the Resolver system to make this sort of complaint – it’s free to the user and it let’s you put in a complaint (see http://www.resolver.co.uk/freeadvice/services/14944/issues, I suggest going for Loans – Other for this problem as it’s unusual), escalate it and then reminds you when the 8 weeks are up so you can take it to the Financial Ombudsman if necessary.
sharon says
Thanks Sara.
Alison says
Hi, I completed my 72 month IVA in March 2016 and shortly before this completed an income and expenditure sheet. I emailed the company a couple times to confirm that it was finished and enquire when my certificate would be sent but never got a reply. Chased this s couple times but nothing. Received notification that the company had been taken over. I received a letter today asking for income and expenditure details even though it states on the paperwork that the iva was for 72 months and 72 months have passed with no arrears.
Do I still need to send this again? I really thought that this was done and dusted and all behind me and it’s just dragging it all up again.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The IVA needs to be closed down properly so your creditors get the money, you get your completion certificate and your debts are written off. Annoying though this is, probably the best thing at the moment it to supply them with whatever they want as soon as possible :(
sylvie says
sorry in advance for the long message but I hope it might be of some help !
We had similar problems, when came to the completion ! Normally at the end of the iva the procedure is that the iva provider put a final expenditure together and let creditors knows that you have now completed it all and the creditors have still have so many weeks to come back( in our case 6weeks) and make sure that you have payed everything into the iva ( they often after ppi repayments ).
If you have already forwarded all the necessary documents recently( and repetitively) and if all was ok , and accepted by your iva company ,they should not need to see anything else .Obviously I appreciate that the company was taking over but they still should honour your contract unless you signed something stating otherwise ?
The key is to get everything in writing , has in: have they accepted your final expenditure?where are you in the process of receiving your certificate of completion and in the closure of your iva ? Write to them with your worries and questions of course keep a copy of it all .
The company we used was debt free direct and I must say it was awful ! They kept sending the same paperwork over and over for us to sign ,
I could not get any answers over the phone as to why all seems to be ok one minute and the next the same process will start all over again for no apparent reasons ! I managed eventually to get in writing that all was signed payed and in order but still no certificate.
In the end we put a formal complaint to the charter accountancy board against the person in charge of my case and the governing body which regulate all iva companies ,in that particular case against debt free direct .
Our certificate came through within weeks after that .
I am not suggesting that you do the same , I am not a professional adviser simply someone who suffered the stigma of an iva , with very little help or advice from anyone as it seems Iva provider can do what they like or so it seems.
My message to you is that like anyone ,they have to follow a code of conduct , and can be made accountable for their actions or lack of it when it comes to completion! Just dont feel like you have to wait for ever until they graciously decide they will send it to you , if all is In order your end and you can prove it you have got nothing to worry about .
In my case I felt that they were unwilling to communicate relevant informations, they did not communicate from on service to the next , refuse to write down relevant informations, and at time were threatening over the phone with this underlying ” better comply or else ” , always pushing the goal post further away and of course confusing ….
They should be providing you with clear guidance and help as you are in the end paying them a huge fee for their services .
I found all the informations in regards of who to turn to to speed up the process on line , and after trying so hard to resolve the situation with Debt free direct first had no choice but to bring outside regulating bodies to help .The reasonable amount of time should be to for months 6 to an absolute push anything after that us not acceptable if all is ok . ( obviously your credit file will be affected until you finally get certificate and even after that it can take up to six months to still show )
Anyway keep strong and best of luck , we completed our iva last may and our certificate came through in January !
Sylvie
Dina says
Hi sylvie
Can you please give me a little more information on who you complained to. We finished our iva in January this year and despite complaining to DFD and Complaints Gateway have still not heard a thing nor received the final certificate and they are still asking us to sign forms for PPI.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Dina
Sara (Debt Camel) says
If you haven’t signed the form they are asking you to which will let them claim PPI after your certificate is issued, your IVA will not be closed. And there is no point in complaining to The Insolvency Service or your IP’s regulator.
It may seem unfair to you, but you have a simple choice – sign their PPI authorisation or wait possibly years until they decide there can’t possibly be any more PPI to come.
Dina says
Thanks for responding Sara. So will it just be PPI or would it also be for any monies received later down the line eggs inheritance or proceeds from a sale of a house?
Many thanks
Dina
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It should just be for PPI – but read carefully what you are being asked to sign and if you don’t understand it, ask questions!
sylvie says
I initially put a complaint to the isolvency services complaint gateway after speaking to them and explaing our case and after consulting a solicitor via citizen bureau advice ,then my complaint was passed on to the ICAEW ( institute of chartered accountant in England and Wales) who dealt with the practice responsible for my case .It took about four months , otherwise I dread to think how long it could have been !
Over the phone they told me that althought all ppi was payed and all was in order , if I did not sign ( baring in mind it was not a compulsory amend of contract ) they would not even look into starting the closure , and that’s after telling me totally the opposite for over six months pre that , without the help of the icaew I do believe I would still be waiting for my certificate.
Don’t give up ,don’t sign anything you don’t understand and , ,have all put I writing and chase your complaint if you already had one or start a new one if you need .
I also find out that you can request a meeting with the practice at their head office ( most company do it may be not all they hate it and avoid it as they dint want to deal with someone face to face ) so you can look at it all make note and try to sort this out ( but don’t sign anything unless you 100% sure )
Hope this help ! I know every case us diffrent you might need to sign and give more paper but don’t just accept it all because they are scary to deal with !
Dina says
Thanks Sylvie that’s a great help:)
Dina
Holmes says
Hi. I’m 4 years in to my IVA I have noticed on my paperwork that one of my creditors has not come forward. I owed them 12k. My other creditors have come forward totaling another 6k. All together this should be 18k What happenes if the creditor of 12k does not come forward?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It is a bit premature to be worrying about this, the missing creditor may well come forward and submit a claim.
I am assuming they were notified about the IVA being set up but didn’t vote at the meeting. They are still bound by the IVA and the debt will still be wiped out at the end of the IVA. If they don’t submit a claim, then the money they would have been entitled to will be distributed between your other creditors giving them a higher dividend. But your IVA firm will be trying very hard to contact them after the last payment so this isn’t necessary.
Denise says
hi we went into an iva 6 years ago, since then they have changed companies when we first went into an iva they said it would be for 5 years and if they can’t get any equity out of our house would have to do another year. now this new company is saying we have to do 1 more year so in total it will be 7 years surely these companies can’t get away with doing this to people is there any one we can talk to about this matter
would love your advise
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Hi Denise, you need to check your IVAs terms. It may be that when it was approved, it was set up as six years? You should have had this explained to you. But if the documents you have say five years, ask your IVA firm to explain why you are now being asked to do a 7th year.
ann dolan swarbrick says
my IVA finishes in 6 months (four years) never missed a payment – I have paid just over £27k on a det of £40k Recently I received a anon. text saying “they were going to take my house and my pensions and declare me with dementia. I am a senior citizen and did not go into debt as a volunteer – I paid for my husbands care £87k. Halifax hold my “liefetime mortgage of 56k. Can they do this…..
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Hi Ann, if you are getting a lot of these (you have commented about them before) you could talk to your IVA firm or go to your local Citizens Advice. It doesn’t sound as though you have anything to worry about legally, but it would be good to have your mind put at rest by someone who can talk through the details with you.
Beverley Haines says
Hi we had a five year IVA which finished in October this year. We heard nothing so I rang the company who told me that we had in fact paid too much money (2 months overpaid) I was told to cancel DD and that we would receive refund within 3-5working days. This didn’t happen so called them again I was told that we could not have refund until they had received overpaid money back from creditors. Still not heard anything from the company with regards to final paperwork to say IVA is finished. What do you suggest ?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I am surprised they have already distributed your last 2 months payments to your creditors… I suggest putting in a formal complaint in writing to them saying a) they haven’t kept you informed, b) they told you you could have a refund straight away and c) if they have already distributed the money, why have you not been sent a completion certificate? Add that you will be taking your complaint through the Insolvency Service Gateway if this is not resolved with 28 days.
See https://debtcamel.co.uk/complaint-iva/ which has more info on complaining about an IVA.
Graham Lyons says
We completed our IVA making our last payment approximately 4 months ago.
We are still receiving letters from the IVA company stating they are still awaiting P60s from previous years of which we have sent and now they are stating we are in breach of the Voluntary Arrangement.
We have adhered to the terms and conditions within the agreement.
Since we began the IVA we have had no fewer than seven case officers of which I have explained this to the company.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Is it just the old P60s they are asking for? Have you been having annual reviews?
Graham Lyons says
Hi, they have asked for the old P60s,
Yes we have had annual reviews
The last annual review I declared an increase in my wages of which they increased our payments
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Well send them again along with a pointed note saying they have already had these. This is tedious, but it’s probably going to be fastest to resend what they are asking for even if it is annoying.
Graham Lyons says
Unfortunately we do not have the P60’s for the years they are asking for 2010 up to 2016 .
My wife resent the previous P60’s ie 2015,2016 but these were the originals due to her being stressed with the whole saga
I contacted the company to explain that the payslips and also the P60’s were resent, but they are still requesting them.
I am seeking legal advise regarding this situation as i feel we have adhered to the clauses set out by the company and
feel that it is not our fault that they cannot find the relevant paperwork within their archives.
Gary098 says
My IVA practitioner says she did not want p60s but I’ve still sent them. To come to you in year 5 and ask for them is wrong I thought they should do annual reviews. And at time of review ask for them.
Should of been asked for at annual review times.Not your mistake your IVA companies mistake or insolvency practitioner please always bear in mind your insolvency practitioner is actually paid by the bank to retrieve as much of the debt as possible.
Chris Johnson says
Hi, I am in my 5th year of an IVA. I asked the company (Credit fix) when my last payment will be and they stated December, however there may be a review and I may have to pay for another 12 months or remortgage.
I have never missed a payment. Can I ask, under what circumstances would they ask me to pay for another 12 months as this is devistating news to me. We have another 6 years on our Mortgage and I assumed that after 5 years it would be finished.
Please advise me as I am just so upset by this.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Hi Chris, this article https://debtcamel.co.uk/iva-equity-release/ looks at equity release. It is disappointing to say the least that this has come as a surprise to you – it should have been clearly explained at the start.
Chris Johnson says
Sarah, thank you so much for your reply.
If I could sort of lay this out. We were in trouble. We were around 57,000 down. However, we have paid with PPI repayments well over 30,000 with a year to go.
I understand this is obviously our obligation to pay. We have. We are more than honest and give everything we can. However, these companies also take a lot off the top. So after our final (this year) payment we would have repaid around £35,000. In your opinion, and honestly, I am only asking your opinion not a final ruling.,,, do you think they will extend it for yet another year? If so, so be it. I just hope I last that long. Work is good, and do far no more heart attacks :-(
Sara (Debt Camel) says
If you have enough equity (see the other article) then you will need to make an extra year of payments. What you have paid in isn’t relevant unless you have repaid all the debts pluas the IVA fees – which you aren’t close to.
If your expenses have risen more than your income, it may be that the amount you are paying could be revised down.
Dave says
Hi Sara,
Our 5 years of IVA payments ended in November, it has been a real slog. My wife and I are both self employed and work for a charity. We both receive a fixed self employed income for the work we do, which is lots of work but quite low wages because of the nature of the business.
Our IVA firm asked for our SA302 forms for the past 5 years which we have sent off.
When the IVA was set up we had been paying about £250 per month to a debt solution company which we could just about afford, so when the IVA stared they kept our monthly payments close to this.
Our wages have never increased over the five years, but all our bills have gone up and our tax credits have gone down, which has meant paying the £250 per month has increasingly become difficult but we got through it by the skin of our teeth. Our annual Income and Expenditure form had us down every time as having over £500 each month to use for housekeeping, clothes, travel and home repairs, this was more like £200. I adjusted the review form every time and sent it back with a question to ask if our IVA payments could be lowered. They never replied and never adjusted the Income and expenditure form. We were forced to find cheaper places to shop and cheaper ways to live knowing one day all this will be over. We have three children and that has been the hardest part, saying NO to them all the time to basic life luxuries.
I’ve chatted to many different people at the IVA firm over the years and explained our situation and they have all been sympathetic but never really helped.
I had a small van for a short period of time and made a little extra money a few times with it which helped us eat. I told the IVA firm about this several times.
But to my horror I had a call from the company last week questioning every aspect of our lives and saying that the extra money I made with my van should have gone towards the IVA. I’ve sent them all my bank statements and I’m now worried that our IVA will fail and we will be made bankrupt.
The stress of all this is slowly killing us.
Is there any advice you can give to help please.
Many thanks
Dave
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest you should reply to them in writing saying that you have given the all the information about the van before and they ignored it so you assumed it wasn’t a problem. You would like them to revist each of your annual reviews as you also feel they have ignored the information you gave them about your expenses increasing.
Dave says
Thank you Sara, you’re a big help. I will let you know how it goes.
Dave says
Hi Sara,
Just to update you on the above, I sent in all the information they requested a week ago with a covering letter.
I included an up to date income and expenditure form, which after all our bills are paid, plus the IVA (£250), leaves us with approx £175 to £200 per month for the five of us to live on. We have been living on this low amount for quite a while, my wife has become an expert grocery bargain basement shopper, so I said if we could reduce the payments that would be great, or if we have to continue the £250 IVA payments for another 12 months we will get on with it and hope the time flies.
They acknowledged receipt of my documents by text last week and said they are dealing with it. This was over a week ago and I have heard nothing since. We haven’t made an IVA payment since our 60th payment in November, which we hoped would be our last payment. We have equity in our house, but it has been confirmed that we are unable to remortgage.
Should I call them and ask what the delay is? The quicker we continue our monthly payments, the quicker this nightmare will end.
In your experience what do you think will be the outcome to all this, and should we just sit and wait?
Many thanks.
Dave
Sara (Debt Camel) says
£175-200 a month is not a reasonable amount for a family of 5 to live on even if your wfe is a demon shopper. From what you have said it sounds as though you need a variation so your IVA will be accepted as completed. I think you should call them and ask what is happening.
Dave says
Thank you Sara.
I don’t know what a variation is but I will contact them and let you know how I get on.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Sorry, using technical jargon = bad habit :(
Your IVA will currently say (at least alomost all do, I haven’t seen yours) that you need to pay for another 12 months if you can’t remortgage to release equity. To get this changed, your IVA firm needs to draft a proposed “variation” to the terms of your IVA, which your creditors will then vote to approve. This is the normal way to get an IVA amended.
Dave says
Thanks Sara,
I just got off the phone to the IVA company. The same guy I’ve been speaking to. He said he needs to go through everything that I sent in (over a week ago) to see where we stand. He said he should be back in touch early next week.
Thanks Sara. I’ll keep you posted.
Dave says
Hi Sara,
Just to update you again on the above.
It has been a battle to say the least with our IVA firm, over the past few weeks, to convince them that all we’re telling them is true, but having gone through our bank statements, SA302 forms, tax credit and child benefit details etc, with a fine tooth comb, it now seems that they are finally back on our side.
They carefully went through an income and expenditure review with us and agreed that we can’t really afford to continue paying the £250 IVA payment each month, so they are now drafting a proposal, which will be sent to us to sign. It is to ask our creditors if they will accept the IVA as completed. Failing this they will ask if they will accept a greatly reduced payment (£80 ish) for a further twelve months. Failing this we have said we will brace ourselves for a further year and continue to pay the £250 if forced to, just so we can see the back of it and avoid being made bankrupt.
In your experience what usually happens at this stage? We made all 60 IVA payments (£250) without a break, even though it is still only about 15% to 20% of what we actually owe and we have a decent amount of equity in our home. I hope this doesn’t go against us.
It has been the most difficult and frustrating experience of our lives. When we were sold the IVA in 2011 it sounded like a piece of cake, and throughout the five years our IVA firm seemed to be our best friends, but as soon as the 60 payments were made they turned against us and tried hard to trip us up. I’m not sure if this is a usual thing, or if we were just unlucky.
Thank you for all your help Sara.
Kind regards
Dave
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It sounds as though your IVA firm is proposing a sensible way forward. It isn’t unusual for creditors to be asked to accept an IVA as completed in this sort of situation, but I am afraid each case is individual and there is simply no point in me making a guess as to whether it will be accepted.
Dave says
Thank you Sara. I’ll keep you posted.
Dave says
Hi Sara,
I called our IVA firm regarding the mis selling of PPIs and they put me through to a sister company who deals with PPIs. Initially they were keen to pursue the possibility. They said it should be easy to start the ball rolling as they already have all the details needed. The lady I was speaking to then needed to speak to her manager and she came back to me to say that because of a new law we may not be able to keep any money due and it may possibly be paid back to our creditors, so it’s probably not worth pursuing.
She said she was going to look into it for us and call me back. This was last Monday and I haven’t heard anything since.
Is she correct? And shall we forget about it?
Many thanks
Dave
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Well it’s not a new law, but there has been a recent appeal court decision in the Green v Wright case… see https://debtcamel.co.uk/ppi-iva-green-wright/.
Have you had your completion certificate? How long ago? Who is your IVA firm?
Dave says
Hi Sara,
Our creditors had a variation meeting yesterday and they voted to accept the IVA as complete. What a relief. Thank you very much for all your advice on this site, it has been a big help.
What exactly happens next please?
The IVA started on 31/10/2011 and it was accepted as complete yesterday 5/4/2017
Many thanks again
Dave.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Good news!
What happens now depoends a bit on your firm. Some will go through a normal closing-your-IVA process and ask you for your bank atements and payslips again – but nothing should go wrong unless you have just won the lottery or something, so try to regard this as tedious, not worrying. Some seem to decide they already know enough.
If you haven’t heard from them in a couple of weeks I suggest calling and asking about what wuill happen and when.
Dave says
Hi Sara,
More good news.. Our Certificate of Completion arrived today, 4th May, it was dated 28th April 2017. It seems to have been a quick thing. The creditors only accepted the variation to end the IVA on 5th April. And it is not really a certificate, just a letter. I’m not complaining honest ;-)
Does this mean it is now completely at and end, and we are officially now debt free? Or are there other things up ahead?
And moving forward, what is the timeline now for being removed from the Insolvency register / Land registry restriction, and regarding the credit reference agencies etc.
It says somewhere 3 months to come off the Insolvency Register, but 3 months from when?
Our IVA was first accepted on 31/10/2011, and our first of 60 payments was on 20/11/2011 and our final payment (60th) was on 20/10/2016.
The IVA variation meeting was held on 05/04/2017, and our Completion Certificate is dated 28/04/2017.
Also, what date will be able to start rebuilding our credit score etc. Not that we have plans to get back into enormous debt of course.
Also, do I need to send a copy of the Completion Certificate to anybody?
One last question about PPI. We have never attempted to claim for it, and in original the variation proposal letter it states;
“Should these revised proposals be accepted, whilst I am not aware of any intended or ongoing reclaims regarding the mis-sell of PPI policies, should the client make any such reclaims successfully any redress received prior to the final report, I intend to consider these funds as excluded from the arrangements and be retained by the clients”
Have you any idea what this means please?
Many thanks again.
Best wishes
Dave
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Well done – you probably feel as though the picture on the article above is appropriate!
Yes, with your completion certificate this is finally done and your remaining debts in the IVA are now wiped out. Your details will remain on the Insolvency Register for 3 months – I guess from the date on the completion certificate. Your IVA firm should remove the restiction at the Land registry – check in a month and complain if they haven’t done this.
The IVA marker will go from your credit record 6 years from the start date, so a more few months to go. Here is how to start the credit record clean up process: https://debtcamel.co.uk/repair-credit-record-iva/ but I suggest waiting a couple of months so your creditors have a chance to get it right all by themselves :)
You don’t need to send the certificate of completion to anyone at the moment. But you may need it if you need to write one of the letters in the clean-up link. Keep this certificate forever, it is a piece of paper you do not want to lose.
That PPI clause … it sounds a bit mangled to me. I am guessing that the word “prior” should actually have read “after”… If you think there is any PPI to reclaim, you should ask your IVA firm to clarify this as I think they will be happy for you to do it and keep the money.
Dave says
Thank you Sara,
Yes, the picture above perfectly sums up our feelings, it really is like completing a marathon.
Your help and advice along the way though has been like a well needed piggy back at times, so thank you.
Maybe we should let the dust settle a bit regarding the PPI?. What do you think? I’m pretty sure we have been mis sold this in the past by many companies, but it seems a bit of a cheek to now claim money off them after they have just written off lots of our debt.
Thanks again Sara. I think I will keep our completion certificate in a glass case :)
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest you ask your IVA firm about this now. If you wait a while they may have archived your case and have to get it back to answer your question! Also there is a deadline coming up for PPI claims, so getting them in sooner rather than later is a good idea: https://debtcamel.co.uk/ppi-deadline-august-2019-plevin/.
Dave says
Sorry Sara. (Re your question about PPI above)
Yes – I’ve received the completion certificate, dated 28th April
IVA firm – Freeman Jones
Many thanks
Jeanette McKellar says
Hi Sarah,
I am now in my third year of my IVA. I have been paying the same amount of £149 every month and not missed a payment. I get missed calls every single day from their PPI arm of the company and they have recovered over £11,000 so far. I received a letter saying that my IVA payments will stay the same for my third year, however, I rent my home and work hard, What will happen after the five years as I am now feeling harassed by the PPI section of this company?
Thank you in advance for you’re reply.
Jeanette
Helen says
I had an IVA that began 01/2010 it was a 6 year iva that was at a set fee for 2 1/2 years until my car finance completed then it increased by that amount, I then had a child in childcare so my outgoings increased a lot which left my disposable income less, I sent off my new details and they deemed my affordability was now less. I then went onto have another child who was also in childcare and I worked part time. On my credit file (Experian) my debt was seen as completed closed and satisfied for a while and has now gone off it altogether where do you think I stand as it still says my IVA is active but it’s now over 7 years.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Have you been making any payments? Who is your IVA firm?
Helen says
I never stopped making payment but when my disposable income was less I paid less
Not sure of it’s name as it changed its name twice during the 6 years. I know I haven’t paid the full amount set out at the beginning but my credit file is clear and my score has gone up does that mean it’s satisfied
Sara (Debt Camel) says
No, I am afraid that just reflects the fact that defaulted debts disappear from your credit record after 6 years. You need to talk to your IVA firm. I think you should be asking if your IVA can be ended now.
Helen Neale says
Thank you I’m just scared that they will re add all my debt to my credit file. Can they do this ??
Many thanks for your reply
Sara (Debt Camel) says
A debt that has disappeared as it defaulted over 6 years ago can never be re-added to your records, this isn’t something to worry about. But you do need to find out what is happening with your IVA and when the expected end date is.
Chris McCoy says
Started a 6 year iva in 2012 Did a full and final settlement in June 2016 last year received my certificate in semptember 2016 I’ve looked on the insolvency register and seen that I’m still on there should I have come of this or do I get removed once 6 years as completed
Kind regards chris..
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You should have been removed 3 months after completion. Talk to your IVA firm and ask why the Register hasn’t been updated.
Kare says
I have finished my iva and I am think of taking my pension early to extend the lease on my flat . Can my creditors ask for the money to be paid to them instead as a windfall
Sara (Debt Camel) says
If you have your completion certificate, you can do what you like with your pension, your IVA has no claim over it.
I always suggest people talk to Pension Wise about taking money from their pension.
Robert Gallaher says
Briefly:-
– started a 5 year IVA in November 2011
– made every payment on time up to Nov 2015
– told by administrator in Nov 2015 to stop the DDM and await their review on the viability of remortgage vs 6th year (I am 73 with insufficient income, in lenders terms, for a remortgage) but i am working full time
– SPAM email (!) in Feb 2016 from another company saying they ‘had taken over the previous company’s IVA book and would be in touch in a couple of weeks..’ No letter, no other contact, I thought it was a scam.
– wrote to the first IVA company for confirmation and got no reply
– haven’t heard a word from anyone since (16 months) and IVA still on the credit record
– I want to retire and repay the ‘interest only’ mortgage from an Equity release (only 5 years to go on mortgage!!)
Advice please on how to approach this negligence on the administrators part.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Have you spoken to the company that say they have taken over the IVA? If not, that would seem to be the first thing to do.
julia says
I took out an IVA in 2011, coming up for 5 years I had a letter off of NTF financial solutions saying my IVA was coming to an end I paid every month never missing a payment and at the start of the 6th year they estimated my outgoings and income and said I owed more money £727 but from the moment I took out my IVA my mortgage went up nearly £200 pounds and I did tell the IVA company but I still carried on paying the same amount every month, I refused to pay this amount as I was not earning anymore money like they suggested. That all went quiet I had a letter saying everything was on course. Then out of the blue I had a letter saying my mortgage could have been miss-sold and they wanted to look into it. .I know my mortgage wasn’t miss-sold it would be wasting their time. So I didn’t respond I thought everything was finished my IVA was for 5 years and my property was exempt, they were hounding me about this sending letters ringing me up about the mortgage miss-selling it was like they wanted to squeeze every penny they could get they had my PPI refunds also I thought enough is enough, now because they did not get any joy with the mortgage miss-selling they are asking for the £727 again they hadn’t mentioned it for ages and I think just for spite they are threatening to make me bankrupt, I could carry on paying with a struggle but it is the principal I don’t think they should be asking me for anymore money
Sara (Debt Camel) says
When was your last payment? HAve they come up with a statement explaining why they say you owe an extra £727?
Fiona T says
Hi
I am due to pay the last instalment of my IVA which is due at the end of May 2017. My IVA was due to end in May 2016 however it was further extended due to fact that they were unable to release any equity on my property. I have made all of the payments on time and never missed a payment however I think I may have breached a term of my IVA. I took out a credit card which was originally capped at £500 which I believe is permitted under the terms however the credit limited was increased over the last year meaning that it exceeding the permitted amount of £500. I have begun the process of closing my IVA and my Supervisors have requested various documentation from me including a copy of my bank statements. On my bank statements they have noticed a payment to Vanquis and have now queried it and asking for further detail as to the amount of credit, when it was taken out and what it was used for.
I am worried that this will cause my IVA to fail and mean they could make me bankrupt despite the fact that all payments have been made to date and the final payment will be made at the end of the month. Please could you advise me on whether this is going to cause me further problems?
Thank you in advance.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Did you use the larger credit limit? What is the largest balance you have had?
Fiona says
The credit is about £4,000 and I have used £3,000.
As I was in the process of closing my IVA, the requested from me copies of my bank statements and saw that a payment to vanquis had been made so they are now querying it (i.e the outstanding balance, when the credit was taken out and what it was used for). I could pay about £2,000 to reduce the outstanding balance but want to know whether it’s likely to be an issue first.
Thank you.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Well it is going to be an issue, but I can’t really guess what your IVA firm is going to say. I suggest getting in touch with them asap, the best thing you can do now is be completely honest and open about what has happened.
Mandy says
I have just got final review and iwe 3.336 settlement due to overtime, i asked if this is the last i will be asked for and just got told it will be reviewed again when paid…i am at my wits end its just going to go on and on! Can they do this after 6 years? Surely not
Gary says
Hello, I have just paid my final payment to my IVA after over six years. Today I had an email from the company to say that there is negative equity so there will be no extension and my case will proceed to closure. Also that I have made an over payment and they need my bank details. I have cancelled the mandate as advised by three people working for the company… just wondering why I would have an overpayment refund and why this would not go to my creditors?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
If your firm has collected one repayment too many, or has been collecting more than they should, then you should get a refund.
Gary says
Could this mean that my monthly payments were too high? I don’t want to rock the boat by asking how much will be refunded to me!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It’s pretty hard for me guess what has happened. You are either just going to have to accept whatever “refund” is offered, or you are going to have to ask why it happened / how is was calculated.
Paul says
Hello,
My partner finished her IVA in Feb 2015. That’s the date on the completion letter. Over 2 years ago. There is such conflicting information around regarding when she can move forward with mortgage applications. 6 years from start of IVA, 6 years after IVA completed, 3 years from completed IVA. These are all things we have been advised recently. We are trying to get a mortgage and seems to be very difficult. Dont really want to use an adverse credit lender. She was refused flat by Halifax and although they will not release reason why ( this is frustrating and surely very counter productive from the system ) we think likely because one of her debts within the IVA was with Lloyds. Will she EVER be able to get a mortgage with a Lloyds group lender? Will she ever be completely free of this history? Do Lenders use other methods of credit searching other than Experian, Equifax and Call Credit? There is no trace of her IVA on any of these reports now ( we had the last one removed from Equifax 2 weeks ago ). Obviously we have to be careful not to stamp our credit reports with too many applications so finding this process so tricky and need some solid information. Any help would be very appreciated. Thank you in advance. P
Sara (Debt Camel) says
She can reasonably plan to get a mortgage 6 years after the IVA started, provided that the IVA has ended. So if she ended her IVA early or after 5 years, this means waiting until the IVA marker goes from her credit record 6 years after it started. If her IVA ended after 7 years say, then she can apply 3 months later when her credit record is clean.
Any mortgage lender is likely to look at their own internal records. There is no time limit on how long they can keep these for. You should avoid applying to anyone in the Lloyds group as a result.
Other mortgage lenders may also reject you. You may be asked on the application if you have ever been bankrupt or in an IVA. To avoid these problems, I suggest going to a broker that specialises in post IVA mortgages. You should be able to get a mortgage at an OK rate, it’s just a question of knowing who to apply to.
Paul says
Thanks for the quick response Sara.
We dont really want to use an IVA specialist lender, their rates would be double the high-street at about 3%.
Do you know if there is an easy to read comparison list for lending criteria for all highstreet banks and building society’s?
I want to know who we should concentrate on contacting and who we should avoid. I already know about Lloyds banking group. Do you happen to know if TSB are still connected to them?
Thanks again
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Well you can try talking to a non specialist broker, but if they don’t seem clued-up about IVAS, go to someone else. You need to know what banks current policies are. They change. And I am not aware of any comparison list for this sort of thing. This is what brokers are there for, they should know the current market.
Paul says
Thanks again Sara.
Our current experience with 3 different advisers has not been great. Like I said initially there seems to be such conflicting information coming from each person. At the moment I feel like I am doing their job for them. It would seem that depending on who I speak to we can get a mortgage no problem as the IVA start date was in 2009 and then we are told that most will not lend until 3 years after the IVA finished and I also read that you have to wait 6 years after in some cases.
(Big Sigh)
Sara (Debt Camel) says
That is why I am suggesting you speak to a specialist. Sorry.
Jonathan Lindley says
Hi. I’ve completed my IVA over 2 years ago. My credit score is now showing very high on all the credit reference agencies and there’s no indication if the IVA on there either. I am now looking to get a 1st time mortgage. Am I wasting my time? Will the IVA record be lurking on a hard record somewhere? Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The IVA will still be showing on the internal records of the creditors in the IVA – so make sure you don’t apply for a mortgage to Halifax if you had a debt with Lloyds.
You may be asked on a mortgage application if you have ever been insolvent (YES) or had an IVA (YES). It’s best to go through a broker, not direct to a lender, because of this.
Good luck – you should be fine if you pick the right lender!
Jonathan Lindley says
Thanks. I’m looking at Nationwide who I’ve had no previous dealings with. They ask if I have entered into an IVA in the last 6 years. Obviously I haven’t ?
Robert Roberts says
I’m into 8 years of my IVA I’ve had my equity release carried out and have 4 payments left to the end. I notified the IVA about loosing 200 a month tax credits and a further £200 a month DLA. £400 plus in total.
This was notified back back in Feb 2017 to e IVA company this was inevitable due to my claim being transferred from DLA to PIP.
A family member offered me the money to make final up to December 2017. The IVA company said I could not offer this payment as I would be in breech of my contract IVA ??????.
I now have official documents having saying benifits have been withdrawn due to new rule changes of PIP. I except these benifits have stopped and exceeded the appeal systemn of DWP and HM custom & Revenue. Working Tax Credits.
I am now over £400 less in monthly income. I work 32 hours a week.
Why did the IVA company not allow me to make final payment back in Feb 2017.
Can I make the four months remaining payment today if I can get help from a family member to end my IVA.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You couldn’t just make a final payment of all the amounts back in Feb 17 – the IVA form would have had to get your creditors to agree to a variation. I don’t know why your IVA firm didn’t propose this.
the same applies now. As it will usually take a couple of months to get a variation through, there doesn’t seem much point. Why not just the money from your family moment to make the remaining 4 monthly payments and let the IVA end normally?
James says
I am going into the final year of my IVA and at the end of this my IVA supervisor told me that I will have to look at the possibility of a re-mortgage. Will I still have to do this as due to my additional payments over the last four years from overtime I will have repaid 100% of my debt to the IVA company?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You need to ask your IVA company about the details of your numbers. You can never pay more than the full value of your debts plus the IVA fees (you need to know what they are) plus sometime statutory interest on your debts at 8% (but some IVAs don’t include this so you need to know if yours does.)
Paul says
Hi, through no real fault of my own we may have arrears when our IVA finishes in June.
If we say owe £1000 and have to make payments after the finish date in June will my income at that time be taken into account as to the amount of arrears I have to pay or will I just pay back the arrears regardless of income?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I would expect that you just have to repay the arrears. But if you are expecting this to happen, can you not try to pay some off before then, rather than delay your IVA ending?
Paul says
Thanks Sarah, I’ll try if I can afford the extra. Hopefully it won’t come to that though.
Alan says
Hi Sara,
I’m now in my final year of my IVA, my payments of gone from £174.00 to £620.00 will I have another review before my final payment? Also they extended my Iva from 5 years to 6 even though I don’t own a property as my house was repossessed some time ago.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
There is always a final review at the end of an IVA.
Was there a shortfall on your property when it was repossessed? Was this then included in your IVA?
Alan says
Hi Sara,
Ya there was a short fall on my property I guess that’s why I had to extend my Iva to 6 years instead of 5. But I think my Iva company (Aperture) have not been very helpful with my situation.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Ok, well it is a great shame you didn’t opt for bankruptcy instead of an iVA, this would all have been over years ago, but you are nearly at the end now and all your debts will be gone.
Alan says
I know, but I’m frightened that Aperture will try their best to get more money off me because it’s my final year. I don’t trust Aperture and if anyone asks me about them I would suggest they stay well clear of them.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
If your income has gone up a lot in the last year it’s possible :( Make sure you point out where your expenses have gone up too!
Chris says
Hi I was in a 6 year iva I paid a full and final settlement in year 4 6 years is up Feb 2018 will it automatically go from my records or will I have to do something
Kind regards Chris
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You should already have disappeared from the Insolvency Register and any restriction on the sale of your house should have been removed from the Land Registry. Have you checked these?
The IVA should disappear after 6 years from your credit records without you having to do anything.
If all your debts were correctly marked as defaulted before or at the start of your IVA, they should disappear at that point too.
Lorraine t says
Hiya can you help we have a 6 year IVA which was extended by four months to take into consideration a redundancy payment . The redundancy payment came after we took the company to court (for unfair dismissal) we won but the company was closed down – my husband was awarded abut £3000 but we only ended up received £1100 after costs. So it was agreed that the IVA would be extended to cover the £1100 we received as it was needed to replace a car. We have had a review every year and they have complimented us each time. Out last payment is due January 5th. This weekend we received a breach notice. They are saying that we have not paid them the remainder of the redundancy awarded to us (even though we did not receive this as it went on costs to get any money) We are trying to compile a complaint letter and as of yet they have been unable to supply us with proof that this money has ever been requested is there anything else we can do
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The important thing is that you never received the extra money. Your bank statements should show that if they say that you did. The fact they never asked for it is of less importance (although irritating).
denise says
Hi please could you help, we have been in a iva for 7 years, last year they tried to get equity out of our house but they could not, so they wrote a letter telling us that we must do another year which we did and our last payment was in December 2017 they sent a letter stating this in 2016 we have not heard anything so we thought we would give them a ring to find out that another company has taken over them we could not speak to any one so we left a message have not had a reply surely they should send us a letter informing us about this matter. in the 7 years our iva and now been with 3 different companies and they have informed us before please could you advise us what to do I’m going to email company as well
Sara (Debt Camel) says
This is very annoying, people feel they are like a parcel being passed around between companies with no one actually caring about them :(
As I said in the article about if you can’t get the new IVA firm to confirm you can stop making payments, one option is for you to cancel the DD or STO but then put that money into a savings account, don’t spend it. Then if in a few months they spring into life and say there is some reason you need to pay more, you have it ready and waiting. And if they don’t, you have the start of a nice emergency fund.
denise says
Thank you for quick reponise are they aloud just to change companies without letting people know
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Nothing to stop them :(. Which firm was it?
denise says
first it was Spencer Hayes then Debt Free and now not sure, we have tried ringing but still no response from them
Sara (Debt Camel) says
DFD’s IVAs have all gone to Aperture
Chris Johnson says
I am still with creditfix. No response to emails, nothing. We are in limbo and this is totally unfair.
We are of course following advice and saving the monthly payment but this behaivior is unnacceptable.
The SO has been cancelled by the bank but we want now to go forward and enjoy life. WHY DO THESE COMPANIES MESS WITH PEOPLES LIVES?
Jacque Harris says
Hello I have a 6 year IVA but I am reading that the 6th year is only if you own a house and could possibly have equity is this correct? My debt was with Lloyds and NRAM. Thank you
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Sometimes a creditor will only approve an IVA if it is 6 years long not 5 years – NRAM often does this.
Lorna Richardson says
Hello I was with Debt Free Direct I completed my IVA July 17. I still haven’t received my certificate of compeltion tried phoneing the company and been on the website and the company is permanently closed tried the telephone number and it’s out of service I am abit worried how would I get my certificate.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You need to contact Aperture
Terry Hogan says
I am two years into a six year IVA. I have offered a F&F settelement by using some pension funds. The letter from my IP seems to imply that even after closure, I am to disclose any windfalls, tax refunds, PPI claims, etc and these will need to be paid to my IP. In short, it looks like I will never be free of debt. Is this correct?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
My guess is that the letter is only referring to windfalls etc relating to the time whilst your IVA was running. If the IVA is settled this year and you later get a tax refund or inherit money a year later, that wouldn’t be relevant. Any PPI claims would be, now matter when you make them. Is that what the letter sounds like?
Terry Hogan says
Thank you for such a quick response. I will check the wording on the letter and submit another comment, if that is ok? I have been awarded an inheritance from my late mother’s estate. Probate is now complete, but the money hasn’t been transferred to my account yet. I was hoping to clear the IVA in May, when my pension funds arrive and arrange for the inheritance money after the IVA is complete. Would I be breaking the rules by doing this?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You absolutely would be breaking the rules. If this is the reason you are hoping to take money from your pension – to close your IVA before you get your inheritance – you need to think again. The relevant date for whether an inheritance should be paid as a windfall to your IVA is the date of death, not the date you get the money, see https://debtcamel.co.uk/inherit-dmp-dro-iva-bankruptcy/
I am sorry but you need to inform your IVA firm right away about your inheritance.
Terry Hogan says
Thank you once again for such a prompt reply. Not great news but thank you for explaining it so clearly.
I hope you don’t mind..but one last question.
In May, my outstanding balance will be £5300 and I have offered £5500 to facilitate a quick resolution. I’m thinking that I may as well withdraw the offer, keep the money in the bank and continue the monthly payments of £124. Would you agree, or woukd you recommend finishing the IVA early?
Many thanks for your help so far.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
There aren’t usually many very good reasons to end an IVA early, especially if it involves taking money from your pension which will typically lead to you paying extra tax as well. Unless you expect your finances to improve a lot over the rest of the IVA, it may be best to plod on.
Terry Hogan says
Sara, thank you so much for your advice tonight. I promise, one final question regarding my inheritance.
I read about a Deed of Variation to give the inheritance to another family member. Do you have any experience of this?
Many thanks again
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I am sorry but that isn’t a way around this for you. You need to inform your IVA company of your inheritance and co-operate with them under the terms of your IVA.
john says
who the hell is looking after the customer i have done one sixty months and they are now stealing money from me as my iva rubbish certificates we are not babys most of these company seem to want to now everything and give you nothing
Allan says
Hi I was in an Iva but payed a lump sum as final settlement 2 years ago , could you please tell me if this would be of my records are would I have to wait the full term the Iva would have run as this wouldn’t have been completed till 2020 ,
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The IVA will stay on your credit file for 6 years from the date it started,
Keith says
Hi, I’ve had an IVA for the last 5 years, it should have finished in July 17, but they said we still owed more money due to a pay increase, Which we carried on paying for another 7months. Ending January 18, We were told to cancel the DD, which we did, we’ve always completed the annual reviews & any other checks etc they wanted.
Since then we’ve only heard from them for a PPI check, which had already been carried out earlier in my IVA. Now, they’ve enlisted a company (Tax refund co) to see if we’re entitled to a tax refund etc. We’ve completed the online initial assessment & they then came back with, we could be owed a refund & have sent us forms to sign giving them permission to contact HMRC on behalf of myself & my wife. I’ve read through all my original paperwork from them when I took out the IVA with Tudor Kirk insolvency, which changed to NTF part way through my IVA. No where in any of my original paperwork does it mention this procedure.
Considering it’s now 7months since it ended, I’ve not heard from them, other than for more information.
Absolutely sick of messing about now, just wondering if they are within their rights to ask for this tax check? Considering they’ve had my P60’s & three months of wages slips annually for the last 5-6years.
Thanks in advance
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Yes, firms never tell you about all these delays when you are sold a “5 year IVA” do they…
Read https://debtcamel.co.uk/iva-completion-certificate/ and as that suggests, I think you should put in a formal written complaint to your IVA firm and also to the insolvency Service Gateway at the same time, saying these delays are ridiculous and why couldn’t hey have sorted the PPI and tax refund checks a year ago?
Robert says
Hi, I paid off our IVA and its now stating zero in the IVA on my credit history (start date on the file is January 2014) and I have been removed from the register. All this means nothing in this world and you will be treated the same. I found that out now that I have been told to wait for another 18 months before the IVA will be removed. I am sure you have heard it all before but none of this was in the agreement and I was told a different story as to when the IVA is paid I would be free of this curse. The family helped me pay off the IVA, my wife nearly died during the first year and now as a result she cannot work in the future, I have two young boys who lived through that process and it would have been nice to get on with my life after paying it off but no those are the rules (6 years). Not that I want to borrow money, no, all I want to do is get a better job and it seems in finance if you have 28 years experience with a IVA on your report its just not going to work. Is it not about time Sara that these schemes were scrapped? All these schemes allow is your creditors to keep control of your finances to their advantage. My family would have helped me instead of this curse if we would have been told the truth and now I am offered credit at a staggering 59%. Are the rules there to make sure you fall back into debt?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I am very sorry to hear of all this. I am afraid it is correct that your IVA will stay on your credit record for 6 years even if it is settled early.
It can sometimes be hard finding a job in finance with an IVA on your record – but people aren’t usually warned about this when they apply.
If you can avoid any credit until the IVA has gone, it would be best.
Chris says
Hi Sara,
Can you clarify please? So if you pay an IVA over a six year period (I am now only 6 months away from finishing) it will be taken off my credit record as soon as I finish? Well, obviously I will expect a few weeks delay on this but is that correct?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Yes, but “when you finish” is when you get your completion certificate, not your last payment. This can take a few months. If it goes over 6 months, you should complain.
Chris says
Awesome. Thank you!
Gary says
I finished a six year IVA in September last year and finally I’ve been accepted after applying for an overdraft and a credit card. My credit score is Going up by the month, yes it’s taken over six months but you do get there…so hold on a bit longer and things will get better!
Gary says
There are things to be aware of though, hidden obstacles, such as if you try and sell a property soon after your IVA finishes there is a hold on it by land registry that you have to apply to be lifted. Read all small print of your IVA, there’s some right gems in there!!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes, the “Check everything has been updated” section in the article above says what you should to check to be sure everything is sorted.
Simon Cunningham says
I have finished my Iva in April and I’ve received a letter from a debt company saying I owe £1850 a month after my Iva was completed. What can I do?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
This debt was included in your IVA?
Nic C says
Had an IVA with Debt free direct which we finished paying in July 2013 (I received email confirmation that payments were all made and it was with the completion team), called many times and was told the completion letter was in the post. Never did receive it or any correspondence to this day. Now had a PPI claim paid and have been told that so much will be paid to clear the outstanding account balance and the rest will be paid to my IVA.. debt free direct are no longer contactable and nobody has contacted me to say the IVA is still operating or that my account has been taken over. The IVA started 10 years ago -and ended 5 years ago!! I have written to the PPI company, who do I write to/complain to about the appalling treatment surrounding my IVA..
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Have you checked to see if you are still on the Insolvency Register? https://www.insolvencydirect.bis.gov.uk/eiir/
adele says
Hi I’ve been in my Iva 8 years this coming November my original Ivan was with dfd taken over by aperture since taking it over I’ve received very little communication before the change over I simplified things for myself by asking dfd how many payments remained in my Iva I paid the remaining crossing each month down my last payment being 22nd March I’d gone through all the 12 month extension in Lew of equity with dfd I have been making all the contactrl with aperture I specified in March that they needed nothing more from me and was assured everything was in place for closure and to await an email I chased it up again when there was some regard to a missing payment I had to then reiterate I’d provided evidence to this paymen, i continued to check on progress this went on until July when I was told I needed to provide my last tax return needless to say I would be totally unaware of this had I not made contact I did this my total earnings being 8000.00 FOR THE YEAR I then made contact again and was tolike I needed to provide tax returns for the previous year my earnings 5004.00 FOR THE YEAR they are now saying due to an increase in my earnings I owe an additional 1300.00 but my point is when I entered the Iva I was receiving tax credits and maintenance which as my children are now grown up I’m not so how am I supposed to exist and live on these figures many thanks
Sean Piles says
Hi, im currently going into my 4th year of my iva, my debts were of £11,135 and iv already paid £10,150 and my monthly amount is £300 i pay, im going to pay over my debt, do you know what happens, will i continue to pay the whole 5 years or ? Will i continue and pay more than my debts
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You definitely have to pay the IVA fees as well. That is another few thousand. And in some IVAs you have to pay 8% interest per annum on your debts. I suggest you ask your IVA firm at what point you will have reapiad everything and your IVA can end.
Has your IVA firm collected any PPI? If it has, that will speed up the end.
Guy Argent says
Hello…
I need some help.
I went into an i.v.a. six years ago with a firm called debt free direct. The i.v.a then went into the hands of a company called aperture. I have now made the last payment of 72 months.I chose a six year plan as I didnt want to release equity as my mortgage is a joint one. I heard nothing from Aperture despite many emails, when I rang them they said debt free direct were wrong and i still had to release equity before the closure of my i.v.a..When i said I should of just gone into a five year plan then release equity and it would of been all done and dusted by now, they said yes thats true. Anyway during my i.v.a. time the company applied for ppi i was owned and got back over £10,000, with this and the 72 payments of £114.00 it means that i have repayed back over 2/3 rds of the original debt. Should I refuse to release equity now Aperture say I may have to pay a seventh year. Should I contact aperture and ask them to contact the people I owed money to and see if they will accept closure now and complete my i.v.a. that way. Aperture are not great at communication..
Thanks Guy
Sara (Debt Camel) says
“Aperture are not great at communication.” that is a polite way to put it!
Do you have any old correspondence with DFD which says that you can choose a 6 year IVA and not have to release equity?
guy argent says
Hi.. I have just read through my I.V.A. package that was sent to me in 2012. It does not state the reasons of why a 60 months or a 72 month option was taken. I was verbally given the option of 72 month instead of 60 month repayment so i didnt have to release equity on my house. i cant find that in writing anywhere, but i do remember a telephone conversation saying that one years extra payments would be an alternative to then releasing equity, which is why i chose the 72 month repayment option.
Thanks
Guy
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It is a great shame you didn’t insist on getting that in writing – I haven’t heard before of anyone being offered a 6 year alternative to releasing equity in the fifth year. You can send Aperture a Subject Access request asking for a copy of all your personal data, including all call recordings, but I have no idea if this will included DFD’s call recordings.
guy argent says
Thank you for your advice.. When I spoke to an adviser at Aperture, he said that there were many ex-DFD customers that had this experience. I do doubt, as you do, whether a recording six years ago over the telephone would be there as an S.A.R.
I wonder if could advise me as to why a six year or five year repayment options are in place and why one would benefit over the other?
Secondly, I would greatly appreciate your opinion on how I should proceed from here. Could I ask them to finalise, in lieu of the £11,000 extra ppi they have received that would bolster the creditors repayments, and close my I.V.A. Or should I go with what they say in releasing equity ( I really dont understand this option) or simply pay another years worth of payments ?
This is all new to me as I thought that once I had made my 72nd payment then everything would be done and dusted.
Many thanks for your time and sharing of your knowledge.
Guy
Sara (Debt Camel) says
A 6 year IVA is normally only set up if either a creditor insists (NRAM and HMRC sometimes do) or because there is a house with considerable equity but the client’s name is not on the mortgage. It is NOT a normal option otherwise.
You could choose to put in a complaint to Aperture on this basis, saying there is no explanation for why your IVA has 6 years except the one you have suggested, and on that basis it is unfair and unreasonable to ask you to try to release equity or pay for a further year. Ask for this to be explained to your creditors with a proposal that your IVA is treated as complete.
I don’t know how likely this is to succeed, but there isn’t much harm in trying!
The PPI receipts really aren’t relevant to this decision.
guy argent says
Thank you for your advice…. I will write and ask for closure. Can you give me any information as to how releasing equity on my house works. I owe £38,000 on a house worth £200.00 on a joint mortgage, with someone who would not be willing to remortgage.
Again many thanks.
Guy
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Did you partner sign an RX1 restriction form with the Land Registry when the IVA was set up? If not, then equity can’t be released… AND this is an excellent bit of evidence to point out to Aperture: “my partner refused to agree to equity being released when the IVA was being discussed, which is why 6 years was set as the term and why they never signed an RX1 form.”
guy argent says
Thank you. She did not sign an Rx1 form, was never asked to. I shall contact them and see what they say.
Chris says
Finally. It’s over. So folks. Look forward to the light.
Good Morning Mr Johnson,
Regarding your arrangement with Creditfix – IVA xxxxx, kindly note that your case will come to an end in February 2019.
After that, we shall proceed to the closure of your case and you will receive your completion certificate.
Alexandra says
Hi!
My husband has been paying a company called Clarke Willmott £310 per month as agreed with out insolvency officer. I pay through my tax! According to my calculations this finishes next March (2020). Do I just cancel the standing order or will they get in touch with my husband telling him what to do next?
Regards
Akexandra
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Does your husband have an IVA? Or was he bankrupt?