Ms G asked: I have about £18,000 of debts which I can't afford to pay after my partner left. I am part-time at work, with very little money and renting, but I have been told I will be made redundant in November. I should get about £2,500 redundancy pay and I will need that while I look for a proper job - I won't get Universal Credit straight away. So is it best to wait and apply for a Debt Relief … [Read more...]
Articles on Debt Relief Orders (DROs)
See What is a Debt Relief Order (DRO) for an overview.
That lists the conditions for getting a DRO - your total debts have to be less than £30,000), you can't own a house etc. It looks at what happens in the "DRO year" - you don't have to make monthly payments and at the end your debts are cleared.
If your debt problem is serious and you meet the DRO criteria, a DRO is very often the best possible solution for you.
“What happens to a DRO if I move in with a new partner?”
A reader asked: I’m a single parent and have had about 10k of debts in a debt management plan for several years. I’m on low income and it looks like it will never end plus I have got some further debts. Now I’m considering a Debt Relief Order (DRO). But I met someone and I’m thinking about starting to live together. I don’t want to tell him about my debts and really want to sort this out … [Read more...]
Which is better a DRO or an IVA? There is a very simple answer!
Everyone has heard of bankruptcy, but Debt Relief Orders (DROs) and Individual Voluntary Arrangements (IVAs) are less well known. Here is a comparison of IVAs and DROs, so you can see would be better for you. DROs and IVAs were the two most common types of personal insolvency in England and Wales in 2023. Some choices between debt solutions are genuinely hard. When I wrote about comparing … [Read more...]
You both have debts – but may need different debt solutions
You both have debts, you both know it's time to tackle them and you want to do this together. But if one of you has a lot more debt, or a much larger income, or you own different assets, you don't have to have the same debt solution. A good debt adviser will help you look at what option each of you needs to get the best result for your family going forward. This article looks at some of … [Read more...]
Inheriting money when in a DMP, DRO, IVA or bankruptcy
What happens if you inherit money when you are in a debt management plan or one of the three forms of insolvency: Debt Relief Order (DRO), bankruptcy or IVA? The answers are surprisingly different... Inheriting in a DMP This is the easiest case. Any money you inherit comes to you, not to your creditors or your DMP firm. It doesn't matter if the person dies before your DMP started or during … [Read more...]
Joint debts – what happens in an IVA / DRO / bankruptcy
A reader asked: I have received a letter saying we still owe £4,000 in council tax. The debt was included in my bankruptcy a few months ago but they are chasing my wife for the full amount, what should we do? This article looks at what happens to joint debts which are unsecured, not mortgages or secured loans. It covers all three forms of insolvency - bankruptcy, DROs and IVAs - because the … [Read more...]
Bankruptcy, IVA, DRO & your credit rating
If your debts are so bad that you are going to have to choose one of the three types of insolvency, you know this will wreck your credit rating, but how long will this continue? This article answers this and other you may have about the effect of insolvency on your credit record such as Will you ever be able to get credit again? What about a mortgage? Is bankruptcy worse than an IVA or a DRO for … [Read more...]
Is your pension safe in a DRO?
You may be worried about whether your pension will be safe if you are already in, or have finished, a Debt Relief order (DRO), or if you are thinking about applying for a DRO. The 2015 pension changes mean that many people over 55 can now withdraw some or all of their pension. so what happens if you take money out? Can you lose your pension? Can you get a DRO if you have a good pension? I … [Read more...]
How IVA, DRO or bankruptcy affect affordability complaints
If you have been insolvent - bankrupt, had an IVA or a Debt Relief Order (DRO) - then you need to know how this affects a claim for a refund for a financial product. You can't make a new claim for a PPI refund - the deadline for this passed at the end of August 2019. But you can still make affordability complaints and other sorts of compensation eg for packaged bank accounts. New credit … [Read more...]
Is a DRO better than a DMP or bankruptcy?
Choosing between a Debt Relief Order (DRO) and other debt solutions is often a pretty easy choice! Let's look at when a DRO is a good option for you and what the alternatives might be. Debt Relief Orders DROs are a form of insolvency in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. For an overview of DROs, read What is a Debt Relief Order? They are meant for people who have little or no spare income … [Read more...]