Last week several readers were told they can stop paying Amigo while their complaint is outstanding, through Equitable Set Off. This is what I have been saying Amigo should do since last December when they announced their first, now rejected, Scheme of Arrangement. Amigo are trying to set up a second Scheme. But until now they have been insisting that people who have made a complaint have to … [Read more...]
Schemes of Arrangement
These have been proposed, and rejected, by several bad credit lenders.
So far only the Money Shop has had one approved - and that was only because they were heading for liquidation anyway, with no aim to carry on lending. This one will eventually payout c.4% to customers.
In 2021 Amigo and Provident have proposed Schemes.
See What is a Scheme of Arrangement and why do lenders want one? for an overview of what a Scheme is. 
Amigo’s Scheme rejected – now looking at a new Scheme
UPDATES Amigo’s Scheme of Arrangement was rejected by the court after it was opposed by the FCA as unfair to customers and too generous to shareholders. See Court rejects Amigo Scheme for details. Amigo is working on a second Scheme. The recent Amigo results don’t contain anything useful about what the next Scheme might look like. I can't see a new Scheme starting until late November at the … [Read more...]
Provident Scheme – 4 million people can now claim a refund
Provident's Scheme of Arrangement has been approved in court. The court hearing was on 30 July 2021 and the decision has now been given. The Scheme was proposed because Provident could not afford to carry on paying full refunds to customers winning affordability complaints. The Financial Ombudsman was upholding 75% of complaints against Provident who often did not make proper affordability … [Read more...]
Provident Scheme – the voting and approval process
UPDATE - the Scheme has now been approved by the court. See Provident Scheme – 4 million people can now claim a refund for how to make a claim and what will happen in the Scheme. Provident Financial Group (PFG proposed a Scheme of Arrangement to reduce the refunds it has to pay to customers given unaffordable loans through its Provident Personal Credit (PPC) subsidiary. There are … [Read more...]
“Should I stop paying Amigo?” – the pros & cons
UPDATE In Mid September Amigo told some customers who have made complaints that they can stop paying and their guarantor won't be asked to pay. See Amigo will now let people stop paying – the right of Equitable Set Off for details. Amigo is only letting customers who have paid more than they borrowed exercise this right - I think that is wrong as legally a customer can have this right even … [Read more...]
Amigo – what is happening with “Scheme 2.0”?
It is now three weeks since Amigo's proposed Scheme of Arrangement was rejected by the court. The FCA told the court the Scheme was not fair to customers, a more fair Scheme could be proposed and it didn't think Amigo would go into administration immediately. The judge concluded by saying: The FCA expects the directors to continue to explore and promote a restructuring which fairly allocates the … [Read more...]
Court rejects Amigo Scheme of Arrangement
On 19 May 2021 the Sanction Hearing was held for Amigo's proposed Scheme of Arrangement. On 24 May, judgment was given and the Scheme was rejected. The Amigo Board says : The Board is reviewing all options including an Appeal. A further update will be given in due course. This article looks at the Scheme, the judgment and what may happen next. The proposed Scheme The Scheme was proposed by … [Read more...]
The ICL / Money Shop Scheme – customers paid 4.3% in June
UPDATE A few people have not been paid by the end of June. And everyone will receive a second, much smaller payment in December 2021. See Money Shop Scheme to pay 2nd small refund for details. A "Scheme of Arrangement" is in place for borrowers from the Money Shop, Payday UK or Payday Express who were given unaffordable loans. Background to the Scheme Failure to assess affordability … [Read more...]
Provident’s Scheme to cap refunds – the background
UPDATE On 4 August 2021 the Scheme was approved in court. See Provident Scheme – 4 million people can now claim a refund to find out how it will work and how to make a claim. This article gives the background to the Scheme and what happened before voting started. In March 2021 Provident Financial Group (PFG) proposed a Scheme of Arrangement to reduce the refunds it has to pay to … [Read more...]
Will Amigo’s Scheme reject too many claims?
This article relates to Amigo's first Scheme, which was rejected in May 2021. See Amigo’s Scheme rejected – now looking at a new Scheme for the latest news. In 24 March 2021, Amigo announced some feedback from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on its proposed Scheme of Arrangement. Full details have now been given - the FCA's Letter of Concerns was published on 31 March 2022. This … [Read more...]