Frequently Asked Questions

I have a lot of debt outstanding, how much debt can you deal with?

There is no upper limit, we will look at your finances & if you cannot meet the repayments you originally agreed with your creditors, we can help.

Will my plan be accepted by my creditors?

The only people who can guarantee that an offer is acceptable is your creditors themselves. What IVA Debt Helper do is present them with a reasonable proposal, justifying your outgoings where necessary, to ensure that there is no reason for the offer to be rejected. Our proposals are fair & reasonable which is why we have a high acceptance rate for our plans, & why people move here from other Debt Management companies where their offers aren’t being accepted.

What will my creditors think is a fair offer?

If you were in your creditor’s situation, you could say ‘what you agreed to pay when you signed your original agreement’. The difficulty with this approach is that if all your creditors took this attitude when you experience difficulties, no one would get anywhere. IVA Debt Helper will negotiate with your creditors to arrive at a fair & reasonable repayment plan on your behalf

What if an offer is rejected?

We will speak with your creditors whenever an offer is rejected, usually this is down to a factor outside the plan itself, IE – negotiations had broken down prior to our involvement or creditors want a higher payment than they are entitled to. Due to the way we work, even creditors do not formally ‘accept’ an offer they refer your file to a department or company who will monitor your ongoing payments.

Will interest be stopped on my debts?

Again, interest suspension can never be guaranteed, IVA Debt Helper’s offers show that you are experiencing difficulties & can therefore justify the need to suspend interest. Most creditors are willing to co-operate with us on this basis when they can see that this is the case. If interest isn’t frozen, we will continue to ask the creditor that they do so.

My creditors are being very persistent  in asking for payment. Will this stop?

Yes. Once your repayment Plan is in place, if any creditor is persistently contacting you or you feel they are using inappropriate tactics, contact us & we can deal with this straight away for you – that’s what we are here for.

How will I know the creditors are being paid by you?

Every quarter we will send you a statement outlining what has been paid out & to whom. You can request a statement monthly if required.

Is this a loan?

No. We always aim to give you the best impartial advice & if we could have provided you with a loan (if that was your preferred option) we would have done so. IVA Debt Helper will consolidate your payments into one affordable amount  which you pay to us either weekly/fortnightly/monthly. We will then distribute payments to your creditors on a pro-rata basis & deal with all ongoing administration of your Repayment Plan until either your debts are repaid in full or your circumstances change for the better.

Is a loan the answer?

In most cases debt consolidation can be beneficial, but, consolidation does not always mean getting a large loan. If IVA Debt Helper can help you, we ask your creditors to suspend the charging of interest due to your current circumstances.

How much will the Repayment Plan cost me?

As we want you to be a customer of IVA Debt Helper for a long time, no matter what options we provide you with at the moment, our fees our highly competitive. Your initial payment to ourselves is charged as a fee for preparing & implementing your Repayment Plan (this is standard throughout the industry).
An ongoing administration fee of 15% of your monthly payment amount is charged to release funds on your behalf.

We firmly believe that every customer is different & they deserve a tailored service that suits their needs.

What debts can I include on the plan?

You can include any unsecured debt where you have signed a credit agreement to repay an amount which has been borrowed, IE – personal loans/ bank loans/ over drafts/ store cards / catalogues /as well as other debts 0if you no longer have the goods, IE – Hire purchase / mobile phone contracts / TV subscriptions / utility bills.

What is a priority debt?

A priority debt is a debt which can effect your standard of living.
Such as your: Mortgage
Utility Bills
Car Finance
Court Fines
Secured loans,
Rent etc.
Usually these are not the type of debts we can repay on the plan. However, when we prepare a financial statement for you, we will ensure that you have sufficient funds available to repay them directly.

There are exceptions to this rule which we will go through when we take your financial statement from you.

Do I need to change banks & why?

We are usually informed by our clients that they would prefer to stay with their existing bank rather than change to a new one.
‘I have been with my bank for years – I’m sure it won’t be a problem’

If you have any outstanding debt to your bank, you may still experience problems however

1.         All overdrafts are repayable on demand, meaning your bank has the authority to recall the debt at any point in time & would if the debt was included on the plan & you continued to bank directly with them.

2.         If you have an existing loan with your bank, you may cancel the monthly direct debit, however, there will be a clause in your original agreement should this occur, that the bank can effect a fund transfer & payments will still be made to your loan.

These are some of the main reasons that we suggest to customers that a bank account change will be in their best interest.

In the meantime we would suggest that you

1.         Open an alternative account or use an account that you may already have open which is not linked to one of your current creditors.

2.         Cancel any direct debits or standing orders payable to your creditors.

3.         Move all transactions that you are wanting to retain – over to your new bank account, such as:

Wages
Benefits
Pensions
Household bills
Mortgage, Rent etc.

This will prevent any possibility in experiencing problems in relation to this matter.

How long will my plan last for?
There are a number of factors which will affect the duration of your plan:

The amount you owe – At the moment we don’t know the exact amount you have outstanding. The larger the debt, the longer the length of time it will take to repay.

Suspension of interest – As soon as interest is suspended, the amounts you have outstanding will reduce much quicker. This is why we press for interest & charges to be frozen at the earliest opportunity.

Change in circumstances – We prepare your Repayment Plan based on your situation today, if this changes we can revise your plan tomorrow. Any changes in your monthly payment will affect your repayment

Will a Repayment Plan affect my credit rating?

This depends on how your credit file is at the moment. If you have been turned down for credit recently, this will be down the information currently recorded on your credit file. By starting a Repayment Plan, we may be able to improve the information recorded on your credit file (removing the gaps created when payments have been missed) from this point onwards.

Alternatively, your credit file may show you are up to date with all your payments, this could be due to using savings, credit cards etc to maintain your regular monthly payments. At some point your savings would be used up or you would reach the limit of your borrowing, so in many ways it would be better to pay what you can truly afford & allow your credit file to reflect your true circumstances. When your situation improves & you are able to increase payments again & your credit file again would reflect this.

Am I likely to receive any defaults?

We would always ask your creditors not to register defaults against you, due to the fact your payment proposals are being maintained, this cannot be guaranteed. Should defaults be registered against you , this should not affect your credit worthiness in the long term. Whilst your Repayment Plan is in place, we would not  recommend that you apply for any additional finance.

What if my circumstances change?

Let us know asap. Your financial statement shows your creditors what your current financial situation is. If this changes, even for the short term we can advise your creditors  of this, therefore helping to maintain arrangements already in place.

Will I be able to obtain credit in the future?

Yes. You would always be in a position to obtain a mortgage, secured loan & car finance even whilst on the plan. Once your credit file shows you are making regular monthly payments & you are in a position to take on & maintain payments to a new finance agreement you should be in a positions to.