IVA instead of Bankruptcy?

13/07/2010

IVA instead of Bankruptcy?

People who are likely to face Bankruptcy should seek Debt Advice to see if there are any other Debt Solutions available such as an IVA and to make sure that they get treated fairly by creditors and banks if there is not.

It comes as a new survey by Citizens Advice has found that many people going through Bankruptcy are being treated unfairly by banks and denied access to even a basic bank account.

Despite there being no legal reason why undischarged bankrupts should not be able to open a basic bank account, the report found that only two out of the 17 banks that provide basic bank accounts were willing to offer them to people going through bankruptcy.

In the last nine years the number of people applying for bankruptcy rose by nearly 250 percent (from 21,500 in 2000 to 75,000 in 2009).

According to the insolvency/" target="_self">Insolvency Service in recent years the most common reason given for applying for bankruptcy was because of 'unplanned changes to a bankrupts circumstances' which mainly came about as a result of job losses, relationship breakdowns, illnesses or accidents.

Gillian Guy, who is the Chief Executive of Citizens Advice said that "Great progress has been made in improving access to bank accounts for many groups who were previously financially excluded, yet there are still groups, such as undischarged bankrupts, who struggle to open even a basic bank account.

"Most people take having a bank account for granted, but without access to one, basic tasks such as receiving wages or benefits and paying bills can become huge and costly obstacles to overcome, particularly for people who are often at a vulnerable point in their lives. Just because someone is made bankrupt it doesn't mean their life stops."

"The banks who exclude undischarged bankrupts say that they are concerned about potential liability. This just doesn't stack up - two banks that do offer these accounts have told us they experience no difficulties. Furthermore both the Treasury Select Committee and an independent Banking Code review have called for more banks to make their basic accounts available to undischarged bankrupts."

If you are facing Bankruptcy then ClearStart's friendly and professional Debt Advice can help.

We can look into the suitability of other Debt Solutions such an IVA or a Debt Management Plan, that may help you to avoid Bankruptcy.

If the nature of your Debt Problems make Bankruptcy the only option, then ClearStart's Debt Advice can help make sure that you get treated fairly and properly by both banks and creditors. ADNFCR-3106-ID-19886451-ADNFCR