IVAs on the Rise in the UK
It is becoming increasingly apparent that more and more people are getting into financial difficulties and where there was once an abundance of bankruptcies being applied for, IVAs are on the rise. As far as debt solutions go, an Individual Voluntary Arrangement is the best option when trying to avoid being bankrupt because it is a legally binding contract that when approved is upheld in a court of law. Statistically, each quarter the number of consumers seeking these arrangements is growing by leaps and bounds.
For instance, 2011 saw a 4% increase in IVAs in Q3 than in the same quarter of 2010. Also, personal bankruptcies fell by 11% in the same quarter year on year. This substantiates that the fact that consumers are seeking to avoid bankruptcy through debt solutions such as an IVA rather than letting their debts go unpaid and into insolvency proceedings. Nonetheless, these arrangements must follow very specific regulations such as the debt must equal £15,000 or greater and disposable income must exceed £300 monthly.
Other forms of debt management aren’t as legally binding which can lead to a creditor seeking to make the consumer bankrupt at any given moment. When a debtfreeme Insolvency Practitioner negotiates an IVA, the plan is filed with the courts and if approved, will become a legally binding contract, as mentioned above. The creditor cannot seek to make the consumer bankrupt if repayments are made in full and timely over the course of the agreement which is normally over a period of five years.
Since an IVA will have a lesser negative impact on a consumer’s credit rating than would a bankruptcy, an IP will most often suggest this as a course of action if at all possible. IVAs are on the rise in the UK which is evidenced by the dropping rate of bankruptcies even in these economically troubled times.


