IVA - INDIVIDUAL VOLUNTARY ARRANGEMENT

IVA – the Alternative to Bankruptcy

If you are in severe debts – with two or more creditors and owe at least £15,000 – you can get help now. An IVA (Individual Voluntary Agreement) is an official agreement set up between you and your creditors to pay the debts back.

This is done in a way that makes the process easier for you: your debts are gathered into one manageable monthly payment and interest is generally frozen. Your creditors will be approached by the IVA practitioner, which is a great relief for people who have begun to fear the ‘knock at the door’ from creditors!

An IVA is a great alternative to filing for bankruptcy and should be seen as a last resort. Remember, you have made an agreement which you must stick to – or risk further problems. The total debts stay the same and the IVA usually lasts for around 5 years.

Gather Debts into One Place

Using an IVA to kick debts is a useful idea because your creditors will be dealt with – they know that you are attempting to settle your debts to them and they will no longer chase you for money. By gathering multiple debts into one place you are able to control payments much more easily. When you have numerous unpaid bills, loans and credit cards lying around it isn’t a wonder that you can lose track of them.

IVAs were introduced by the Government in the mid 1980s and are therefore a steadfastly supported way to tackle a difficult financial situation whilst avoiding bankruptcy.

Who Qualifies for an IVA?

As long as you have at least £15,000 of debts and two or more creditors you might be able to qualify. You can check this by using our IVA comparison page – there you can look at the various requirements of the qualified IVA providers.