What's an IVA?

An Individual Voluntary Arrangement(also known as an IVA) is a procedure that is part of government legislation and is available to people struggling to repay their loans, overdrafts and credit card bills.

There are certain criteria to entry but if you live in England or Wales, have debts of around £15,000 or more and owe money to more than two different companies which you are struggling to repay then you may qualify for an IVA.

In very simple terms, an IVA allows you to payback what you can realistically afford over a fixed period of time, usually 5 years, with any sums you can’t afford to repay being legally written off. During your IVA you are legally protected from your creditors, who cannot add interest and charges to your account.

• You pay a single, affordable, monthly payment which is fair to both you and your creditors.
• Creditors are legally bound by the IVA meaning that they cannot take any recovery action against you.
• Any debt you cannot afford to repay is legally written off, often saving you a considerable amount of money.
• If you are a home owner your property is protected. However, it may be required that you re-mortgage after 3 or 4 years to release extra funds to repay creditors.
• There are no up front fees. Creditors agree that Debtmatters take their fees out of the money you pay to them. You will never receive a bill.

An IVA is however a serious undertaking. It isn’t for everyone and there are some downsides. For example an IVA stays on your credit report for 6 years and if you fail to adhere to the terms of the IVA creditors can take further action against you.

For more information and to find out if you qualify for an IVA, call now on 0800 169 4255

Alternatively you can click here to apply for an IVA. Debtmatters offers a full assessment of your financial circumstances and advice on ALL the options available to you for which we make no charge.