An Individual Voluntary Agreement (IVA) is a contractual agreement with the people that you owe money to (your creditors), assuring them that a certain level of debt repayment will be maintained over the life of the agreement. An IVA is a legally binding alternative to bankruptcy, and should enable your creditors to reclaim a greater proportion of your debt than if you had declared yourself bankrupt. An IVA is only available to residents of England and Wales, and the Scottish equivalent is known as a Trust Deed, which differs only from an IVA in the length of the agreement (3, rather than 5 years as standard) and the minimum debt amount accepted (£10,000 as opposed to £15,000). Wherever in the UK you live, you can request a confidential call from a debt specialist by filling out our short form. More info
IVAs should not be confused with the many commercial debt management and consolidation services advertised in the media. It is instead a formal repayment proposal presented to someone’s creditors by an Insolvency Practitioner. An IVA is a completely confidential way to decrease, and eventually eliminate, your outstanding debt. Only you, the Insolvency Practitioner managing your IVA programme, and your existing creditors will know about your agreement, so you'll be able to keep your job secure, take out a new mortgage, and maintain your reputation. If you find yourself in a serious debt situation, research and consider an IVA with the articles and tools available at SimplyFinance. Less