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Original poster

Ex H went bankrupt, being pursued for his debt, house on the line...

22 replies

Piffle · 03/03/2010 13:17

Am posting for a friend as her ex h is such a cnut that words fail us.

Essentially they divorced, court ordered all equity in the house to friend with her ex h's approval and permission as she had paid all the deposit and every mortgage payment during their marriage.

However her ex h has accrued debt since leaving (he had an affair as it happens OW and him now split) and is on the dole (suspect working for cash locally but that's another story) and has gone bankrupt.

Insolvency now have sent friend a demand for immediate payment of their costs so far (about £250)
Friend works her ass off supporting their DD and keeping up the mortgage and bills on her lovely house and cannot afford this.
She cannot find out how much he went bankrupt for, he refuses to tell her and she needs to know if she sells the house how much equity she may or may not be left with to start again

She has been told to get a specialist soliticor but cannot afford it.

Has anyone any experiences to share or advice?
She is ready to sell the house and walk away with nothing to be free of this hideous mess, but it seems so unjust
TIA

OP posts:
Original poster
Piffle · 03/03/2010 14:46

hate to bump but please anyone?

OP posts:
throckenholt · 03/03/2010 14:51

if the divorce predates the bankruptcy then I would have thought the settlement stands and they have no call on the house or her.

But I am no lawyer. Get in touch with CAB ?

Buda · 03/03/2010 14:56

Surely if a court ordered that all the equity was hers then it is hers and he has no call on it??????

EldonAve · 03/03/2010 15:03

www.insolvency.gov.uk/bankruptcy/bankruptcysearch.htm

if the divorce was already finalized then she should tell them to sod off

might be worth posting on the moneysavingexpert forums

LaurieFairyCake · 03/03/2010 15:04

'Insolvency' what? Is this a private company or the Official Receiver who acts on behalf of the government to administrate bankruptcy?

If its the Official Receiver their office will tell you what the deemed 'beneficial interest' is that he had in the house and that they will be seeking to overturn the transfer of the equity to you.

If its not the Official receiver its just some company trying it on so ignore it.

If it is the OR then her interests have precedence for the first year, no one can make you do anything in that time. They will have to get an instruction from a judge to force a sale after that time.

Make sure your friend does not overreact, don't bother contacting ex, contact the OR instead. She needs to check that no fraud has been committed by him ie. running up debts at that address/signing her name to things etc.

Go over to www.debtquestions.co.uk and click on Debt Forum and then Bankruptcy forum - they will have all answers to all questions. She doesn't need a specialist yet.

Lets find out who's chasing her for money first

Original poster
Piffle · 03/03/2010 17:22

she has been told she has til nov 2011 to sell the house but must pay costs to date
I think it is a company that has bought his debt?

OP posts:
Original poster
Piffle · 03/03/2010 17:23

i mean to type insolvency practitioner actually sorry

OP posts:
Original poster
Piffle · 03/03/2010 17:29

CAB have told her to get a specialist lawyer
thanks for the help so far

and yes you can be pursued according to this
here

OP posts:
EldonAve · 03/03/2010 17:45

does she have legal expenses cover on her house insurance? (no clue if it would cover this)

LaurieFairyCake · 03/03/2010 20:33

Yes, but she put the deposit down and paid the mortgage - that means that the 'beneficial interest' that he is deemed to have acquired while he was married to her may be small or zero.

Forget about a company that has bought his debt- it doesn't matter how much it is - all that matters is what the Official Receiver deems her liability is.

If she can prove that she paid for it then it shouldn't be a problem.

Good luck to her

Original poster
Piffle · 03/03/2010 21:02

Thanks Laurie
she is very grateful for all advice
I'm relaying it on
thanks ever so much

OP posts:
SheikDjabouti · 03/03/2010 22:39

And if in doubt, talk to one of the Official Receiver officers, they are in fact incredibly helpful.

Original poster
Piffle · 04/03/2010 14:13

Found out it is the official receiver and the £211 is towards the process of buying the beneficial interest.
If she knew how much it was then she'd be better off, will the OR disclose this does anyone know?
She is terrified of ringing them

OP posts:
LaurieFairyCake · 04/03/2010 14:28

Of course they will be fully open and honest with her - she will be involved in the process. They won't just say "your liability is 100k" - they will want to know how much she has paid towards everything and that will determine how much (if anything) she owes. And then they will give her a long time to pay.

If ex is really an arsehole he could have tried to fudge with the OR and say that he deliberately transferred the house to her to try to get her into trouble.

The OR will only want the truth so that they can determine fairly. She needs have no fear of calling them

Remember its the ex thats bankrupt - she has done nothing wrong.

The 211 may be the entire amount.

ilovemydogandmrobama · 04/03/2010 14:38

Yes, but in the cited case, the debt was during the marriage, and your friend's ex H has accrued the debt after the divorce.

Don't understand how she is liable assuming that her name is on the deeds as it wouldn't be joint property.

mumblechum · 04/03/2010 14:41

Was the house actually transferred into her sole name after the consent order was made by the court?

If so then why does the OR want to buy the beneficial interest? This isn't making any sense to me tbh.

LaurieFairyCake · 04/03/2010 14:52

The OR can reverse a sale/transfer if there is a suspicion that he transferred it to hide assets and then got divorced.

In this case the OR may deem that the ex accrued 'beneficial interest' in the property because he was married to her or contributed.

If she can prove that she paid for all of it then the beneficial interest he accrued may be tiny or non-existant.

MadameDefarge · 04/03/2010 16:26

Really really get her to talk to the OR. They are not ogres, and will do their best to sort it out.

Much better to know the full story than just panic after one letter.

mumblechum · 04/03/2010 16:35

Haven't read up the case law on these recently, but last time I handled one of these cases, because the court had ordered the transfer prior to the husband going bankrupt, the transfer was deemed not to have been done to defeat the creditors. It will depend very much on the circs, the timing etc but from what you've said here I think she'll be ok.

Original poster
Piffle · 05/03/2010 19:32

He was not taken off the deeds, just the mortgage. The bank with the recession just starting got antsy and refused to remove his name as equity vs debt was not favourable.
I called the OR and she has no legal right to find out what amount he owes. This is insane, her solicitor is writing to get more info.
He ran up the debts after he left her with OW. But before the divorce.
Friend got financial disassociation as advised by police and experian, legal separation. All bills changed so it is patently obvious when the sep occured
however there is a suspicion he went bankrupt due to his debts and demands from CSA ( amount paid to date NIL)

the law says creditors/OR can examine house sales in last few years prior to bankruptcy - this is aimed at men who try to avoid maintenance...
Assuming they won't want their ex and kids to lose the house ( deluded apparently)
anyway it's all gone pear shaped this week...
She now has a punched out window and things have deteriorated.
It's such a hideous situation... Thanks for all info x x

OP posts:
mumblechum · 08/03/2010 12:30

She was very badly advised by the sound of it, for the house to remain in joint names but for him to be released from the mortgage.

Original poster
Piffle · 20/03/2010 23:52

just a quick update and thanks!
The solicitor sent some pretty huge letters to the receivers/whomever/insolvency dudes.

the totally unexpected reply came Thursday!
Basically saying that her ex h was given due consideration in the divorce settlement (friend paid or took on his cc debt of £7k) and he agreed to turn over any claims to the equity in the house.
and that no claim on behalf of ex h's debts would be made upon the house!!!!!!

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