advice please on bankruptcy and bright house?

[lilly153]

i was just wondering if any of use knew how this would work
ive got a lot of debt from over the years ive got a debt advicer who has said my only sensible option is to go bankrupt, now at 24 its defently not something im proud of and now i have my son everythings just gettin so stressfull
i moved into my rented flat about a year ago but didnt have any furniture so i slept on the floor for 9 weeks till i saved for a cheap bed luckily the kitchen was fully equiped with cooker washin machine ect.. but for a sofa and some bedroom furniture i had to resort to taken them out of bright house (high street shop) but this has led me to paying back £25 per week
im a student so live of a student loan meaning when i get paid im £100 straight away to brighthouse and dont get me wrong i no this is my fault and i signed upto it but im really struggling and now my electricity and gas is piling way up
any ideas if i was to file for bankruptcy how this would work with bright house would i still need to pay it? if i didnt will they just come take my stuff
sorry for the long post just in dier need of a mirical like most of us are :(

I don't know the answer to your specific question but I wanted to suggest that you make sure you're getting absolutely all the help that you're entitled to before you go down the route of bankruptcy. www.entitledto.com is a good site on the benefit side of things. There are also hardship grants available for essentials like beds. Speak to your electricity and gas suppliers directly about the problem paying as they may be able to do something there. You may still find bankruptcy is the best option but it really is a last resort.

Lilly...probably too late to suggest that you avoid Brighthouse like the plague. In addition to the advice above I would strongly suggest you call debt line....the govt one.0808 808 4000 They can advise you on all types of credit agreements. I would think that if you've paid for half of whatever you have you can just give it back without any more payments. There are schemes where you can get furniture.

I also wonder, given the fact that you're a student, whether you have time for a part time job as it seems you clearly cannot afford to be a student at this time.

Sorry - I don't know about the bankruptcy (though I expect you don't actually own the items til you've paid the loan off in full, so they could seize items) but - you do know that Bright house isn't actually a "high street shop" but is a money lender by another name?

hey lal123 i just put the high street shop bit their as wasnt sure if people new who they were just ment u could find them on the street

and TheFeministParent i have a 3yr old with no family or friends to help watch him and his dad never takes him so i literally have him 24/7 I was in this mess well before i started going to college, my only reason for going to college is to try get an education and be able to get a decent job at the end of it
as for the part time job i am tryin but trying to fit it round 2 and a half days at college plus only being able to do it while a nursery is open to watch my son is proving difficult, ive recently just got in touch with a local group that helps loan parents back into the work place so ive got my fingers crossed they can help

thanks for the advice ladies

There is a few other things to try...you can try the Job Centre for a crisis loan if things are really bad (although I am not quite sure how that all works) and I think you need to be on benefits to qualify.

Also some colleges/universities have emergency/crisis funds available to help in dire need which you may qualify for.

Also phone the CSA and try and get some help on that front from the father, not the quickest method but is the responsible thing for the father to do in the long run.

Best of luck

Is there a local freecycle/freegle where you are? I'm wondering if you could get some furniture using that scheme and then return the Brighthouse furniture to Brighthouse.

yes their is i have been looking on their for a while now but they all seem to be collection only i dont drive and dont no anybody who does

Yes, Brighthouse furniture is on hire purchase and if its worth their while they will remove it - they may not if you inform them you are going bankrupt as they know they will get no money out of you.

They would be more likely to take them if it was small, expensive electrical items.

Don't forget to add them as a debt to your bankruptcy petition - if they give you any hassle or try to make you feel guilty feel free to hang up on them or block their number - simply quote your bankruptcy petition number at them if they call.

Do not believe anyone who tells you that you still have to pay them once you have gone bankrupt.

Have you managed to save enough for your bankruptcy petition yet?

Sorry to hear about your situation.

Have you checked your tenancy agreement? Some landlords do have a clause which bars bankrupts from being a tenant so this is something you should consider before making yourself bankrupt.

You must add them as a creditor. The goods are on Hire Purchase and if you carried on paying them you could get into trouble.
Depending on what the items are, what they cost and how much you've still got to pay on them may decide whether or not they repossess them.

Personal Credit Agreements

When a seller allows a purchaser to pay by credit and does not state in the contract when the title to the goods passes to the purchaser, the agreement is known as a personal credit agreement. Examples of these agreements are purchases by credit cards, charge cards (including store cards), bank loans (which may also be used generally to reduce other borrowings), via catalogues etc.

Running account credit is a facility under which the supplier provides goods or services (or cash) from time to time up to a credit limit which is set by the amount of the payments made by the debtor and which cannot be exceeded. This is particularly true of store credit cards. Fixed sum credit is any other facility whereby a debtor can receive credit, either in one lump sum (such as a bank loan) or by instalments.

Under a personal credit agreement, the purchaser is deemed to have ownership of the goods as soon as he/she takes possession of them which means that if the purchaser fails to pay the instalments the seller or provider of the credit facility has no right to take back the goods, only to pursue the purchaser for the money owed. Such goods can be sold by the official receiver as trustee, the original seller or credit company then having an unsecured claim in the estate for the outstanding balance.

Hire purchase agreements

These agreements are so called because initially the finance company hires the goods to the customer and after a certain number of payments have been made, the customer has the option to buy the goods, usually by making a nominal final payment. Until the customer has exercised this option to purchase, the goods are the property of the finance company and may not be disposed of by the customer.

Hi laurie
No its 100 pounds to file for bankruptcy but I'm really hoping to do it at the end of the month if that's my best option going to see my debt advisor one last time before I make my final decision

And no I've not checked my tenancy agreement will defo have a look at that didn't even think about that
Thanks

Could an IVA be a better option than bankruptcy? I don't know much about them but have seen them advertised. My DH's exW recently finished one and is back to normal now so it's worth a look.

An IVA is no good unless you have about £200 a month to put in it. I don't think the OP sounds like she is in this position.

Is it bankruptcy you're going for or a DRO? I thought the fees for bankruptcy were £600.

No my debt adviser said it was to claim bankruptcy cost 100 pounds and it would stay on my credit file for 6 yeard then I would be total clear of debt

Bankruptcy fees. Is the £100 a separate fee you are paying on top, to a debt advisor from a private company? Use one of the debt advice charities, you might find that a Debt Relief Order (DRO) is more suitable for you. The fees for that are around £90 I believe and the advice would be free.

Me and My DP went bankrupt last year after losing our business. It cost £595 for him to go bankrupt and I did a debt relief order and that cost £90.

Bankruptcy is for over £15000
DRO is for debts between £5000 and £14999

Both are not the easy option out by any means and yes you may well lose property such as expensive TVs etc and your car. I'm unsure of furniture and if you still owe money on it as we didn't have anything like that.

With the bankruptcy we had to declare anything we owned that was worth over £500 and then they had to assess if they could get a reasonable amount of money for it if they resold/auctioned it. We didn't have anything but the car and even then they let us keep it as it was not worth over £2000. My DP had to close all his bank accounts and the only bank that will take on a bankruptee is the Co-Op My DRO was different and I had to declare anything over £300 but I didn't have to change my bank account.

There is a lot involved such as having to notify people like house and car insurance if you don't and need to make a claim it will void your insurance if you haven't told them, you will also find they will prob put your premiums up. Your water bill gets included as you pay that in arrears, it means your debt gets written off and then they send you a demand letter for not paying and then you have to set another account up, this will be the only debt you can legally get into as once you are bankrupt you are not allowed any debt over £500 and most peoples water is between £350-£500 per year. So no mobile phone contracts and you may have problems with a TV and internet provider.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

Lilly153 - I would get a bit more advise if I were you, there's a lot more involved than that and that cost is not right

The people I used for the DRO were the Credit Consumer Counsel and they were fantastic, they are a free charity and it can all be done over the phone and internet.

If you owe more than £15000 and it is bankruptcy then you will need to go to your nearest magistrates court and get the forms needed. The forms are a bit scarey but the CAB are pretty good at helping you to fill them in, my DP went to them for help.

Good luck :)

I've just re read the posts and yes please please do check your tenancy agreement. It could be affected. We found that ours was even though we are with a HA, we had to set up a payment scheme with them for the money to come direct out of our bank account. We weren't in rent arrears never had been and were actually in credit but that didn't matter we still had to sign over to this scheme and our rent went up as well!!

No my debt adviser is a free organisation run through my local council
Is it mabee different for england and scotland, I'm defo going to arrange another meeting then with my debt adviser before I pay the fee will write out a list of good points use have all menchined think its best just to double check everything see what he says
Thanks for taken the time to help me out

oh r u in Scotland? then yes i think it is very different. all the best :)

Yes I'm in scotland, well council re-opend tomorrow again so will give them a phone and make another appointment thanks again

Let us know how you get on

For the future council have depots where low incoe family's can buy good second hand furniture and white goods...Debtline is the best place to help you...call them...you will be sorted soon.