IVA? Can anyone give me an insight

[Rosegoldlilly]

I've got about 3500 worth of debt on a credit card. I'm also paying for my car on finance. I'm paying for my sofa for another 3 years although that's 0% interest.
I have 3 different credit cards atm. One is 0% interest until next year. The other ones are 17% and 19% apr I think. I've been looking into IVA as recently I feel it's all getting on top of me and I'm finding it hard to pay things.
Has anyone had an IVA? What does it do to your credit score? Will you not be able to apply for finance for quite a few years?

It’s not really as simple as that.

You have £3,500 on credit cards.

You have a car on finance - what type of agreement is it? Is it hire purchase, PCP or did you get a loan to buy the car?

How are you paying for your sofa? Is it hire purchase or a credit agreement? How much do you owe?

What is your total debt?

I haven’t had an IVA but I do work in the industry and it certainly will affect your credit score.

Why don’t you start by writing down a list of your income and outgoings, plus the information I’ve already mentioned about your debts, and then get some tailored advice from an organisation like Stepchange?

Totally agree with Zionna. Please don’t see an IVA as the easy option. If you have assets like your own home and you default on an IVA, they will make you bankrupt.

Christians Against Poverty is another excellent free service and you don’t have to be Christian either. They often negotiate with Creditors so that you can pay off debts more easily without it affecting your Credit Score like an Administration Order, DRO, IVA or Bankruptcy would.

Get in touch with your Water Board too. If you google the name of your water board and trust fund, so like Severn Trent Trust Fund most will have budget calculators, may reduce your water bill while you’re struggling to pay off debts and may even give you a payout to pay off some debts.

And to answer your question, I think you’ll be on the Insolvency register for the lifetime of the plan but really, if you’re thinking that you may want to borrow more in the future an IVA isn’t really for you. You may be better with a debt management plan. If you have an IVA you’re not allowed to borrow over £500 without informing your Insolvency Practioner first. There’s some more info here

Whatever you do, don’t phonecany of the companies that offer IVAs. Talk to Christians Against Poverty, Stepchange or your local CAB first.

You can get it sorted, but you’ll need to talk to thexwrite people first

Thank you both of your advice is really helpful!

Let us know what you decide Rose

Good luck!

Just to let you know I've gone for the personal loan to consolidate my debts. I also threw in my car on finance and overall paying less a month and alot less interest over the years! I've now cut up my credit cards and I'm going to close the accounts in the next few days