Cancel IVA if Unhappy

10/11/2024
Cancel IVA if Unhappy

It is possible to cancel your IVA if you are unhappy. However there are certain implications that you will need to be aware of.

Included in this article:

Already in an IVA and need help?

Give us a call: 0800 011 4712 or complete the form below to speak to one of our experts

How to cancel an IVA

If you have decided to cancel your IVA you can do so relatively easily. First stop your monthly payment by cancelling your standing order. You then need to tell the company managing the Arrangement you want them to fail it.

Generally you will have to confirm your instruction in writing. Most IVA companies will accept an e-mail but you might have to send a letter. They will then start the process of failing the Arrangement.

Once your IVA has been officially terminated, you will receive confirmation of this in writing. Because you are no longer in an IVA your details will be taken off the Insolvency Register. This normally happens within 3 months of the termination date.

Your IP is usually unable to fail your IVA until your payments are three months in arrears. During this time you are still protected from your creditors.

Struggling to get your head round all of this? We can help. Call us (0800 011 4712) or complete the form below. The advice is free and confidential.

What happens to the money your already paid into your Arrangement?

After you cancel your IVA your IP is allowed to draw their fees and costs from any money you paid into the Agreement. After these deductions any remaining money is paid to your creditors.

However it is likely that a considerable amount of the original debt you owed will remain outstanding. You are still liable for 100% of the outstanding balances.

Given this before you cancel you need to decide how you will manage the remaining debt. The options you might consider are a Debt Management Plan or Bankruptcy. However you could also start a new IVA

If you cancel an IVA within the first couple of years and your monthly payments were relatively low it is likely that all your original debt will remain outstanding.

If you Cancel an IVA do you have to go Bankrupt?

One of the concerns you might have about cancelling your IVA is whether or not you will be forced to go Bankrupt. In fact this would be very unusual. More often than not your creditors gain little or nothing by taking this course of action.

Even if you are a home owner your creditors will normally avoid making you bankrupt. They are far more likely to restart standard collection procedures against you such as employing debt collectors or applying for a CCJ.

The one exception is if you owe money to HMRC. They may have stipulated that if you do not meet the terms of your IVA you must be made bankrupt. If HMRC is a creditor you should not cancel your Arrangement before taking further advice.

Once your IVA has failed actually making yourself bankrupt could be a sensible option to consider particularly if you are not a home owner.

Reasons you might Cancel your IVA

You might want to cancel your IVA for a number of reasons. One of the most common is if you have suffered a change of circumstances. As a result you can no longer afford the agreed payments.

Alternatively since you started the agreement you may have had more time to think about your options. It is possible that you now believe that there is a better way for you to solve your debt problem.

Finally you may be unhappy with the Company you are working with. It is not possible to transfer your IVA to a different provider. However you could cancel it and start again with a different provider if you wish.

Need help with cancelling your IVA? Give us a call (0800 011 4712) or complete the form at the bottom of this page. The advice is free and confidential.

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122 thoughts on “Cancel IVA if Unhappy”

    Ann says:
    26/10/2017 at 00:00

    I am in an Iva and have other borrowing because of a family problem- if I can repay this before the Iva is finished will that be ok?

    Reply
      James Falla says:
      26/10/2017 at 09:34

      Hi Ann

      It is not uncommon for someone to borrow more while they are in an IVA to overcome an emergency. The way to deal with the problem depends on the amount of the new debt. If it is relatively small and you can repay it simply by making savings from your agreed living expenses without affecting your ongoing IVA payment that is fine. However if you are going to struggle to maintain your ongoing payment it is gping to be a problem.

      If this is the case you will need to speak to your IVA company. The easiest solution will be to agree a payment break with them. This will mean you can temporarily stop paying your IVA and repay the new debt instead. Your IVA Company will not be happy with this but if you insist they should agree given there are really few other alternatives.

      Reply
    Lydia says:
    07/02/2018 at 14:38

    I’m in an Iva but have more debt that my Iva company will not add onto Iva due to there terms and conditions. Is my best option to cancel that Iva and start again with someone else I’m looking at other options such DMP. My income has also changed.

    Reply
      James Falla says:
      07/02/2018 at 14:49

      Hi Lydia.

      If you have debt which your IVA company will not add your options really depend on how much new debt you are talking about. If it is a relative small amount it might be possible to resolve the issue with a payment break. This would allow you to stop making your IVA payments and instead use the money you save to pay off the new debt. The payments missed are then added to the end of the Arrangement.

      On the other hand if the new debts are quite large a payment break might not help. In these circumstances allowing the original IVA to fail and then using a different debt solution might be a better option. The new solution you choose will very much depend on your circumstances. If you can still afford to make a sensible payment towards your debts each month starting a new IVA might be a good idea. If not then you might want to consider going bankrupt particularly if you are not a home owner.

      Reply
    Chris says:
    07/02/2018 at 14:52

    I am a few months in to an IVA with credit fix, I entered in to it after reading up on them and feeling like my debts where not going down although I was paying a fair amount each month.

    Since taking the IVA on I have thought long and hard and have realised that I would have preferred to carry on paying the debts myself and clearing them eventually on my own. I have realised that my cred it rating is going to be non exsistent after a while and being 38 when it’s done is a difficult time to start again and save, buy a house etc.

    What are my options in getting out of it and maybe taking on a debt management plan for example? If I was to speak to my creditors separately and explain my situation might they be open to me paying the debt back directly? It’s a confusing time and I fear I have entered in this situation a bit hastily.

    Reply
      James Falla says:
      07/02/2018 at 15:10

      Hi Chris,

      You are right that having started an IVA your credit rating is affected. However before thinking about stopping it there are some very important things to consider. The first is that the record of your IVA will remain on your credit file for 6 years (from the start date) whether you cancel it or not. As such cancelling the arrangement now will not improve your credit rating. In fact doing so and then trying to manage your debts with a Debt Management Plan (DMP) might make it worse. In that scenario your credit rating will not start to improve until you have repaid your debts in full which might take longer than 6 years.

      Secondly remember the advantage of your IVA is that you only make payments for 5-6 years (depending on the terms of your agreement). After that any outstanding debt is written off. If you cancel your IVA you will lose all the money you have paid in and be back at square one again. It may then take you a lot longer to repay your debt using a DMP than would have been the case had you stuck with the IVA.

      Given this I would only advise cancelling your IVA if your circumstances have changed and you can no longer afford to make the agreed monthly payments.

      Reply
    Deborah says:
    22/02/2018 at 17:06

    I don’t know if anyone can help me but I’m am really fed up with my Iva company. After a change of financial circumstances in dec 16 I sent the appropriate paperwork they required and they then cancelled my direct debit ! The last year all I have done is send in paperwork without getting g closer to actually reinstating my direct debit.

    I have sent everything they have asked and yet they are still wanting more. Because of this I haven’t paid anything for over a year and now my Iva will be extended for another year , I spoke to someone yesterday and now they are wanting me to send more evidence in all I want to do is get it paid and get out of it.

    Reply
      James Falla says:
      22/02/2018 at 17:08

      Hi Deborah,

      It sounds as though the IVA company you are working with is not being particularly helpful. However given you are already in an IVA you really only have two options. The first is to agree a way forward with your current company.

      If you feel that this is not possible the only other option is to let your Arrangement with them fail (see the article above for more info on this). You could then start again with another IVA company or consider using an alternative debt solution. Clearly this option will depend on the amount you have already paid into your current arrangement.

      Reply
    Elaine says:
    12/03/2018 at 19:24

    We are in an IVA. I was wondering if it can be cancelled and we can go back to being on a debt management plan?

    Reply
      James Falla says:
      12/03/2018 at 19:36

      Hi Elaine

      Yes you can cancel your IVA and start a new debt management plan if you like. However you should think this through very carefully. If you carry on with your IVA after you have paid the agreement payments (which will normally last a maximum of 5-6 years) the arrangement will end and any unpaid debt will be written off.

      However if you stop paying your IVA then as highlighted in the article above you risk losing the money you have already paid into the plan. You would then still owe the same amount as when you started. If you then begin paying the same monthly payment towards your debts using a debt management plan it could take you much longer than 5 years to repay what you owe.

      As such I would only recommend stopping your IVA in certain circumstances. For example if you feel that your IVA company is asking you to pay an unreasonable amount and you cannot reach a mutual agreement with them. Alternatively if your circumstances have changed and you can non longer afford the payments. However if it is the latter then rather than a debt management plan you should consider going bankrupt after your IVA is cancelled.

      Note: If you are a home owner do not stop you IVA without speaking to an expert first. By all means call us at IVA Information (0800 011 4712) if you want to talk any of this through.

      Reply

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