Expected Drop in UK Insolvencies

According to accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, the number of people in the UK entering into individual voluntary arrangements to escape debt is on the decline. The firm reviews about 50 per cent of all proposed IVAs for its clients who are the creditors of those in debt. Some of these clients include banks. The records of PricewaterhouseCoopers seem to suggest that the trend has been occurring during the past four months.

An IVA is an alternative to filing bankruptcy , and allows the debtor to repay a portion of his or her debt. An insolvency expert at PwC feels that current trends are indicative of a gradual month to month decrease in IVA cases. One reason for this is believed to be stabilization in the amount of personal debt after a large increase during the first five years of the 21st century.

Personal debt increased in 2006, but the amount of outstanding balances on credit cards declined because of a decrease in use, the first time that has happened since their introduction in 1966. Official statistics from the government's Insolvency Service indicated that in 2006, there was nearly a 60 per cent increase in personal insolvencies, but this is believed to be because more people turned to IVAs in order to eliminate some of their debts. The figures seem to be stabilizing now that the majority of consumers have completed their proposals for IVAs.

Another contributing factor to the decrease in IVAs is the attitude of some lenders that are adopting a stricter policy toward the IVA proposals that they receive on behalf of their indebted customers. IVAs are voluntary, and a creditor is not obliged to accept the proposal if he thinks the debtor can repay more of their debts that suggested in the IVA proposal. Banks are expressing irritations with a minority of people who try to push through IVAs who the lender feels is in a position to pay off more of their debts without an Individual Voluntary Arrangement.

Research shows that the typical seeker of an IVA is a male in his 40s with debts between £40,000 and £43,000. An IVA can significantly cut that debt with a five year repayment term. Because of the hard-nosed attitude that lenders have begun to take toward IVA proposals, new IVA companies that have opened in the past few years are reporting a decrease in business over recent months. In spite of that, analysts warn that the trend could pick up again, especially if mortgage rates increase. If interest rates on mortgages increase, people are less likely to use their homes to eliminate debt and will be forced to find other ways for reduced their debt load such as an Individual Voluntary Arrangement, or perhaps worse, bankruptcy.

Diana Middleton writes on matters relating to debt advice in the UK, and especially debt problems. She is particularly interested in personal finance, writing on best approaches to getting a secured loan, and the background issues relating to debt consolidation.