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David F
New Member
United Kingdom
58 Posts |
 Posted - 04 March 2010 : 09:40:19
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Hello All,
Well as of 10.21am yesterday I am now officially Bankrupt.
My day in court went so smoothly........
Arrived at court at 8.50 for my appointment at 9am
I was called into a small private room at 9.20am and taken through my forms by the BR Clerk. She was so nice and friendly and had with her a trainee who had only started that day and was "learning the ropes". They checked through all of the paperwork then asked me to swear my affadavit on the Bible. I paid over the £360 as I had claimed the court cost waiver due to JSA and then they took me upstairs to the waiting room whilst I waited to see the judge. The waiting room was packed with solicitors and their clients who all seem to be discussing child custody matters or who was suing who. There were three of us going BR at the court that morning, me, a middle aged couple and a young guy who looked about 20 and had a solicitor with him.
At 10.20am I was taken through to see the judge in what was like a small courtroom. I sat in front of the judge who asked me had I taken legal advice about my BR and had I included all of my debts on my forms, including any family & friends debts, to which I answered yes to both. The judge, a nice lady but very official said I now declare you BR and to wait outside for the paperwork to be drawn up. At about 11.20am the BR clerk came back out with my certificate of BR and said the OR would be in touch within the next 48 hours and will either request a face to face meeting or maybe do everything over the phone. (although the BR Clerk did say to me that I may get a face to face meeting as my unsecured debts were high at £129k).
Then I was free to go, the deed was done.
All in all it was extremely easy and a pain free experience. The hardest bit was handing over the £360 for the fee and drinking their vending machine coffee lol!.
Today, I am writing to all of my creditors to let them know I am now BR and that they should stop hounding me and get in touch with the OR. I have been looking forward to writing this letter for days.
The next hurdle will be the OR meeting, then sorting out the car and the house.
The car is only worth £500 and I am asking to keep it due to the fact that I live in a rural area and I need a car to do my job (when I get one) which is field sales so lots of travelling. I am also stating that I need the car to get to interviews as these can be anywhere in the country and are never local.
The house I had valued by a surveyor prior to going BR and he valued it at £185k. The mortgage and secured loan total £191k so there is no equity and I plan to buy the BI back as soon as possible. I am completely up to date on my mortgage and loan payments and both are being covered by interest payments from the DWP which is agreed up to Feb 2011.
Anyway, sorry to post such an epic read but just wanted to tell everyone what happened during my day at court.
Thank you to everyone who helped with advice and support and to Paul Johns at Reviva UK who really put my mind at ease regarding the house.
I hope the above helps anyone who is still in the "thinking about it" stage of BR. It really pays to do as much research as possible prior to going BR so you know what to expect and what the consequences are. I am so happy to finally be DEBT FREE!!! whilst I know I still have to resolve the house and car, yesterday was the first step in getting my life sorted out, and it feels really good.
Thanks again.
David |
Edited by - David F on 04 March 2010 09:51:51 |
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gettingoutofdebt
forum expert
2418 Posts |
Posted - 04 March 2010 : 09:59:50
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| Thanks for sharing this David as I'm sure it will be useful to other people who are contemplating BR or about to go to court. Most people are surprised how easy the court is and how friendly the BR Clerk and Judge are. |
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Housing
Senior Member
United Kingdom
1399 Posts |
Posted - 04 March 2010 : 11:58:02
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David good morning to you,
Great to see your story and experience - well done and thank you for sharing your experiences with the forum.
Many read the forum and do not post, so you will have assisted a lot of people who may be uncertain and even fearful of the repurcussions.
I am nearly at my discharge date - less than 9 weeks to go and I am starting to re-build my life again. Whilst I would not want to go through it again, it was the right (and only) decision for me.
Good luck sir, Richard
"There are no problems - only solutions" |
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chester2005
Average Member
United Kingdom
786 Posts |
Posted - 04 March 2010 : 16:26:18
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welcome to your debt free life
Dave
Don't worry or know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum.(Baz Lurhman)
RevivaUK and Paul Johns helped me through it all i can't recommend them enough!! |
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Richard P
Senior Member
United Kingdom
1701 Posts |
Posted - 04 March 2010 : 16:56:00
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congratulations david
yes it might have cost you the fee and the expensive coffee machine but you are now in a far better financial position than you have been for the past X years
good luck on the job front
regards Richard |
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David F
New Member
United Kingdom
58 Posts |
Posted - 05 March 2010 : 08:21:31
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Thank you guys for your kind words of support.
The OR examiner called me yesterday and I now have my OR interview on Wednesday next week. It will be done over the phone. I am really pleased about that as I was expecting a face to face interview due to the large number of creditors/debts = 16 creditors total £129k.
I mentioned the house and she said that it all looked fairly straight forward in my case. I would need to get a second valuation done as they would need two, but I wouldn't have to worry about that for a while. I plan to write to them after the interview to express my interest in buying back the BI and will try to get this sorted sooner rather than later.
She asked about my bank accounts and whether I needed any account "unfrozen" for my main income etc. I then explained that I had opened a Co-op Cashminder account that I had not listed on my SOA but into which I had my JSA paid. She took a note of the details and said she was fine with this and that she would write to the Co-op telling them that the OR did not have any interest in that account.
Unfortunately I forgot to ask about my car (I can't believe I forgot) so I will have to discuss this with her next week.
All in all the call lasted about 15 minutes but she did state that the interview on Wednesday would be over an hour as I had so many creditors. She said that an information pack and questionnaire had been sent out to me and that I would need to get this back to her before the telephone meeting next week. She also asked that I forward any bank statements and credit card / loan details to her too. I said I wasn't sure if I had all of my statements, she said that's fine and just send what ever I had.
She sounded really friendly but professional and I feel a lot happier now that I have spoken to them.
I'll post again after next weeks meeting to let you know how it went.
Thanks again,
David |
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Richard P
Senior Member
United Kingdom
1701 Posts |
Posted - 05 March 2010 : 12:56:43
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Hi David
The figures make no great difference to the OR you (I) are just another customer
you have a debt that you could not pay, they are tasked to look into your assets to establish if they can raise any money to pay their fees and any money back to creditors.
They will also investigate to confirm that your situation is as declared on the statement of affairs and your reasons for the debt.
sometimes it is easier to establish information over the phone sometimes better clarity is obtained from face to face
i found my interview / interviewee very proffesional and thorough, it was more a fact finding than interview.
If i can suggest anything it would be to have a copy of your statement of affairs in front of you during the phone interview.
I have found my contacts with the OR and court clerks all very nice people and professional, but would not want to cross them
good luck next week regards Richard |
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Housing
Senior Member
United Kingdom
1399 Posts |
Posted - 05 March 2010 : 16:39:47
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Hi again,
From what you have said, I am sure you will be fine.
Do not worry too much at this stage about forgetting things - make a note, have your SOA in front of you and the questionairre that they are sending and work from that - the OR will then make their enquiries - sometimes it takes longer - depends on complexity.
I had two businesses and lots (I mean lots) of creditors - one of my interviews was nearly 10 hours!! I have to say though, that examiner was great and we shook hands at the end and he said, "You had no other choice..."
Good luck, Richard
quote:
Originally posted by David F
Thank you guys for your kind words of support.
The OR examiner called me yesterday and I now have my OR interview on Wednesday next week. It will be done over the phone. I am really pleased about that as I was expecting a face to face interview due to the large number of creditors/debts = 16 creditors total £129k.
I mentioned the house and she said that it all looked fairly straight forward in my case. I would need to get a second valuation done as they would need two, but I wouldn't have to worry about that for a while. I plan to write to them after the interview to express my interest in buying back the BI and will try to get this sorted sooner rather than later.
She asked about my bank accounts and whether I needed any account "unfrozen" for my main income etc. I then explained that I had opened a Co-op Cashminder account that I had not listed on my SOA but into which I had my JSA paid. She took a note of the details and said she was fine with this and that she would write to the Co-op telling them that the OR did not have any interest in that account.
Unfortunately I forgot to ask about my car (I can't believe I forgot) so I will have to discuss this with her next week.
All in all the call lasted about 15 minutes but she did state that the interview on Wednesday would be over an hour as I had so many creditors. She said that an information pack and questionnaire had been sent out to me and that I would need to get this back to her before the telephone meeting next week. She also asked that I forward any bank statements and credit card / loan details to her too. I said I wasn't sure if I had all of my statements, she said that's fine and just send what ever I had.
She sounded really friendly but professional and I feel a lot happier now that I have spoken to them.
I'll post again after next weeks meeting to let you know how it went.
Thanks again,
David
"There are no problems - only solutions" |
Edited by - Housing on 05 March 2010 16:40:18 |
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David F
New Member
United Kingdom
58 Posts |
Posted - 06 March 2010 : 09:19:02
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Thanks again guys for your replies and advice.
I have now finally finished my creditor letters informing them I am now BR and attaching a copy of my BR order. I have sent letters to both the original creditor and any debt collection company the debt may of later been passed to. Hopefully this will stop any further letters etc. and I understand that the OR will also inform them of my BR too.
Thanks again for all your help and I'll post again after next weeks OR interview.
All the best,
David |
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Housing
Senior Member
United Kingdom
1399 Posts |
Posted - 06 March 2010 : 10:23:36
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Hi,
That is very impressive...
Yes, the OR will be in touch with all of your creditors in due course, depending on how busy their office is and how complex your case is - likely to be several weeks at the very least.
Good luck and relax a bit now, Richard
quote:
Originally posted by David F
Thanks again guys for your replies and advice.
I have now finally finished my creditor letters informing them I am now BR and attaching a copy of my BR order. I have sent letters to both the original creditor and any debt collection company the debt may of later been passed to. Hopefully this will stop any further letters etc. and I understand that the OR will also inform them of my BR too.
Thanks again for all your help and I'll post again after next weeks OR interview.
All the best,
David
"There are no problems - only solutions" |
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David F
New Member
United Kingdom
58 Posts |
Posted - 10 March 2010 : 16:19:49
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WOW, just had my telephone interview with the OR.
It lasted 1 and a half hours!!!
She was really nice and said she was happy that my car should be exempt from BR but there is a problem on the value. I had it valued by "Webuyanycar.com" at £580 and she had it valued at Parkers at £3,000.00, I nearly fell off my chair as there is no way it is worth that. She said that her valuation didn't take into account the mileage (I didn't put that down on the SOA). Its a BMW 325i Xreg but the mileage is a massive 240,000.........good old BMWs, they go on for ever. She said that she would arrange for a company to come out and value it, if the value was below £2,000 I could keep the car as I needed it for getting to interviews. If it was above £2k I could arrange for someone to buy out the BI above £2k, or they would sell it and buy me a car for £2k. So all in all I should be fine. Big relief.
We discussed the house and she was happy that it was in negative equity and that I would need to get another valuation done nearer the time. If this still showed neg equity then I could buy back the BI for £1 + legal costs.
She discussed everything on my SOA,she was very thorough but the whole process was painless. She didn't make me feel guilty or that I had done anything wrong by getting in to such a mess with my credit cards and loans.
She ended the call with saying she was happy that my debts had been caused by "loss of employment" and that she may need to contact me again but this was unlikely.
I must admit it is a HUGE relief to get the OR interview out of the way. I was dreaded the call, even though I was fully prepared and was 100% honest throughout.
As always it was nothing to worry about and she was really nice and helpful. She made sure I understood everything and what the next steps would be.
Thanks to everyone for their help and advice and I'm now off to have a stiff drink.................. or maybe two.
David |
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Bridgewood
Junior Member
United Kingdom
222 Posts |
Posted - 10 March 2010 : 17:32:24
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| This posting should be required reading for anyone contemplating bankruptcy. It won't be as straightforward in every case, but it should hopefully answer a lot of concerns that most people in this predicament have |
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angelhelp
Starting Member
5 Posts |
Posted - 11 March 2010 : 14:39:58
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| **Spam - post deleted** |
Edited by - Skippy on 11 March 2010 15:14:45 |
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David F
New Member
United Kingdom
58 Posts |
Posted - 16 March 2010 : 11:29:53
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Hi All,
Just a quick question as today I received in the post a "B10 Notice of registration of a bankruptcy notice" from the Land Registry.
Is this just standard procedure and part of the BR process?
Many thanks for any help.
David
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Bridgewood
Junior Member
United Kingdom
222 Posts |
Posted - 16 March 2010 : 11:44:05
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Hi David
It sounds like it's just standard procedure
The bankruptcy will be entered on every property you have registered at the land registry
It is to stop you selling the house and disappearing to Outer Mongolia with the money |
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David F
New Member
United Kingdom
58 Posts |
Posted - 16 March 2010 : 11:52:27
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Hi Bridgewood,
Many thanks for the reply. I guessed it was that but it always pays to get a second opinion.
Shame about Outer Mongolia, I could do with a holiday. ha ha!
Thanks again,
David |
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Now Bankrupt
