IVAs better than bankruptcy, expert claims

Individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs) have been applauded as a better route for some debtors to go down than bankruptcy, which even in these modern times still comes with some stigma attached to it.

Insolvency practitioner and director at Vantis Business Recovery Nick O’Reilly observed that those with regular incomes may prefer to choose IVAs, which are “a bit of a lighter touch form of debt relief”.

He stated that for those who are likely to be able to repay elements of their debt over the next three to five years, IVAs could be the right choice for debt management.

Mr O’Reilly further suggested that debt relief orders, similar to IVAs, might also be preferable to bankruptcy if the amount of debt is very small.

His comments come in the wake of figures from the Insolvency Service, which revealed that in the third quarter of 2009, there were 35,242 personal insolvencies in England and Wales.

Of these, 18,347 were bankruptcies and 12,390 were IVAs.

By Sarah Adie