If refinance isn’t the right solution for your problems, or you can’t find a lender prepared to offer the facilities you need to avoid bankruptcy, one possible solution is to enter an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA).

An IVA is a Government backed scheme which creates a formal legal agreement with your unsecured creditors, which can be flexible depending on your circumstances. This usually involves regular monthly payments over an agreed period.

In some situations it may involve a lump sum payment or a combination of regular payments and then a lump sum (eg from the sale of an asset or receipt of an insurance claim). Often, as part of the arrangement, the creditors may have to write off part of what is owing to them.

Secured creditors (eg your mortgage) are not included in the IVA but payments to them will be included in any calculations of what you can afford each month.

Creditors may be suppliers who have given you credit, your landlord for rent, HMRC for Income Tax or VAT or other business debts. It can also include personal debts such as credit cards, store cards or other consumer debt.