Money Advice Direct
FREEPHONE 0800 074 6918
We receive a lot of calls and emails from the public asking; "Will an IVA stop collection calls?".
Please note at collection calls from creditors may continue up until the day of the IVA creditors meeting. The calls may occasionally come from the credit card or loan collections departments. The banks are large corporations so often the collection calls still come due to bad communication between departments.
Once the IVA is up and running the collection calls will certainly stop because all correspondence or creditor contact is done via the IVA insolvency practitioner.
An IVA will put an end to creditor harassment. Harassment is when a debt collector threatens you, uses obscene language or repeatedly uses the telephone to annoy you. All of these activities are illegal. In these cases it is best that you requested by letter that the agency stop contacting you.
Please note that not all debt collectors are bad debt collectors. Most debt collectors are good people doing a tough job. But that said there are many dishonest collection firms out there. And when you’re in debt the last thing you want is to be hounded by unscrupulous people trying to get as much money out of you as they can. Any way they can.
Being in debt can be embarrassing. Most people are not eager to have there friends or family member know that they have fallen behind. Laws prohibit debt collectors from talking to other people about your debt. In some cases a debt collector can contact other people but only to find out where you live, what your phone number is, and where you work. In general debt collectors are not allow to talk about your debt to other people except your lawyer or with your permission. Debt collectors should not contact you while you are at work if they know that you can’t take calls at work.
Harassment of people in debt by creditors or their agents is a criminal offence under the Administration of Justice Act 1970. It is often difficult to know what to do when you feel a creditor is not dealing with your account fairly.
In order for you to identify what activities by your creditors may involve harassment and what can be done about the problem, please see the following links:
If you would like to know if an IVA will stop collection calls please complete the following form or telephone freephone 0800 074 6918.