IVAs 'should be determined by personal circumstance'
Published On 20 April 2007
Personal circumstances, rather than television advertising should inform people's choices about whether to take out an IVA, an industry expert has said.Stephen Rose, director of the Debt Advice Bureau, explained that it was impossible to offer blanket advice about debt that applied to everyone as personal circumstances always differed.
"For some people, just a reanalysis of their budget and where they're spending their money may be sufficient," he said.
"For others, refinancing to lower the interest burden may be a solution. Others may have so little money that you may be talking about an informal arrangement."
Mr Rose added that the there was a lack of understanding among the general public about how IVAs could be effectively used.
"A large number of people are seeing an IVA as an option where it may not possibly be the most practical one available, and therefore they're under-informed," he concluded. "Either as a result of the people they've spoken to, or just on the basis of they've seen the adverts."
Figures from the Department of Trade and Industry show that these was a 81.9 per cent increase in the number of IVAs taken out in the final quarter of 2006 when compared to the same three month period in 2005.
