Generally speaking all the unsecured debts you owe are included in Bankruptcy. Secured debts such as a mortgage are not.
Included in this article:
- The debts included in Bankruptcy
- CCJ debts and money owed to HMRC
- Benefits Overpayments
- Which debts will not be written off?
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Which debts are included in a Bankruptcy?
Most of your unsecured debts are included in Bankruptcy. Can Tax and VAT debt be included? What happens to secured debts like your mortgage? Which unsecured debts are left out? To find out more please visit: http://beatmydebt.com/bankruptcy-frequently-asked-questions/which-debts-are-included-in-bankruptcy
The Debts included in Bankruptcy
If you go bankrupt most unsecured debts in your name can be added. These are things like credit cards, personal loans, catalogues and pay day loans.
In addition to other unsecured debts are also included:
Utility & Council Tax Arrears – If you are behind with your council tax or utility bills the arrears you owe will be written off when you go bankrupt.
Parking Charge Notices (PCN) – Any parking fines you have been issued by private parking contractors are written off if you go bankrupt.
Gambling Debts – Debt you have built up because of gambling is included but there may be additional implications depending on the amount.
If you forget to add any of your unsecured creditors in your application they are still included as per section 382 of the Insolvency Act 1986
CCJ Debts and money owed to HMRC and Bankruptcy
If you have a CCJ (County Court Judgment) this debt is included if you go Bankrupt. The Judgment is written off in the same way as any other unsecured debt.
The same goes for an Attachment of Earnings. If money is currently being deducted from your wages in respect of a debt this will stop after you go bankrupt.
Money owed to HMRC is also included. If you have tax arrears or owe VAT or PAYE debts these will be written off by the process.
HMRC debt is not a preferential creditor. As such it is included if you go Bankrupt and the debt written off.
Benefits Overpayments and Bankruptcy
Debts you owe as a result of the overpayment of benefits are normally included in bankruptcy. This is as a result of a Supreme Court ruling in Dec 2011 (Secretary of State for Work & Pensions v Payne Dec 11).
In this case the Court also confirmed that any deductions being made to ongoing benefits to recover overpayments must stop once an individual is declared bankrupt.
The only time benefits overpayments cannot be included in bankruptcy is if they are the result of fraudulent claims.
Once you go bankrupt any benefits payments you receive should return to their normal levels.
Which debts will not be written off if you go Bankrupt?
Secured debts are not included in bankruptcy. These include things like a mortgage, charging order or car HP. You must continue paying these.
Guarantor Loans
A Guarantor Loan is an unsecured debt. As such it must be included in Bankruptcy. However the person who guaranteed the loan will still be liable to pay the balance.
Joint Debt
If you owe money in joint names with someone else your liability for this debt comes to an end once you go bankrupt. However the other joint account holder remains 100% liable.
There are other specific debts that cannot be written off by Bankruptcy. These include:
- Student Loan Company debts
- CSA arrears
- Court fines and penalties such as speeding fines
Debts which have been incurred as a result of fraudulent activity are not written off if you go bankrupt. This includes benefits overpaid due to a fraudulent claim.
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Hi
How much debt do you have to have to go bankrupt? I owe about £10000 and am wondering if it is for me. I am renting and do not own a car. I an working but only part time so can only afford to make token payments to my debts each month. At this rate they will never be paid.
Hi Viv
There is really no minimum or maximum amount of debt that you have to owe to go bankrupt. Bankruptcy might be suitable if you have debts of as little as £5ooo. However it really depends on your wider circumstances.
You say that you do not have any assets (you are not a home owner and do not own a car). Given you owe £10000 and cannot afford to make any repayments bankruptcy would be a good solution for you. Your debt would be taken away from you and if you have no surplus income you would not have to make any further payments towards it. You would be dicharged after a year.
That said the one issue you will face is the up front cost which you might struggle to pay.
For this reason I would suggest that you look into the possibility of a Debt Relief Order (DRO). A DRO will give you the same outcome as bankruptcy but the up front cost is much lower. It is specially designed for people with no assets, debt of less than £20k and little or no surplus income.
Are charging orders included in a bankruptcy?
Hi Helen
A charging Order secures the associated debt against your property. As a secured debt it can no longer be included in bankruptcy. If you go bankrupt this debt would not be written off and would still have to be paid.
The council said I was over paid housing benefit because I had my children’s saving in an old account. I didn’t think it mattered as they can see I don’t live a great life style. They sent me a bill for 12000 and stopped my benefit. This is on top of £7000 debts I already have
I work part time because my son is disabled so I only get 60-90 pounds a week. I am using my sons dla to try get by too. Also am getting evicted because I can’t pay the rent as it’s 750 a month.
Would my housing benefit debt get wiped out if I went bankrupt? Also would I lose my bank account?
Hi Liz
Housing benefit overpayments are written off in bankruptcy (as long as they are as a result of a mistake and are not as a result of fraud). Having said that if you still qualify for this benefit after you go bankrupt it can be held back by the council to off set against the debt owed until you are discharged after 12 months.
In addition if you now have rent arrears this debt would also be included in the bankruptcy and written off.
In terms of your bank account you can have an account if you go bankrupt but it must be a basic account rather than a current account. If the account you are using at the moment is a current account you would need to speak to your bank about switching to a basic one. If you owe your bank money then you can open a basic account with a different bank and this would remain open while you are bankrupt.
Note: From what you have said your total debt including the benefit overpayment is around £19,000. Given it is less than £20,000 it looks to me as though you would qualify for a Debt Relief Order. This would give you the same benefits of bankruptcy but only costs £90 to implement compared to £680 for bankruptcy. As such I recommend that you also investigate this option.