LEAP IN NUMBER OF IVA ENQUIRIES FROM PROFESSIONALS AS CREDIT SQUEEZE TAKES HOLD

1. Property developers, accountants, lawyers, investment bankers and company bosses weighing up debt solution options, reports IVA.com           

HIGH-flying professionals are looking for help on how to cope with mounting debts, according to individual voluntary arrangement (IVA) comparison site IVA.com.

Increasing volumes of lawyers, company directors and investment bankers are among the professionals who are now weighing up their options as to the best solution to their problems.

“The fall-out from the credit squeeze is not just affecting those on lower incomes and workers with poor credit histories who are struggling with rising living costs,” said IVA.com director Terry Balfour.

“We have seen the number of enquiries from professionals in higher wage brackets increased significantly since the beginning of 2008.”

Balfour said accountants, IT managers and sales managers who have been directly affected by the growing turmoil of the global financial markets are among those making enquiries about the suitability of an IVA.

The likelihood of thousands of redundancies in the City and swingeing pay cuts for highly paid City workers will have a devastating effect on those who are committed to massive mortgages, school fees and expect a high standard of living.

Property professionals – directors of construction companies and property development firms – are one group that are particularly suffering from a sudden drying up of business as the housing market faces its most uncertain future in a long time.

“The level of enquiries from people whose finances would usually be regarded as water-tight indicates just how pervasive the current crisis is and points towards more casualties to come throughout the year,” he said.

And it is not just people with huge debts who are coming forward.

“The average debt volume is around £25,000 – but we have seen people owing as little as £6,000 wondering whether to go down the IVA route.

“Because of the credit squeeze traditional sources of debt finance have more or less dried up – and if you owe several thousand pounds and have no means of transferring the debt, then there is a temptation to throw in the towel,” he said.

– Ends –

General enquiries: 0800 324 7011 / www.iva.com

Terry Balfour, Director
0800 324 7011
IVA.com
Terry.balfour@iva.com

Lucie Ager, Consultant 
01273 774109 / 07796 878263
David Andrews Media Ltd                                               
lucie@davidandrewsmedia.co.uk

David Andrews, Senior Consultant - Director
01273 774109 / 07941 255855
David Andrews Media Ltd
david@davidandrewsmedia.co.uk

Editor's notes
Founded by its managing director Terry Balfour in 2007, IVA.com is the first IVA comparison website in the UK. It is a free interactive online service for consumers looking for an IVA firm most suitable to their needs. Its database has over 1,000 UK-based IVA firms and insolvency practitioners (IPs). IVA.com brings transparency to the market by employing its unique rating system based on the real experiences of IVA customers. There are over 500 reviews and many more ratings that provide people with details of how IVA firms are performing.
IVA.com enables smaller firms to compete more effectively with the larger IVA factories.