Annual review

A full reassessment of a client’s current financial circumstances on the anniversary of starting a Debt Management Plan (DMP) or on the anniversary of his/her last full review.

Agreement

The agreement between the client and the debt management provider made principally on the debt management company’s Terms of Business.

Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy is a formal method of dealing with debts you cannot pay if other options have failed or are not appropriate. Bankruptcy proceedings will free you from debt and make sure your assets are shared fairly among your creditors. The consequences of bankruptcy are severe and long-lasting. No one should make an application for bankruptcy without seeking advice.

Client authority form

A form signed by a client to give the debt management company authority to contact a client’s creditors and to act on a client’s behalf. Creditors do not always need to see these forms, but they must be on record in the event of a request for inspection by any creditor with whom the debt management company is dealing on a client’s behalf.

Creditor

The organizations that a client owes money to. This means all the people or businesses the client has told the debt management company they owe money to.

Credit rating
A credit rating estimates the creditworthiness of an individual or corporation, made by credit bureaus of a borrower’s overall credit history. Credit ratings are calculated from financial history and current assets and liabilities. A credit rating tells a lender or investor the probability of the subject being able to pay back a loan.

Debt management agreement (DMA)

The contract terms that govern the debt management services provided to the client by the debt management company.

Debt management company (DMC)

A DMC will provide advice on how to restructure debts, alter debt repayments and/or achieve early resettlement of debts. This will normally involve negotiating with unsecured creditors on a pro-rata basis. Secured creditor payments are normally prioritised and are dealt with through M.A.R.P. A DMC will also provide regular reviews of the client’s financial circumstances, and update creditors as required.

Debt management plan (DMP)

A debt management plan is an affordable repayment programme set up and managed by an independent company, which will help you work out what you can afford to pay each month.

Initial fee

An initial fee payable by a client to a debt management company for setting up a debt management plan, negotiating with Creditors to accept reduced monthly payments and attempting to have interest and charges on debts frozen immediately or in the near future. The initial fee is calculated according to the total value of the client’s debt and the number of creditors. In some instances, based upon a client’s personal circumstances, the debt management company will waive the Initial Fee.

Monthly or Annual management fee

A fee paid to a debt management company for managing a client’s affairs with his/her listed creditors, providing on-going debt advice, issuing statements and correspondence reports, processing correspondence received from creditors, dealing with new creditors or agencies when notified and generally acting in the client’s best interests throughout the duration of the debt management plan.

Priority creditors

Regular payments and payment arrears for mortgage, rent and utility bills. Individuals should not ignore any payment arrangements enforced through a court.

Standard Financial Statement (SFS)

A detailed statement of a client’s current financial affairs, listing sources of income and items of expenditure, including priority creditors and other unsecured creditors. This is used to calculate what a client can reasonably afford to pay to his/her creditors every month and is used as the basis of the debt management company’s Instruction Fee, where this fee is not waived.