IVA mail shot referred to watchdog

A complaint has been made to the Office of Fair Trading regarding a mail shot sent out by an individual voluntary arrangement group claiming that recipients have been missold their IVAs.

The mail shot from the IVA Council, which describes itself as a consumer rights group, states that the receiver of the letter may have been mis-sold their IVA.

The letter urges those with IVAs to contact the council, but not to inform their insolvency practitioner, a move that has angered some IPs.

Website iva.co.uk has referred the letter to the OFT, citing complaints from debtors who had received the letter.

The watchdog confirmed that it had received the complaint.

William Lindley, a spokesperson for IVAC, said the letters were aimed at debtors who had arranged their repayments through IVA factories.

He added that ‘IVAC had no problem with IVAs as a solution but the vast majority of the people we have spoken to have not been given a balanced view and are told bankruptcy is evil’.