The social policy team at The UK Insolvency Helpline is warning people to resist being tempted by advertisements offering to wipe out all their debts.

The debt advice team would urge people in debt to think very carefully indeed before spending money they are unlikely to get back on a ’solution’ that in many cases will just make their debt problems worse.

The UK Insolvency Helpline IVA team provides free, confidential, independent and expert advice that can help people get debt-free and stay that way. An Individual Voluntary Arrangement, or IVA, allows a debtor to avoid bankruptcy by coming to an agreement with creditors to pay off a percentage of his or her debts over a given period.

Why use an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA)?

• A legally binding way to reduce the amount that you pay back
• A way to stop any further interest charges
• A way to reduce your monthly repayments
• This means more money in your pocket at the end of the month

An increasing number of women are seeking debt advice for debts as high as £100,000 on card debts and soaring unsecured loans, according to The UK Insolvency Helpline.

The proportion of women seeking IVA or bankruptcy advise has risen by 52% over the past year, according to ongoing research from the social policy team.

If the trend continues at the current rate half of all the people going through the IVA process will be women by the end of the decade. The cause of the problem was that although women’s financial independence has grown, their salaries have failed to grow at the same rate.

Millions of women will never escape their debts. Many women are now hoping to take advantage of proposed 1 year bankruptcy orders, while others use an IVA to pay off debts over £15,000.

Debt advice adverts claiming that people with money problems can escape up to 80% of their debts are misleading and unethical. If you are in debt please contact a free debt advice service such as The UK Insolvency Helpline on 0800 074 6918

The UK Insolvency Helpline has passed a dossier of complaints to the Governement alleging many profit making are firms are misleading the public.

Some companies were advising people on low incomes to sign individual voluntary arrangements, which harm their credit rating, when they could agree an informal arrangement with their creditors.

An IVA is a legal contracts between lenders and heavily indebted borrowers to make monthly repayments following a deal to pay off a reduced amount.

According to social policy team at The UK Insolvency Helpline over 250 people a year are entering in to IVAs via the free debt advice service. The UK Insolvency Helpline operates a strict advice policy whereas many private firms are staffed by salesmen

The growth of IVAs has far outstripped that of bankruptcy for the under 30’s in the UK, and debt advise service The UK Insolvency Helpline has warned that young people are being put off bankruptcy because of the social stigma - even though it can be the best option.

If you are a young adult moving into your first home this year, your to-do list is probably growing by the hour. There are  furnishings to consider, computer equipment decisions to make, budgeting to avoid debt and other items to check off your list.

Calculate what you will need during the month for rent, food, entertainment and other expenses. It is a good idea for you to track expenses the first month and then determine if your income for the month is likely to be sufficient. If expenses need to be cut, what is expendable?

Advertising is being blamed for increasing debt levels, according to the social policy team at The UK Insolvency Helpline

It is felt that inappropriate advertising could be increasing problems for many consumers, especially during the the lead up to Easter.

Those concerned with debt levels should seek out reputable help and advice rather than opting for companies that claim to be able to write off debt.

The number of IVA and bankruptcy cases advised on at The UK Insolvency Helpline has risen by 55 per cent in 2009 and this figure could rise sharply as people struggle to cope with increased spending and borrowing levels over the coming months.

The Property Debt Advice Project was launched by the UK Insolvency Helpline in January this year.

Spearheaded by Sakpal Malik, a trained paralegal, the team offer last minute practical help to scared and embarrassed residents before they appear in court. All advice is completely free of charge.

Malik said: “When I approached this man, he told me there was nothing I could do. He was just going to go in there, hand over the keys, and walk back out.

“After having a chat with him, the UK Insolvency Helpline managed to come to an agreement with his landlord’s representative in court. The debt advice team also discovered they were entitled to working tax credits, which they had not been claiming. He is now back in his property and living debt free thanks to some great advice and an IVA being set up to clear his personal debts of £26,000”

New figures from The UK Insolvency Helpline have shown that the number of IVA applications has soared by a worrying 31% in the last year.

The free debt advice service stated that over 550,000 small businesses and individuals contacted the service in 2008, making a huge leap from 366,000 in 2007.

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On going research from The UK Insolvency Helpline social policy team has reported a quarter of staff are worried about debt problems and would consider an IVA to clear debts of £15,000. The survery of over 250 staff at over 30 UK based companies has shown that one in are five being kept awake at night worrying about their credit cards debts and 10% report effects on their health as a result. Only a third of people felt positive about their financial future and less than a third had already spoken with an debt management advice centre for debt advice.

The social policy team at The UK Insolvency Helpline have carried out a survey of staff at over 30 companies throughout the UK. The findings are that  over 58% are worried about debt, one in are five would consider an IVA to clear debt and 8 % report they are already seeking debt advice. Only a small percentage  of people felt positive about their financial future.