Discharged bankruptcy question...

[Laiq]

I was made bankrupt back in April, with a total debt of about £4000 - It was unfortunate that I had a large cheque clear in my account only 2 days later, and I had no idea that there was even a court hearing - It meant the official receivers got over £13,000 to deal with a £4000 debt (and it was put to me that this really would be an open and shut case, that could be dealt with in 4 months).

7/8 months on, I'm still waiting, but I have had the good news that I was discharged on the 5th December.

My question is - can new creditors now come forward, or should it just be a matter on the Official receivers paying out those creditors who did come forward, taking their fee's out, and with any luck giving me the rest back?

If this is the case, then I'd like to know, as I suspect (and have had it confirmed by sources in the know) that the guy working my case is a twit, and isn't doing all he should to get it done quickly! And I'd like to be able to put pressure on him to get everything finished with.

[42man]

Hi Laiq, it was indeed bad timing for you with the big cheque.....once you have been made bankrupt the slate is cleaned from all your debts before the bankruptcy (apart from those which are secured on your house...etc etc (you know about these anyway).....If your name has been in the Gazette and advertised locally and you have provided the information to the OR (for the debts you know about)....then if anybody comes forward after your discharge they have missed the boat !!! The Trustee who was appointed by the Official Receiver takes 20% as his/her fee and pays back whatever is left after paying his/her fees + the Official Receiver's fees + government debts (taxes etc)....very good news that you got discharged early too !! Just out of interest was it a debt collection agency who did this ?

[Laiq]

Unfortunatly not a DCA -

My husband was made bankrupt last year through VAT issues he's self employed) and the council tax transferred the debt to me (the non-working housewife / stay at home mum) - they claim they sent details of the court hearing (had I known of it I would have attended, telling them to wait 3 days, as a cheque was clearing, and it was to be used to pay the council tax!!)

It was all a really bad case of timing, that has left me unbelievably annoyed, because it's taken 7/8 months now to pay off a debt that I had intended to pay the following week, and has left me considerably out of pocket (with all the fee's that now have to be paid too!!)

But so glad to finally be at the end of it.

[Laiq]

Spoken to my guy at the OR's office today who CLAIMS that despite me having been discharged he still has to wait for the official advertising period of my bankruptcy to finish (another 2 weeks) and then it'll take about a further 2 months to pay off my creditors, so not to expect any money through before March.

Obviously this has added to the frustrations, and his claim about still having to wait in case there new creditors has been contrary to everything I've been told by other people - anyone know for certain if his taking me for a ride here? I cannot see why if I've been discharged he feels that there still might be more creditors wanting to claim money from me.

[42man]

Ahh...in that case you don't actually get discharged for at the very least 12 months Laiq...I originally thought that 12 months was the minimum amount of time you had to be bankrupt (when I went to see the OR they told me the date that I would be discharged (I got my bankrutpcy annulled due to a dodgy DCA with assistance from the good people here)...He is probably correct. He would be in serious trouble if he was telling porkies, it might be worth ringing up the OR to ask them in more detail....

[Laiq]

problem is he has told "porkies" before - told me he'd had to talk an independant IP out of getting involved in my case, after they were contacted by the CAB because he couldn't tell me anything, and advised me to go to the CAB... (and I know that he had to do nothing of the sort, he got a ticking off because the CAB actually did his work for him!! and I was told by his colleague, who couldn't take my case because her husband works with my husband.)

[42man]

Oh...very interesting...might still be worth a call to the OR...