Hello Surfer01, thanks for your comments/suggestions. Once you have entered your details you can see all the info you've entered under the Healthcheck section. You should arrive at the subsection 'Budget Review' where you can review in a vertical list all the information you've entered. Each entry contains a link back to the section and the data you put in. After you've uploaded your information to go through the process of communicating with creditors, you can print the summary information by clicking on 'Review Offer Sent'. This will bring up a sheet in a browser that you can print out. Re: the Summary Pie chart you mention. This is shown in the first screen of each section once you've entered information. You should be able to click through the rest of the screens within the section to see the data you've entered by using the Tabs or the Next button, or even click on the segments of the pie itself and it will take you to the relevant section. I acknowledge there is definitely room for improvement, and we'll be revisiting this again over the next few months, but hopefully in the short-term this will give you what you're looking for.

Hi Bookworm, just a quick post to let you know the changes have been made to the software as laid out in my previous post. If you'd like to log onto iMoneyManager again you'll get an automatic update with the changes.

Hi Bookworm, Thanks for your post and your thoughts. It’s really encouraging to hear you thought the software was useful. The handling of overdrafts is something you’ve prompted me to think through again. Including overdrafts actually in the calculations, has been something of a conundrum to be honest. The reason being is many creditors consider an agreed long-term overdraft as an acceptable state of affairs, and therefore are unlikely to accept it being added to the list of debts presented (unless the account is no longer being used and is being chased in the same way as other debts). The other issue is that by adding an overdraft to the list, the iMoneyManager user will immediately wreck their relationship with their bank which in turn will cause them additional problems. Adding a whole load of functions that allow the user to include the overdraft in repayment calculations and time to repay calculations, but exclude them if they wish from the repayment proposal is too complicated to code into the software in the short term, hence the reason it was left to one side. But your comments have caused me to consider how we might adjust the software easily, and still allow the user to get what they need which is a budget and repayment plan, whilst still considering the repayment of their overdraft. So I’ve come up with this. The first thing is to add a row in the ‘Other Expenses’ section entitled ‘Overdraft Payments’. This means the user can add a regular amount into their budget that will chip away at their overdraft. The second is to adjust the instructions on the front of the debts screen. I’ll make it clear re: the potential problems that may arise as a result of the bank’s ‘right of set off’ and put a link to the article on our blog on that topic (see here). If the person’s situation is extreme and/or creditors refuse the budgeted amount for repaying the overdraft on the repayment proposal, then the best course of action would be to set up a parachute account (see the blog link above) and add the overdraft to the list of debts in the debt section, then resubmit the payment proposal to creditors. We should be able to get the adjustments done pretty quickly. I’ll let you know when they have been done and released and you can log into your iMoneyManager to receive an auto-update with the changes. Any more thoughts would be gratefully received.

Hello blind-as-a-bat, Thanks for your questions. The quote you’ve taken is from our terms and conditions. Currently the software does not link to third party companies however we have plans to add links, so this section was included in advance. Who do we intend to link to? One of the most important steps someone can take once they’ve recognised a financial problem is to try and see if they can increase income coming into the household, or reduce expenditure. There is a lot of quality information that is available from a variety of sources and our intention is to build in links to these resources at the appropriate place in the software, rather than attempting to replicate information that is already available. For example, we think that there are a number of excellent electronic Benefits Checkers available. We are looking to link to one of these (non-profit/charitable) services to help people find out whether they are entitled to additional benefits. Moneysavingexpert.com is a great resource for tips and guidance on how to reduce expenditure, we may well provide a link on the software to that site too. None of the links we are considering would cost the user to access, introduce the user to fee charging debt services, or provide us with a commission. Re: Realistic budgets. You are absolutely right. If someone is used to boosting their income by using credit on a regular basis, it can be quite hard to rein in spending and work to a budget that would be considered reasonable to creditors. The prescriptive income and expenditure sheets often sent out by creditors mean it is easier for the user to just fill in the blanks rather than think carefully about all household expenditure some of which can remain hidden in day-to-day living. The structure used within iMoneyManager to gather household expenses data is broken into logical areas of expenditure. Within each area are fields that relate to usual expenses, but also the option of adding extra rows and personalising the budget they create. This is supported with suggestions regarding expenses they may have missed or might not have taken into consideration in the instructions on the blog. To help people think about their expenses in an easier way we have added a function that allows people to think about their expenses a format they are used to. Many people don’t think about all of their expenses on a monthly basis. For example, lots of people go clothes shopping for their children once a quarter, or think about the cost of an annual holiday or Christmas presents as an amount they spend each year. The software allows the person to set the frequency they spend the money (quarterly, annually etc) and the software converts this into a monthly budget amount automatically. Using this approach we hope will encourage people to be realistic and sensible about the budgets they create. What is considered ‘reasonable’ is a matter of perception for many though, and we agree it would be useful for people to get an idea if they are spending more than an averagely acceptable amount when they are entering information. Most creditors and many within the money advice sector use ‘trigger figures’ to flag up overspending. These trigger figures vary from creditor to creditor but most are based on Office of National Statistics Data for Family Expenditure. For many within the credit industry and money advice sector, it is these figures that constitute ‘reasonable’ expenses depending on family size. The Insolvency Service publish this data and a whole load of other really interesting stuff in the Technical Manual on their website, under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. You can download the 2010 updated figures from the Insolvency Service website here. (It's in Microsoft Excel) We’ve already planned the inclusion of prompts in the software based on these figures to flag overspending. It will be a while before these changes come into effect though. It is important to say that in any correspondence with creditors it is vital that people enter a true and accurate representation of their financial circumstances and be prepared to back up the figures they declare with proof if asked (bills, receipts, doctor’s certificates etc). A clear and honest negotiation is conducted on the basis of truth. If the person submitting information is found to be falsifying their circumstances, it shatters the trust that is built up and the negotiations will fail. However, providing the person owing the money is prepared and able to back up their declaration, giving people automatic guidance regarding ‘reasonable’ expenditure in the presentation of their finances will speed up the process of identifying whether a negotiated settlement is possible for both consumer and creditor. It will save a lot of unnecessary backwards and forwards, that for the creditor constitutes money and resource, and for the consumer, stress and anxiety.

Hi Wintry, You’re asking another question that is dealt with on the blog, here. Things are pretty busy for us at the moment and unfortunately I don’t have time to rewrite what has already been written. If you have any questions relating to the way the iMoneyManager software works I’d be happy to answer them. Any further questions relating to our integrity, motives, or method of operation past or present, have been fully answered in my above posts and on the iMoneyManager blog. We’ve made every effort to be as transparent as possible, the information is available for anyone to see, they just need to take the time to read through it.

Hi Wintry, Stop the Worry ceased trading in 2008. (All the answers to your questions can be found amongst our client’s testimonials. It might take a while to get through them though, there are quite a few.) The experience gave us a lot of understanding of the problems people encounter when beginning to suffer financial hardship. iMoneyManager was developed to empower those that feel capable, to address their problems proactively and confidently. Our vision always has been to work out a way we could help people to help themselves free of charge, and now we’ve done it we’re pleased and proud of our work, and grateful to all the people who have believed in us and helped us along the way. iMoneyManager is not the right solution for everyone struggling with debt, however our belief is that the best decisions are made from a position of knowledge. Knowledge: information and skills acquired through experience or education. We do not see the role of iMoneyManager as providing advice: Advice: guidance or recommendations offered with regard to future action. Our objective is to give people a tool that provides the user with knowledge of the state of their financial situation, knowledge regarding their ability to repay their debts, and knowledge regarding the decision of their creditors with regards to their best offer of repayment. We believe that the majority of people are intelligent and self respecting enough to want to attempt to address their problem on their own. It is only if they cannot find the resolution they want, that they turn to someone for advice. (In exactly the same way as when I have an argument with my wife, I don’t immediately resort to ringing a marriage counsellor before attempting to resolve the problem with her directly. ) There are always going to be people that do not agree with what we are trying to achieve. People that believe debt problems are too complicated to handle without involving a debt professional. It is interesting though, that most people who believe this make their living by acting as an intermediary. That’s fine, everyone is entitled to their opinion, but the decision lies with the individual suffering, not those providing the service. Do you think that iMoneyManager should not be available to people? If so, why? We do welcome any constructive contributions or ideas, and this is a great forum to discuss these. If you continue to have ‘concerns’ or questions, then perhaps you would tell us in what capacity you are voicing them. For example are you: Working for a fee charging debt management company? Do you work for a free money advice charity? Or maybe you are someone who has personal experience of being in debt?

Hello PF, Yes, your contact details and any of the information you decide to upload to your creditors is strictly private and not shared or divulged to any other parties. We take data protection extremely seriously, in fact a significant chunk of the money that was spent on building the system went into ensuring everything was totally secure. The only reason we ask for an email address is so we can send you Tips and Guidance on how to get the best from the software and from your negotiations with creditors. You can always unsubscribe to this at anytime. Have you got any other concerns or questions I can answer?

Hi Wintry, Thanks for your questions and concerns. We are always really pleased to get feedback as we constantly are looking at ways we can improve what we have created. When we ran our bankruptcy support service (you can see testimonials on our blog) one of the things that was extremely clear was that the majority of people we helped had procrastinated long beyond the point where they knew they were getting into trouble. The reason they procrastinated was that they felt embarrassed and ashamed and didn’t want to share their problem. Also, many people wanted to try and resolve the problem on their own before talking to a stranger and “admitting defeat”, but didn’t know how to go about it. Unfortunately it is this procrastination that causes much of the longer term debt problems which invariably end up being handled by the free and fee charging money advice sector, many of which end up in insolvency. The purpose of iMoneyManager is to provide people with a tool they can use to understand their problem and communicate their situation confidently to their creditors before things get out of hand. The fact that this can now be done privately and securely in the privacy of their own home encourages them (we hope!) to take action more quickly and allows them to enter into early and sensible communication with their creditors, thus avoiding CCJ’s etc etc. Providing that the repayment plan presented by the iMoneyManager user is agreed by creditors, and the person is aware of, and accepts the fact that: a) The process will negatively impact their credit score (in the same way that defaulting does) b) Payments need to be made to all creditors for the period of time proposed and agreed c) They will need to stick to the budget they have created for the period of time shown ...this process is the best and least disruptive way to deal with their debts. It is only if they feel that the repayment period is too long for them to handle (they make the decision on this based on the ‘Time to Repay’ figure presented by the software), or if parties are unable to reach and maintain an agreement, that a third party should be needed. iMoneyManager software empowers people to undertake the industry accepted first steps of, assessing their situation and communicating with creditors on their own. But, and this was important to us when we designed the software, if they are unable to reach an agreement, then they already have the basic budget assessments and calculations they and a money advisor will need to quickly consider and decide which option is most appropriate. Using this approach, our hope is that people will be able to address their financial situation sooner, creditors will be more willing to accept affordable pro-rata payment plans due to the ability and willingness of their customer to talk their language, less people get passed on to aggressive collections agencies, less people will receive CCJ’s or resort to insolvency, and the money advice sector can concentrate resources on helping those that cannot reach an acceptable arrangement with their creditors directly or who are not confident or capable of using iMoneyManager. There are already many organisations that provide very valuable advice. Our focus has been to create a practical tool that would empower people to take action on their own, assessing and communicating their situation to their creditors simply and electronically. By providing both parties with visibility into the details of a debt problem, it encourages the user to be realistic about their problem, and the creditor to come to an early and hopefully positive decision regarding their offer. I agree it is logical to consider liaising/partnering with an organisation able to provide quality debt advice to those who cannot reach agreement with their creditors. We have been approached by a number of Fee Charging companies wanting to perform that role, however, we are not comfortable recommending fee charging companies to our users. We have tried to enter into a dialogue with non-profit money advice services, and though we have had many high level meetings with senior people in the this sector, we have not yet been successful in encouraging them to work with us. As more people use iMoneyManager, we are hoping this will change. I hope this answers your question. Have you downloaded and tried out the software yet?