Fees

Burgess Bowen will always strive to find you the most appropriate debt solution. Our initial debt advice is always free of charge. However, a fee will be payable depending on the debt solution recommended. Please follow the links below for more information on why we take the fees.

• Debt Management Plan fees
• Individual Voluntary Arrangement Advisory Service fees
• Protected Trust Deed Advisory Service Fees
• Bankruptcy Service Fees

Burgess Bowen Financial Services Ltd Debt Management Plan (DMP) Fees

Our DMP fees are in two parts:

1. An Initial Fee – this is calculated from the financial information provided to us in the application process; this is equivalent to the first two months payment to the plan.This fee is used to help cover our initial costs in reviewing your documentation, for setting up your monthly payment plan and for our professional services in liaising with your creditors as well as setting up your debt management plan. The Initial Fee is retained by us and will not be distributed to your creditors and can be paid in two separate installments.
2. A Management Fee – this is the Fee payable for our Services each month and is to cover the cost of administering payments to creditors, dealing with queries from them and providing our professional services to you. It is an amount equal to 17.625% of your Monthly Payment (apart from your first two Monthly Payments which is the Initial Fee) this will be a minimum of £35 and no more than £100. This fee is used to cover the ongoing work involved in managing your DMP and includes distributing funds to creditors on your behalf, dealing with phone calls and letters to and from your creditors, compiling detailed payment statements which we will send to you on a regular basis and any help or advice you require whilst the DMP is in progress. A detailed estimate of the fees payable will be provided to you prior to starting a Debt Management Plan. A copy of our Debt Management Terms & Conditions can be viewed here.

IVA Advisory Service and Individual Voluntary Arrangements (IVA) Fees

IVA Service Fee (Burgess Bowen Financial Services Ltd)

For Burgess Bowen Financial Services Ltd to provide the IVA Advisory Service there will be an IVA Advisory Service fee. This is calculated using the financial information provided to us in the application process and is broadly equivalent to 2 months of your calculated disposable income.

This payment will be used to help cover our costs in assessing your financial position, reviewing your documentation, our professional services and for passing your case to the Insolvency Practitioner. The IVA Advisory Service Fee is retained by us and will not be allocated towards your IVA or paid to your Creditors and can be paid in two separate installments, your debts will go into arrears, or further into arrears at this stage. A copy of our IVA Advisory Service Terms and Conditions can be viewed here.

IVA Fees (Insolvency Practitioner)

Once your case is passed across to the licensed Insolvency Practitioner, all the costs associated with your IVA (as relevant) are included in the payments you make towards it.

There are two kinds of fees involved in an IVA – the Nominee fee and the Supervisor fee. Please see below for an illustration of the fees and payments on an example client’s IVA.

You will be informed separately in the IVA proposal from the Insolvency Practitioner of the proposed fees, tailored to your personal circumstances before you commit to an IVA. IVA fees are variable dependent upon the monthly contribution to the arrangement and the agreement that is reached with your creditors. Fees are included as part of your monthly contributions.

Example based on a typical (average) customer, with approx. £31,000 of unsecured debts who completes an IVA lasting 5-years and has no equity in a property.

A breakdown of typical payments and fees on an IVA:

Total paid by individual (including fees mentioned below)	£18,000
Total unsecured debt effectively written off on completion	£17,765 (57%)
Typical Monthly payments (x60 months)	£300
Nominee’s fee (already included in the monthly payments)	£1,250
Supervisor’s fee (already included in the monthly payments)	£2,475
Supervisor’s expenses (already included in the monthly payments)	£290

Nominee’s fee

This is a fixed fee and is decided by your creditors. It will cover the work that goes into setting up your IVA – a process which includes:

• Drawing up your IVA proposal. This is the document which must be approved by enough of your creditors for your IVA to start. It defines the proposed terms of the IVA including how much you would pay and what each creditor would receive, etc.
• Setting up the creditors meeting. At this meeting your creditors will decide whether to formally approve your IVA proposal, reject it, or request changes to it.
• Assessing any suggested changes. If any creditors have requested changes to your IVA proposal, your Insolvency Practitioner will advise you on whether you should accept those changes – or consider a different approach to your debt problems.

Depending on the agreed terms of your IVA proposal, your first monthly payment will go towards paying the nominee’s fee before your creditors receive any money. After the nominee’s fee has been paid, a percentage of each monthly payment will be taken as supervisor’s fees, as detailed in your IVA proposal.

Supervisor’s fees

The supervisor’s fees will cover the ongoing supervision and maintenance of your IVA up until completion of the IVA. The fees will depend on the proposal and therefore will vary depending on individual circumstances.

• Your Account Manager will deal with any day-to-day issues that arise, ensuring your IVA runs smoothly.
• Your Insolvency Practitioner will carry out regular reviews of your IVA and address with you any other serious issues that come up – if, for instance, your financial situation worsens, and you need your Insolvency Practitioner to arrange an IVA variation to the terms of your IVA.

Supervisor’s expenses

The supervisor’s expenses will cover the necessary legal and administrative costs which are incurred by the Insolvency Practitioner in implementing the arrangement in line with the terms of the IVA. For example, a bonding fee and postage costs.

PTD Service and Protected Trust Deed (PTD) Fees

PTD Service Fee (Burgess Bowen Financial Services Ltd)

For Burgess Bowen Financial Services Ltd to provide the PTD Service there will be an Administration Payment. This is calculated using the financial information provided to us in the application process and is broadly equivalent to 2 months of your calculated disposable income.

This payment will be used to help cover our costs in collecting and reviewing your documentation and for our professional services in liaising with your creditors as well as for passing your case to the Insolvency Practitioner. The Administration Payment is retained by us and will not be allocated towards your PTD or paid to your Creditors and can be paid in two separate installments. A copy of our PTD Service Terms of Business can be viewed here.

PTD Fees (Insolvency Practitioner)

Once your case is passed across to the Insolvency Practitioner (the Trustee) you will be informed separately in writing from the Insolvency Practitioner of the proposed fees for the Trust Deed, tailored to your personal circumstances before you have to commit to a Trust Deed. The trustee’s fees and the costs of administering your Trust Deed will be estimated by the trustee and advised to all creditors when they are notified of the Trust Deed. They will be deducted from the agreed contribution and proposed asset realisations prior to any payment being made to creditors.

Fees incurred for Trust Deeds are variable dependent upon the monthly contribution to the arrangement and the agreement that is reached with your creditors. All the costs associated with your PTD (as relevant) are included in the payments you make towards it.

With a Trust Deed through Invocas Ltd you will pay a flat monthly fee throughout the arrangement (usually this will be 3 years). Please see below for an illustration of the fees and payments on an example client’s PTD.

Example based on a typical (average) customer, with approx. £23,000 of unsecured debts who completes a Protected Trust Deed lasting 3 years and has no equity in a property.

PTD Fees (Insolvency Practitioner)

Total repaid by individual (including fees mentioned below)	£7,200
Total unsecured debt effectively written off on completion	£15,800 (69%)
Typical monthly payments (x36 months)	£200
Fee element (already included in the monthly payments)	£110
Trustee disbursements (already included in the monthly payments)	£150
Supervisor’s expenses (already included in the monthly payments)	£290

The fees charged will not affect the actual amount you will be required to pay towards the PTD, but will come out of the monthly payments which you can realistically afford to make towards the PTD and which will be agreed upon with your creditors. The size of those payments will depend on the value of your assets and the size of your disposable income.

The fee the Insolvency Practitioner will take will cover both the work involved in setting up the Trust Deed and the ongoing supervision and maintenance of the agreement: This fee will be calculated at the start of the agreement, when the terms of the Trust Deed are determined. Your IP will draw up your Trust Deed proposal (which tells creditors what they can expect from the Trust Deed) and present it to your creditors.

If the trust deed fails, you remain liable for your debts and your creditors will be able to pursue you for repayment.

Bankruptcy Service Fee

Fees apply for the Bankruptcy Support Service. This service is provided by one of our panel of Independent Bankruptcy specialist companies. All of our partners are licensed by the office of fair trading. The fees payable for this service will be mutually agreed upon between the company whom we refer your case to be processed & you, their client. Burgess Bowen Financial Services Ltd will receive a fee for this referral which may vary dependent on the size & complexity of each case.