What happens if you miss out a debt from your DRO application
It's important to include all of your debts in a DRO application. But what happens if you miss one, either by mistake or on purpose? Let us talk you through it.
Missing debt from your application
You must make sure all eligible debts are included in your application. If any debts are missed out, they won’t be included in your DRO. This could mean:
- you’ll have to keep paying the debt making it harder for you to stick to your budget
- your creditors will be able to take action to make you pay the debt
- your DRO could be stopped, you could have restrictions made against you and you may be prosecuted (if the official receiver believes you left out the debt deliberately)
What if you forgot about a debt?
If you realise you’ve missed a debt from your DRO application by mistake, let us know as soon as possible. If your application hasn’t been assessed, we can ask the Insolvency Service to update the details. Whether they agree to or not is completely up to them.
If your DRO has already been approved, you must tell the official receiver as soon as possible.
It’s unlikely they’ll be prepared to add the debt to your DRO after it’s been approved but failing to notify the official receiver is an offence that could lead to:
- your DRO being stopped
- a debt relief restrictions order being made against you
- a fine or imprisonment
If the official receiver isn’t prepared to add the debt to your DRO, you’ll have to make an arrangement to keep paying it off and your creditors will be able to take action if you don’t.
I’m still receiving contact from my creditors?
- Contact from your lenders should stop when the DRO is approved.
- Lenders are unable to take any further action against you whilst a DRO is in place, without permission from the court.
- However, if they do contact you, you just need to provide them with a copy of the DRO approval. You will receive this via email from the Insolvency Service.
- Please note, we do not receive a copy of the approval so are unable to do this for you.
Need help?
If you realise there’s a mistake in your DRO application or you’re worried about anything, get in touch with us at [email protected] and we’ll be happy to help.