Insolvency Service of Ireland issues notice re COVID-19 and debtors experiencing payment difficulties

In the prevailing circumstances regarding COVID-19, the ISI is mindful of the practical difficulties being experienced by many. If you are currently availing of one of the statutory debt solutions below and are experiencing difficulties making agreed payments, please note the following:

• the ISI understands that those who are making repayments in relation to a Debt Relief Notice(DRN) may currently be experiencing difficulties in making those payments. Those who find themselves in this situation should contact the Case Management Division of the Insolvency Service of Ireland by email at info@isi.gov.ie or phone at 0761064200, to discuss the matter on a case-by-case basis
• if you are experiencing difficulty with meeting agreed repayments in respect of a court approved Debt Settlement Arrangement (DSA) or Personal Insolvency Arrangement (PIA), please contact your Personal Insolvency Practitioner (PIP) to discuss
• where persons are currently experiencing difficulties in the payment of their bankruptcy order payments, they should contact the Bankruptcy Payment Order section of the Insolvency Service of Ireland by email at bankruptcy-income@isi.gov.ie or phone at 0761064232, to discuss the matter on a case-by-case basis

The ISI encourages anyone with serious debt issues to consult a Personal Insolvency Practitioner or an Approved Intermediary, details of which are available on backontrack.ie or by calling 076 106 4200. People can also freetext GETHELP to 50015 for a call back from the ISI.

Notes

• the Insolvency Service of Ireland (ISI) is an independent government body set up to help tackle personal debt problems.
• a Debt Relief Notice enables an eligible insolvent debtor with limited disposable income and assets to write off his or her qualifying debts of up to €35,000 in circumstances where he/she is insolvent and it is unlikely that his/her financial situation will improve in the next 3 years.
• a Debt Settlement Arrangement (DSA) is an insolvency solution for people who have unsecured debts - credit cards, loans, overdrafts etc. A Debt Settlement Arrangement is a formal agreement with creditors that allows for some write off of debt.
• a Personal Insolvency Arrangement (PIA) is a formal agreement with all your creditors that will write off some of your unsecured debt and restructure any remaining secured debt.
• bankruptcy is a formal, high court process for people in debt over €20,000. Before you consider applying for bankruptcy you must first have explored the alternative solutions to bankruptcy which are contained in the Personal Insolvency Act 2012. If these alternative solutions are not suitable then bankruptcy could be the right solution for you.

For more information about the Insolvency Service of Ireland and the services they offer, visit backontrack.ie