Trust Deed Forum | Scotland Forum - Recent Posts

RE: Zero DCO advice after 12 months

Nick Smith — Wed, 15 Jul 2026 12:22:10 +0000

Hi Indi85,

This is an understandably common area for confusion. Your personal discharge does not bring the sequestration or the DCO to an end; it only releases certain restrictions that are placed on you at the outset.

The DCO remains in effect for the remainder of the 48 month term and you will be required to continue completing six monthly reviews of your income and expenditure. If you have a surplus income during this time, the DCO will be varied and you will need to make payment of the surplus to the Trustee.

RE: wanting to move from one rented house to another rented house

sarahstrachan — Mon, 13 Jul 2026 12:20:23 +0000

As Head of Property Management, I would suggest ensuring the new arrangement is treated like any other tenancy, even though it is with a family member. Make sure there is a clear written tenancy agreement, agreed rent terms, and all required deposit procedures are followed.

Regarding whether this could affect your trust deed, I would recommend speaking directly with your trust deed supervisor before making any changes or accepting financial help for the deposit, as they will be best placed to confirm any implications based on your circumstances.

RE: Early Stages

RyanK92 — Sun, 05 Jul 2026 20:32:42 +0000

I just wanted to add in my own experience of being in a Trust Deed.

I'm due to end my Trust Deed in January 2027 after having it granted in 2023. I can confidently disagree with NewGuy's comments around living like a monk - I have been the complete opposite to that.

At my annual reviews, I put down my bills alongside living costs for groceries, entertainment, clothing, fuel etc which leaves me with a comfortable amount each month. When I was in my DAS originally, I was given extremely limiting figures for entertainment for example, the DAS would only allow me £20 per month!! My Trust Deed allows me around £150 which allows me to have a social life alongside my working life.... the DAS would have had me stuck in the house 24/7!

The annual reviews have been so simple and straightforward - literally just sending over 3 months bank statements, 3 months payslips and an updated income/expenditure form. My payments have remained the same throughout as bills have increased in line with my salary increasing.

I was very apprehensive about entering one at the beginning but it's been the best thing I've done and I'm so looking forward to January when I will finally be debt free and able to start a fresh :)

Letters of arrears

Koopachi — Sun, 05 Jul 2026 16:10:01 +0000

I have just logged into my online portal and noted 2 letters of warning for arrears. I was of the belief I was up to date as I always check my bank. For this instance- the payment was pending and then I forgot about it. The payment this month did not come off so I went looking into why.

Religiously payment has been pushed back due to lack of funds even tho there is money in my account and it usually comes off on the computers second attempt.

It has been this way for well over a year.

when I logged into today I read these letters saying payment wasn’t made and to get In touch. It also states they gave me options to repay which they didn’t as I didn’t know about it. I have not received a phone call, an email or had any letters through the mail box as I have changed address. I contacted them about change of address and they informed to get in touch once I received a letter with my name and new address on it which I have not yet had and it has been one month or so since the move.

in the second letter the arrears quoted an amount of £0.00

I have missed payment after checking but it was Unkown to me, I have payed what is due and what was missed,

what I want to know is why was these letters created, why didn’t I receive any other contact via telephone or email for something they appear to be taking so seriously. Is the amount quoted a mistake? Where do I stand with such errors,

please help,

Zero DCO advice after 12 months

Indi85 — Thu, 02 Jul 2026 08:34:04 +0000

Hi, my DCO was set at zero at the start of my sequestration because my outgoings are too high. My 12 month is coming up in August so I will be discharged. My question is if I suddenly have a spare £100 a month 18 month after the initial bankruptcy is finished can a DCO be set up still after this period? There isn’t any reason I will suddenly have this surplus income at the moment but I feel like I would like to know how it works. I’ve found the whole process quite stressful. Many thanks

Feel tricked and hopeless. Trust Deed has ruined my life

hawthornflk — Wed, 01 Jul 2026 14:38:38 +0000

I was put in a trust deed in 2023 for a debt of 8,700 with income of 35,400 and no assets. I have since increased my income to 60,000 as I entered it quite young.

I didn't know how much of it would be fees. I knew there would be some, but did not think it would be that much. I called whoever I could because I was panicked and felt like I was drowning.

It provided a bit of relief at the start, but I didn't know how much it would affect my life. I read it would "negatively impact credit" but I didn't know just how much. It doesn't feel like I have "bad credit" it feels like I am not even allowed any credit, even a phone plan.

We have a notice to quit from our landlord because he wants to move a family member in, though conveniently after we said about an underlying issue that needs repairing. We have tried to look for properties and get rejected constantly. We then went with private landlords to explain the situation, and they would smile and node and say they understand. We would offer to use a guarantor company like RentGuarantor, but still hear nothing just silent rejections.

We can't go to social housing because I earn too much, I can't go to mid market because I earn too much. I can't make a final settlement because of their stupid fees making a debt of 8.700 balloon to almost 15k! If it were England I could make a reasonable final offer but that isn't a thing here anymore.

We are at risk of homelessness, my job is remote and cant work in a hotel or b&b, we have cats... I'll probably lose my job and have to give away our cats.

All because of being pushed into this trust deed with no assets. If anything is reading this and considering it please know it will be impossible to find a house to rent. Our car also broke down and sure we could "extend the payments" for another year so I could save up for a car but that's ridiculous when it's just filling the pockets of Bankruptcy accountants. I can't get leasing, pcp, hp, any type of car finance so I cannot drive my disabled refugee wife to any appointments.

The insolvency company are basically uncontactable, it takes months to reply if they even do, from south asian support lines via email. It is essentially impossible to have meaningful communication with them

RE: Job Application

Nick Smith — Thu, 25 Jun 2026 11:17:45 +0000

Hi Ted, it's impossible to say if or how much it would impact your employment chances as only the employer could confirm that. Two key points:

1. Check the question asks "have you ever had...", rather than "within the past x years" or "are you currently".

2. Dishonesty, or perceived dishonesty, could have a significant impact on employment decisions, so full disclosure is the best course of action (I appreciate you have confirmed you are going to disclose, having identified the inadvertent error). While the record of your Trust Deed has left your credit file and the Register of Insolvencies, they may still be able to find evidence of it, for example via the Register of Deeds.

Job Application

Ted34 — Fri, 19 Jun 2026 20:20:55 +0000

I have just applied for a prison officer role. During the process they asked if I have had an IVA. I said no. Now I realise a trust deed is the Scottish equivalent. I was released* from a trust deed in 2012. I will say to them, but I was wondering will this affect my application. My current credit score is excellent- with no financial issues at all since.

RE: Early Stages

Nick Smith — Tue, 16 Jun 2026 10:28:29 +0000

One further point to note, from Marie's comments:

Where a Trust Deed is granted, there is a legal obligation to default accounts as at the date of granting. This starts the six year countdown for those accounts to leave your credit file, meaning the Trust Deed and the old accounts should all leave around the same time.

With DAS, there is no requirement to default the account. Some creditors may do so, however others may list them as in a special arrangement. This may leave a trail on your credit file for a period of up to six years after the end of the DAS (though this will become less significant as time passes).

RE: Early Stages

Nick Smith — Tue, 16 Jun 2026 10:23:46 +0000

@twotone90 Hi Twotone90, reviews are conducted at 12 monthly intervals and they tend not to be particularly intrusive. The reviews can result in your payment going down (for example if you're bills have increased by more than your income), or up (if your disposable income has increased). The allowances within the Common Financial Tool are fairly generous, so I do not agree with NewGuy's comment that you would need to "live like a monk".

The easiest way to think of this: A Trust Deed is like a contract between you and your creditors, where you agree to pay what you can afford to pay each month for a period of four years and, if you come into assets you will release the value of these for creditors.

Creditors agree to surrender their right to recover the debt from you and to apply interest, and will meet the costs of the process (unless you have such a positive change in circumstances that you can repay in full). They will write off as much debt as is required at the end, provided you have complied with your obligations.

There are benefits and there are disadvantages to all solutions, the important thing is that you are confident with the advice that you have received and feel empowered to make an informed decision. Whichever solution you feel meets your needs most closely, opt for that one.

If you do not feel like your advisor has provided you with sufficient information to make a fully informed, confident decision, I would recommend seeking further advice from an alternative provider, who may take more time and attention when providing it.