Welcome to the forum Suzybee.

If you come into a large sum of money during a trust deed it will usually be gathered in by the trustee initially.

If it has become affordable for you, you'll be expected to pay (including the payments that you have already made) the total of:

1 - The debts owed at the start of the trust deed.
2 - Interest on those debts.
3 - The fees/costs of your trustee.

Unfortunately this can add up to a fair bit more than you owed at the start of a trust deed.

Any money held by your trustee in excess of the above would be returned to you.

I'm afraid there aren't really any other options. This is the nature of the agreement you entered into when you signed your trust deed.

You may however wish to ask your trustee whether you can hold onto the "statutory" element of the redundancy payment that is due to you. You'd usually receive this to cover your living costs while you look for new work.

I just find it so unfair I need to send them my whole redundancy payment. Why is this? Fair enough paying off the debt but why do they need the full amount. Surely they work out how much I'm to pay and I send that over?

It's so that they have control over ensuring that the full amount due to the trust deed is secured Suzybee. I'm sure that your intentions are 100% honest, but sadly that isn't the case for everyone.

Because of interest being added over time, the amount that will actually be due is also a moving (increasing) target.

As mentioned before, you might be able to make a good argument about holding onto the statutory element of any such redundancy payout.

Hi Suzybee,

Sorry to hear that you are faced with redundancy especially at this time of year.

You don’t have to send them the full amount of the redundancy. You are entitled to keep your statutory redundancy pay as you will need this to financially support yourself whilst not in work. If you receive an enhanced amount from your employer then this amount the Trustee can consider ingathering for the benefit of your creditors.

It’s therefore important to establish what the breakdown of the redundancy pay i.e. statutory and enhanced. Do you have a breakdown of the redundancy that you will receive?

The Trustee should consider whether a contribution can be paid or an increase in contribution depending on the amount that you receive and your financial position. A deal could also be struck for you to pay over a lump sum and then a payment per month like you have suggested to keep your Trust Deed on track.

In scenarios like this communication is key and sometimes it’s a good idea to sit down with your Trustee and discuss this.

Contact your Trustee and ask for them to clarify in writing the position with Redundancy.