Hi dave78.

Usually any increase in income would result in an increase in the trust deed payment.

That's not necessarily the case with a bonus payment or overtime however. So long as it's agreed in advance (and as always we suggest getting this in writing) it can be possible for the person entering into a protected trust deed to agree that they can retain a percentage of this money to provide an incentive to generate extra money which will also be of benefit to the creditors.

As your wife appears to have a choice about choosing to work longer and harder to earn extra money, I think it would be worth bringing the matter up with your trust deed company. I'd imagine that she would be unlikely to do this if there would be no benefit for her at all, but the Trustee might consider that providing some incentive for her to do so could be to the benefit of all parties to the trust deed.

Thanks for your advice. I understand why we would need to increase trust deed payments but my main concern is that the increased payments along with extra chilcare costs incurred would mean that there was no point in doing any extra work as there would be no benefit to my wife.

Hi dave78.

That's a good point and one that is of concern to many parents irrespective of whether a protected trust deed exists.

In a trust deed the additional expense of extra childcare could be set against any increased income when the trust deed review is conducted.

In terms of whether there would be any benefit I think you need to talk the matter through with your trust deed company directly. It's one of those issues where they probably have some discretion rather than there being a black and white answer that we can give you.

Hi Dave

This is a question which comes up regularly and my advice is always to get a percentage agreed beforehand ie 25% etc. The creditors get more, you get more, so everyone wins. If the Trustee took it all or a large percentage, then there's no point doing it.

Regards

Mark