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Bankruptcy Petition

If you want to declare yourself bankrupt you have to start the process by filing a Bankruptcy Petition. If it is yourself who files for bankruptcy yourself, the bankruptcy petition is called the Debtor's Petition.

If you want to file for bankruptcy you should contact your local court. They will give you the details of your nearest county court that deals with bankruptcy hearings. You can find the contact details for your local court by visiting http://www.courtservice.gov.uk.

If you are being Made to go bankrupt by your creditors then they will file the Bankruptcy Petition. This is called a Creditor's Petition and it can only be made by people to whom you owe more than £750.

When you file the petition for bankruptcy you will also have to pay £485 into court. This amount covers the Court Fee and includes the Official Receiver's deposit. If a Bankruptcy Order is not made by your local court then the deposit will be made refundable, the Court Issue Fee is not.

Please be aware that filing a bankruptcy petition does not prevent your creditors from contacting or trying to chase debts from you.

The Hearing of the Bankruptcy Petition

Once you have filed your bankruptcy petition, a court date will be set for the initial hearing.. At this hearing one of the following things will happen:

1. The bankruptcy proceedings will be delayed because more information is needed for the court to be able to decide whether to issue a Bankruptcy Order.
2. The Bankruptcy Petition that has been filed will be dismissed.
3. An Insolvency Practitioner will be appointed to set up an Individual Voluntary Arrangement instead.
4. A Bankruptcy Order will be made. You will be declared bankrupt the moment that this order has been made.

Bankruptcy Order

Once a Bankruptcy Order has been made then an Official Receiver is given to look after your dealings. An Official receiver is a civil servant and an officer of the Court. If you want to declare yourself bankrupt then you will be asked to attend an initial meeting with the Official Receiver,this may be done over the phone in certain circumstances. During This meeting or phone conversation,you will discuss why you are filing for bankruptcy and the Official Receiver will assess your assets and liabilities. A trustee will then be appointed unless you do not have any assets.

The trustee is responsible for selling any property that you have and splitting the proceeds from the sale amongst your creditors. After this, any debt that you owed your creditors will be legally struck out and they will be forbidden from trying to collect any more money from you.

You will Usually be automatically discharged from bankruptcy one year from the date of the Bankruptcy Order.