What is a Windfall
A 'financial windfall' is the phrase used to describe the receipt of unexpected funds that you would not normally receive through your daily activities.
A windfall will most often arrive in the shape of some good fortune, such as a Lottery win or a prize, but it can also come about as a result of misfortune too. Redundancy payments, an Inheritance or Insurance payouts are also classed as financial windfalls.
IVA Windfall Clause
By definition, a windfall will be unexpected, but that does not mean that if one arrives it will be ignored by your creditors.
For, whilst they recognise it will be a matter of chance as to whether you receive a windfall or not during the term of your IVA, they will ensure there is a clause in your IVA which deals with a windfall if one arrives.
The creditors will expect 100% of the windfall to be introduced into the IVA and given to the Insolvency Practitioner for the benefit of all creditors.
What's more, the introduction of the windfall will not impact on future payments into the IVA fund either and most people will receive a windfall, pass it to their Insolvency Practitioner and still continue paying into their IVA as normal as if nothing had happened.
That is unless the windfall was of such a large amount as to enable the immediate repayment of all the original debts, before the IVA began.
If this is the case the creditors will expect the full original debt to be repaid and any outstanding Insolvency Practitioners costs to be paid too. In addition, creditors will reserve the right to charge statutory interest on the outstanding balances for the full duration of the IVA.
Any remaining funds will then be passed back to the individual and the IVA will be considered to have completed successfully and the Insolvency Practitioner will issue a certificate of completion.
Please Note
There are some exceptions, specifically where the windfall has been received through misfortune. Whilst the windfall clause will expect you to notify your Insolvency Practitioner it may be agreeable, under certain circumstances, for an element of the windfall to remain in your possession.
People that receive a redundancy payment would be an obvious example. It would normally be agreeable for an amount of the redundancy payment to be retained to help off-set the living costs of the individual whilst they were seeking re-employment.
Also people receiving Critical Illness insurance payouts might need to retain some funds to pay for treatments or therapy and this would also be a consideration.
Any mitigating circumstances should be brought to the attention of the Insolvency Practitioner as soon as possible as any retention of funds would be at their sole discretion.
In exceptional circumstances, creditors can be approached via a variation meeting, at which an amendment to the windfall clause can be put before them with the outcome being established by a vote.
For further information regarding specific areas of the windfall clause, you should call your Insolvency Practitioner directly.
