Bankruptcy as an option and change has come up as a necessity as many UK consumers struggle under the strain of increasing unsecured debt. More people are beginning to realize that, while bankruptcy may offer immediate financial relief and better known as being a 'do it yourself' debt solution, this is only available to those capable of meeting the full financial costs involved, it is not always the most sensible of choices particularly when a company's main 'business' was lending money as a matter of routine.

As a more enlightened consumer, you would realize that there is always a catch to any decision and that the result can not always be what might best be considered a sensible decision. Today, for instance, the changes in the bankruptcy law have been tightened up significantly and in some areas the existing code is now reduced to 'issue, meaning that debtors are subject to much more scrutiny from the courts. Yet, the debtors will also have a long period within which to pay off their debts, and of course, the Do it yourself bankruptcy code still exists for those able to make payments.

In other areas of the law, it’s still possible to declare yourself bankrupt if ‘safe in court’ (which has since perhaps been streamlined by improvements in the availability of electronic records), or to pay off your debts in terms of part or full. Reaffirmation agreements and debt consolidation loans (especially now that secured loans are often matches to unsecured consolidation loans) are prime examples of the former, a route for those unable to discharge their unsecured debt. The latter involves shifting debt over in a more pleasant way to a company that will still want to recover their costs - through even this solution only remains until the debtor has paid at least a fraction of their unsecured debt, allowing them to look ahead at the creation of a more manageable personal repayment plan.

It is sometimes easier to get to the stage where bankruptcy makes sense. States such as Texas allow Way saying that he wished it was still possible for so many debtors to get rid of their unsecured loans completely. He suspects that they would be better off attempting to do it using the preclude clause of banking laws, which only criminalizes those who try and hide from creditors.

In the UK, there are two well-known confirming agencies for bankruptcy and they offer free initial consultations. That anyone’s bankruptcy case is being looked into by these agencies does not mean that it is possible to have your bankruptcy file thrown out, though some applicants do find themselves on a drawer paper board for up to 15 days before the specialist has had time to decide, after which time the courts will make a decision.

This ‘strawman’ or whichever your preferred phrase is, is believed to stem from some concern that the courts may not be acting in good faith and favor of creditors. Several Britons have put forward that it is the courts that are ruling on their behalf, not them. In many ways, their reasoning is convincing and deeply flawed in its logic. The instinctive, and rightly so, would be to review every last judgment for the past account since a person can be relieved of a mortgage debt and not still be legally pursued for a second mortgage, but perhaps it is also understandable that these people are so worried about their position, and wish to escape questions, etc. on their credit report that they would not wish to admit their fear to the banks who, potentially, are their creditors, and who may want to extend credit and hire them on different terms over a longer-term than what they would have got if they went through the whole procedure for them.

When, in this awful situation, there is no practical alternative but to go to the bank to get a loan to repay the mortgage, the issue of going bankrupt could not be any clearer.

Subsequently declaring bankruptcy can be seen at last as a reasonable requirement for many Britons who desperately want to stay among the living rather than be a floating form of existence among the lost. Less credit than they can ever afford, and to some extent, ever afford to lose, is a choice unless one takes the step and takes some real risks with a home that they may well be unable to subsist on if repayments are 30% of their wages. As always though, with the risk comes to the rewards. If some light is shed on the whole matter of bankruptcy, it is possible to do it without the courts being involved too.