The purpose of setting minimum criteria

The purpose of setting minimum criteria is the following:

a) To prevent unrealistic repayment proposals to Credit Providers based on an unrealistic low amount.

b) To force consumers to reduce their financial lifestyle to release money to repay debt.

c) To improve the chances of negotiating an acceptable repayment plan with Credit Providers, based on the Rules for Repayments where Credit Providers have agreed to concessions to assist the over indebted consumer.

d) The aim of this guideline is to assist Debt Counsellors move away unrealistically low repayments of debt. Debt Counsellors should consult these guidelines after the consumers budget has been negotiated to make sure that the amount used for debt repayments is above the minimum guidelines. Where repayments are below the guidelines Debt Counsellors should review the consumer’s budget again with the aim to adjust the consumer’s budget to make sure that repayments are within the guidelines. In many cases consumers should be able to repay amounts in excess of these guidelines.