What is a Debt Arrangement Scheme (DAS)?

A DAS, or Debt Arrangement Scheme, is a statutory Debt Payment Programme approved by the Scottish Government.  It allows you to freeze the interest and charges on your debts and repay your debts in one affordable monthly repayment, without the threat of any legal action from your creditors.

If you find that you can’t keep up with your bills and household costs, or you are making the minimum payment to your debts and the balance never seems to come down, then a DAS can help you to take back control of your finances. Through a Debt Arrangement Scheme Scotland you can repay your debts in full, in a realistic repayment term, without going down the route of insolvency for example, a Trust Deed or Sequestration (bankruptcy). We will help you create a realistic and sustainable budget and work out how much you can afford to pay into your DAS each month.

The additional benefits of entering into a DAS are that you are able to protect any assets you own for example, your home or car, from legal action by your creditors, and you no longer have to deal with the creditors yourself. Your approved Money Advisor will do this for you. If you already have an earnings arrestment in place, this will be lifted once your DAS has been approved.

Additionally, you don’t pay any fees for a Debt Arrangement Scheme. Your creditors pay for the running of the DAS by accepting a 22% reduction in the balance due to them, which is used to pay for the costs of setting up and administering your DAS. You will only ever pay the balance that is due to your creditors on the date your DAS is approved, as long as you successfully complete the plan.

We recently set up a joint DAS for a couple whose incomes were affected by the impact of COVID-19. Their reduced income meant that they were no longer able to keep up with the payments they had previously been making to their debts, and they contacted us for help as they could see that their debts were rising instead of coming down. Now that their Debt Arrangement Scheme is approved, they can view their balances in one place through the online DAS portal and they are delighted to see that the balances are now moving in the right direction.

Our debt advice is free therefore if you’re struggling with debt, speak to one of our experienced advisors today who can advise you on all of the solutions available to you on 0141 567 4567 or email enquiries@dontfretaboutdebt.net.