PART 10Insolvency

Position of creditors

I1125Ability for creditors to opt not to receive certain notices: individual insolvency

1

The Insolvency Act 1986 is amended as follows.

2

For the italic heading before section 379B substitute— “ Giving of notices etc by office-holders ”.

3

After section 379B insert—

379CCreditors' ability to opt out of receiving certain notices

1

Any provision of the rules which requires an office-holder to give a notice to creditors of an individual does not apply, in circumstances prescribed by the rules, in relation to opted-out creditors.

2

Subsection (1)—

a

does not apply in relation to a notice of a distribution or proposed distribution to creditors;

b

is subject to any order of the court requiring a notice to be given to all creditors (or all creditors of a particular category).

3

Except as provided by the rules, a creditor may participate and vote in a creditors' decision procedure or a deemed consent procedure even though, by virtue of being an opted-out creditor, the creditor does not receive notice of it.

4

In this section—

  • give” includes deliver, furnish or send;

  • notice” includes any document or information in any other form;

  • office-holder”, in relation to an individual, means—

    1. a

      where a bankruptcy order is made against the individual, the official receiver or the trustee in bankruptcy;

    2. b

      where an interim receiver of the individual's property is appointed, the interim receiver;

    3. c

      the supervisor of a voluntary arrangement approved under Part 8 in relation to the individual.

4

After section 383 insert—

383A“Opted-out creditor”

1

For the purposes of this Group of Parts “opted-out creditor” in relation to an office-holder for an individual means a person who—

a

is a creditor of the individual, and

b

in accordance with the rules has elected (or is deemed to have elected) to be (and not to cease to be) an opted-out creditor in relation to the office-holder.

2

In this section, “office-holder”, in relation to an individual, means—

a

where a bankruptcy order is made against the individual, the official receiver or the trustee in bankruptcy;

b

where an interim receiver of the individual's property is appointed, the interim receiver;

c

the supervisor of a voluntary arrangement approved under Part 8 in relation to the individual.

5

In Schedule 9 (provisions capable of inclusion in individual insolvency rules), after paragraph 7 insert—

7A

Provision for enabling a creditor of an individual to elect to be, or to cease to be, an opted-out creditor in relation to an office-holder for the individual (within the meaning of section 383A), including, in particular, provision—

a

for requiring an office-holder to provide information to creditors about how they may elect to be, or cease to be, opted-out creditors;

b

for deeming an election to be, or cease to be, an opted-out creditor in relation to a particular office-holder for an individual to be such an election also in relation to any other office-holder for the individual.