Is a Debt Payment Programme (DPP) suitable for me?
A DPP will normally be suitable for you if you have money left over at the end of each month (after you’ve paid your household costs, like food shopping, accommodation and utility bills) and you can clear your debts in a reasonable amount of time.
Our specially trained advisors will work with you to put a realistic budget together. Any money left over from this will be shared between your debts.
How does a DPP work?
You make an affordable payment into your DPP. This payment is then shared out on a fair basis between the different creditors that you owe money to.
Your DPP is set up and managed by an ‘approved money advisor’, and your payments are taken and passed onto your creditors by a ‘payments distributor’.
StepChange Debt Charity is an approved money advisor and a payments distributor. This means if you set up your DPP with us, we’ll do all of this for you.
How long does a DPP last?
You’ll only be able to set up a DPP under the DAS scheme if you can repay what you owe in a reasonable amount of time. If you can’t repay your debt in a reasonable amount of time you may be more suited to a form of insolvency like sequestration.
Your DPP ends when you’ve made all the payments you agreed to make and the debts have been cleared, or if you clear the debts with a lump sum payment. Read our guide to completing your DPP to find out what to do next.
What if my situation changes on a DPP?
If your situation changes while you’re on a DPP you can apply to vary the amount you’re paying. Your DPP money advisor will consider the impact of this change and decide whether to approve it.
Your situation might change dramatically during your DPP, for example if you lose your job or go on maternity leave. If this means your income is reduced by more than 50% you can apply for a payment break while you get your situation back on track.
What fees are charged for a DPP?
We’ll set up your DPP completely free of charge. Some commercial debt management companies charge for this.
Once your DPP is approved, 10% of your payment is taken as fees to cover the running costs. The percentage is set in law, and there are no other hidden charges.
So if you're paying a creditor £100 your debt will be reduced by £100, however the creditor will actually receive £90 and the other £10 will cover the fees. 2% is paid to the Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB) and 8% is kept by your payments distributor.
If you set up your DPP with us and we enter your details on the DASH Portal (the system the AiB uses to process and monitor DPPs) after 1 July 2015, we’ll be your payments distributor, so we’ll keep the 8%.
If your DPP details were entered on the DASH Portal before 1 July 2015, another company will be your payments distributor and they’ll keep the 8%.