What Happens If You Miss a Payment Under Debt Review?
Missing a debt-review payment places your restructuring at serious risk. A credit provider may issue a notice of termination on their account and resume legal action or repossession. If you cannot make a payment, contact your debt counsellor immediately — before the payment date — so they can engage with creditors proactively. Ignoring a missed payment can lead to termination of the review.
Key Points
- Missed payments risk termination of the debt review.
- Creditors may resume legal action on terminated accounts.
- Contact your debt counsellor before the payment date.
- Proactive communication preserves your restructuring.
This article provides general consumer information and is not legal advice. Individual circumstances differ. If legal proceedings have already started, obtain advice relevant to your specific circumstances.
Why payments matter so much
Your credit providers agreed to restructured terms and, in many cases, reduced interest rates on the condition that monthly payments are made consistently through the Payment Distribution Agency. Maintaining the payment is the foundation of the arrangement.
When a payment is missed, that foundation is shaken, and creditors may take steps to exit the arrangement on their specific accounts.
What a creditor can do
If a payment is missed, a credit provider may issue a statutory notice of termination on their account. Once terminated, the original contract terms, interest rates and enforcement proceedings may be reinstated for that account, which can include legal action or repossession.
This is why a single missed payment should be treated as an emergency, not an inconvenience.
What to do immediately
If you know you will miss a payment, contact your debt counsellor before the payment date. Proactive communication allows the counsellor to engage with creditors and, where possible, make arrangements to protect your restructuring.
Do not wait for a termination notice to arrive before acting. The earlier you communicate, the more options are available.
Frequently Asked Questions
Worried That Your Debt Has Become Unaffordable?
Debt Guidance can assess your income, essential expenses and debt commitments to determine whether debt review may be appropriate.
Reviewed by Carolina Guevara Harris
Registered Debt Counsellor · NCRDC3152
Last updated: 17 September 2025
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