David Sklar & Associates Inc.

Consumer Proposal & Bankruptcy Trustees
Serving the Greater Toronto Area

'Simone' a Case History: Consumer Proposal in Mississauga - Single Mother

‘Simone’ (not her real name), was a factory worker and a single mother in her 30s, living in Mississauga. After the birth of her first child, she found it difficult to take care of her baby’s basic needs on her monthly income of $2,100.

Unable to get child-support from the father, and faced with high babysitting costs, she found herself using her credit cards to make up the difference. Within two years, her credit card debt rose to $35,000.

Although Simone was eventually able to stop needing her credit cards for the basics of life, she was left struggling with $700 per month of minimum credit card payments - on top of rent, utilities, groceries, babysitting and other basic costs of living.

Finally, she decided to reach out for help, and called us for a free consultation.

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At her first meeting with David Sklar & Associates Inc. (DSAI), Simone met Veronica Horta, a Certified Insolvency Counsellor and Estate Administrator. As Veronica reviewed Simone’s financial situation with her, and began to explain her options, Simone felt her fear replaced by hope.

Simone had few assets – all of which were exempt from seizure in a bankruptcy. They included a ten-year-old car of little value, company group benefits, life insurance and a pension at work. The only unsecured debt that Simone had was the $35,000 owing on her credit cards.

Some of the options that Veronica explained to Simone included:

1. She could continue to pay $700 per month on her credit cards, and it would take approximately 9 years to pay off her cards in full (as long as she did not charge any more items to her credit cards).


2. She could file for bankruptcy, which would release her from her unsecured credit card debt, cost her $200 per month and take 9 months to complete.


3. She could file for a Consumer Proposal, which if accepted by her creditors, would result in reducing her credit card total debt to $12,000, stop interest charges, require $200 per month payments, and would take 60 months to complete.

Simone decided to file a Consumer Proposal, as she did not ‘feel right’ about a bankruptcy, and wanted to pay back as much as she reasonably could.

DSAI submitted Simone’s Consumer Proposal to her creditors and it was accepted. Simone began making her monthly Proposal payments, and complying with the terms of her Proposal (which included receiving credit counselling).

With the burden of credit card re-payment reduced from $700 to $200 per month – Simone was able to successfully manage her finances – and get on with building a better life for herself and her child.

To protect our clients’ privacy, details of this case have been altered.