Protected Trust Deeds (Miscellaneous Amendment) (Scotland) Regulations 2024: child rights and wellbeing impact assessment

Glossary of terms and definitions

Accountant in Bankruptcy

A Scottish Government agency and office-holder that helps deliver options for those seeking debt management and debt relief in Scotland.

Creditor

Any person, business or organisation which is owed money by another.

Date of protection

The date that a trust deed becomes protected.

Debtor

Any person who owes money to another.

Debtor discharge

The date that the debtor is formally discharged from their debts under the Protected Trust Deed.

Diligence

Various forms of legal process taken by creditors to enforce repayment of overdue debts.

Dividend

The distribution of funds to creditors in a Protected Trust Deed.

Insolvency practitioner

A person licensed and authorised to act as a trustee in a trust deed.

Moratorium

A period of protection for an individual seeking a solution to problem debt during which creditors cannot take action to enforce a debt. This protection is available to individuals as well as certain legal entities. It cannot be granted more than once in any 12 month period.

Protected Trust Deed (PTD)

A voluntary formal debt solution entered by a debtor which transfers their estate to a trustee to be realised for the benefit of their creditors. A trust deed may be protected as long as a majority in number or a third in value of creditors do not object to its terms. Once protected, the terms of the trust deed become binding on all the creditors and prevent them from pursuing their debt or to make the debtor bankrupt.

PTD Protocol

A document voluntarily entered into by Insolvency Practitioners which promotes good practice and transparency in the Protected Trust Deed process.

Recovery action

Action a creditor can take to get back the money they are owed.

Repayment period

The period that a debtor will pay monthly contributions to their trust deed.

Statutory debt solutions

The debt relief and debt management solutions in Scotland which are bankruptcy, Protected Trust Deeds, the Debt Arrangement Scheme and the Moratorium on Diligence.

Supervision fee

A fee that is paid by the trustee in a trust deed to the Accountant in Bankruptcy.

Trustee

A person who administers a trust deed. This must be an Insolvency Practitioner.

Trustee Discharge

The date the trustee is discharged after finalising the administration of the trust deed.

Unsustainable debt

Debt that you cannot repay.

Wage arrestment

An order from the court that tells an employer to deduct earnings from their employee’s wage to pay their creditors.