How do I file a claim?

What you need to know

If you are owed money by a person who has become bankrupt, entered a No Asset Procedure (NAP) or Summary Instalment Order (SIO), or by a company that has gone into liquidation, you are not permitted to pursue this person or company directly for payment.

You are entitled to file a claim for what you are owed and share in any distribution that may be paid out of the insolvent estate.  In the case of a NAP, there is no prospect of a return to creditors so you will not be required to file a claim.

You can choose to file your claim electronically via the Insolvency and Trustee Service website or by completing and returning a physical claim form.

Filing an electronic claim

From the homepage select Online Services which will take you through to a welcome page.  You need to be a registered user of the system in order to file a claim electronically.  If you have previously registered, or have received notification from the Insolvency and Trustee Service with registration details because you are already entered into the system as a creditor, then you should choose to Logon at this point.  If you do not have any registration details already, then select Get User ID and follow the steps to register.  You will need an email address to proceed but it is free to register.

Once you are logged on, select Search Insolvency Register if you wish to claim against a bankruptcy or liquidation estate.  Select Search SIO Register if you wish to claim against a SIO.

Select Personal or Company Insolvency Type and then enter the name details or Insolvency Number of the debtor.  When the search results are displayed, click on the underlined name and then check that the details are correct for the debtor you wish to claim against.  Then select Register Claim.

As you are already logged in, the system will automatically pull across your name and address details.  Fill in the rest of the document electronically, and use the Supply Evidence to upload documents in support of your claim.  Alternatively, you can fax or post the documents to the address shown.  Fields with a red asterisk (*) are mandatory.

Once you have completed the screen and your data has been validated by the system, you can use the List Claims button any time you are logged in to view or amend details of your claim.

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Filing a physical claim

If you would prefer to file a physical claim then you can download the claim form from the Forms section of our site.  You will need to complete and submit this together with evidence of your claim to the Official Assignee.  You should post your claim to:

Insolvency and Trustee Service
Private Bag 4714
Christchurch 8140

Should you have trouble downloading the claim form, then you can call the Insolvency and Trustee Service Contact Centre on 0508 INSOLV (467 658) and a form will be sent out to you.

Note

Summary Instalment Order creditors need to file their claim with the Supervisor.  The Supervisor will contact all known creditors to request claims be submitted.  Evidence will also need to be provided with a claim.

What evidence do I need to provide?

Your claim and the evidence supplied will be reviewed by the Official Assignee (or the Supervisor) to ensure that it is a provable debt or a debt that is capable of being included in the insolvent estate and able to share in any distribution made out of the insolvent estate.

You will need to provide a copy of the documentation that shows a debt existed at the date of adjudication, liquidation or the date of entering the SIO.  This may include but is not limited to copies of loan agreements, bank statements, court orders, invoices, receipts and acknowledgments of debt.

If you are not able to provide evidence that confirms the existence and/or the amount of a debt that is owed, then it is possible that you will not be able to share in any distribution made out of the estate.Top

  Further information

Advantages of filing your claim online

Website access

Keep your online details secure

Registering as a creditor and maintaining your creditor details

Registering your claim online

Listing and managing your claims

Accessing more information and documents relating to an insolvency

Advantages of filing your claim online

The Online Claim service provides an electronic method for creditors to register their claims in insolvent estates administered by the Insolvency and Trustee Service.  Using the Internet, creditors can:

• Search for insolvent estates administered by the Insolvency and Trustee Service
• Register their claim in an insolvent estate administered by the Insolvency and Trustee Service
• Receive instant confirmation that their claim is registered
• Maintain their creditor details
• View and keep track of the status of their claims registered with the Insolvency and Trustee Service
• Modify and withdraw their claims
• Provide supporting evidence of their claim

Website access

All transactions and searches conducted on the Insolvency and Trustee Service website are provided free of charge.

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Keep your online details secure

In an e-commerce environment your User Name and Password become a form of identification/authorisation when filing documents with the Insolvency and Trustee Service.  We appreciate that support relationships exist within firms, but urge registered users to take sensible precautions to keep their User Name and Password secure including:

• Registering a new User specifically for Online Claims management
• Changing your password immediately when staff leave or rotate within the firm
• Keeping your User Name and password in a safe place
• Choosing a password that will be difficult for people to guess
  

Note - Managing Online Claims for multiple clients

Note that support staff can use the Logon and Logoff options at the top right hand side of the website to log off at any time and then log on using a different User Name and Password to process claims for another creditor registered under your Customer record.

Registering as a creditor and maintaining your creditor details

The process for registering creditor details so that they connect to your user logon and password must be completed separately for each creditor you represent.  This only needs to be done once per creditor however.  It enables the Insolvency and Trustee Service to associate creditors’ details to the customer details you have established with the Ministry of Economic Development.  This will allow creditors to view and maintain their details and list all of the claims made by that creditor in any insolvency administered by the Insolvency and Trustee Service.  It will also simplify your data entry for future claims.

1. Select the Logon option in the top right hand corner of the screen
2. Enter your User Name and Password
3. Select Search Insolvency Register from the homepage
4. Search for the Bankrupt you are wishing to file a claim against
5. Select the Bankrupt’s Name
6. Select the Register a Claim tab at the top of your screen.
7. If you do not wish to file a claim under the default creditor select the Choose Creditor button.
8. Choose the Creditor Name from the drop down list, or, if you wish to add a new Creditor select the Add Button at the top of your screen.

Note

Fields prefixed with a red asterisk (*) must be completed.

The first user name to create a new entry in the creditor register will display these creditor details for subsequent user names created for this customer.  These users can then select Exit if the defaulted details are correct and the claim is to be registered with the defaulted details or select Add to establish a new entry with fresh creditor details.  The next time a new user name is used the system will default to the creditor details that have been established for that user name.

Each time you logon to the service the system will recognise the creditor you have established under this user name or when registering your claim give you the option of choosing another creditor that has already been associated to your customer record.Top

Registering your claim online

1. Select the Logon option in the top right hand corner of the screen
   
2. Enter your User Name and Password
3. Select Search Insolvency Register from the homepage
4. Search the Database for the insolvency estate you wish to register a claim against
5. Enter the estate by selecting the bankrupt’s name
6. Select the Register Claim button at the top of the screen
7. Complete the online claim form.  Fields prefixed with a red asterisk (*) must be completed
   
8. Select Register to submit.

Note

You are able to register only one type of claim at a time against each insolvency estate.  Creditors who have an unsecured and a preferential claim must register two separate claims.  Likewise two different types of preferential claims require two separate claims to be filed.  The online process makes this a relatively quick procedure.

Important information

Electronic documents must NOT contain computer viruses.  In the event that an electronic document or any other action which is part of the Online Claims process is found to contain, or introduce the risk of, a computer virus or be of a type the Insolvency and Trustee Service considers irregular, we reserve the right to immediately suspend the customer’s access pending further enquiries as appropriate.

Listing and managing your claims

To view a list of the claims you have filed with the Insolvency and Trustee Service:

1. Select the Logon option in the top right hand corner of the screen
2. Enter your User Name and Password
3. Select the red Online Services tab from the top middle of your screen
   
4. Select List Claims.  A summary of your claims and their current status is displayed.
   
5. Select the Insolvency Estate Name hyperlink to view the full details of your claim.  This screen will allow you to withdraw or amend parts of your claim until such time as the Official Assignee formally accepts your claim.
6. The User Preference option in the left hand menu enables creditors to view their withdrawn claims.

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Accessing more information and documents relating to an insolvency

Registering your claim via the website enables you to view additional information and documents held by the Insolvency and Trustee Service.  Additional information includes asset and claim details, court and petition information, reasons for bankruptcy and the likelihood of dividend. The documents available may include Creditor Reports, Discharge Certificates and other notices.

To view additional information and documents from the administration file of the Insolvency and Trustee Service you need to have filed your claim online in the insolvency estate you wish to view.

1. Select the Logon option in the top right hand corner of the screen
2. Enter your User Name and Password
3. Select Search Insolvency Register from the homepage
4. Complete details of the bankrupt or company name in the appropriate field and select Submit Search.  The search result will display as a list of insolvency records matching your search criteria
5. Select the Insolvency name for which you have registered a claim
6. Select the More Info tab.