As a result, your house-mate would have to pay up in the end.Technically, his student loan debts can’t be “pursued” during any bankruptcy. This graduate has debts of around £15,000 and is convinced that going bankrupt is the best way out of them. He says his £7,000 in student loans will be written off as part of this too.I’m sure this isn’t the case – or everyone would do it Is he in danger of making a big mistake?WJ, via emailA: Yes. Until recently, graduates with large debts had exploited a loophole in the rules on bankruptcy to walk free of their financial burden.

But this was closed as part of the Higher Education Act two years ago, and advances from the Student Loans Company (SLC) are now exempt from bank- ruptcy legislation. It should welcome your honesty.Q: I’m studying at university, and live with two other students and a recent graduate. To check, contact the award-giving organisation.Separately, if you entered the competition off your own bat and submitted a piece of work that had no direct link to your job, you might well be in the clear.”In this case, the argument is that the prize doesn’t technically stem from the employment and so isn’t taxable,” adds Mr Whiting.To clear the matter up, contact your local tax office (go to www.hmrc.gov.uk to find this). This is where the question of tax can be “open for argument”, says Mr Whiting.If you won the prize in an external competition for handing in a piece of work that formed a normal part of your job, you may not have to pay tax – as long as the prize provider is prepared to pick up that liability.

Generally, though, says John Whiting from accountants PricewaterhouseCoopers, prizes such as premium bonds aren’t taxable.But there are exceptions, some of them in the workplace. Any cash prize given by an employer to a staff member will generally count as income. So if you won the £4,000 as part of an internal company competition, it will be taxable.However, your letter implies that you might have won the money from a third party instead. Must I surrender some of my winnings to the taxman?JT, CanterburyA: The rules governing the taxation of prize money can be hard to interpret and depend on individual circumstances.