Contact us. Our debt advisors are ready to help you.

Can you get my creditors to freeze interest on my debts?

Regardless of what they say, no debt management company can guarantee to make your creditors freeze their interest and charges. When you take out credit you sign an agreement which allows them to add interest and charges to your debt.

However, we have excellent relationships with creditors and in many cases they do agree to stop interest and charges if they know we’re helping you to deal with your debts.

Can you help me consolidate my debts?

We don’t offer debt consolidation as a way to deal with your debts as it can make your situation worse. Lots of consolidation loans are secured on your home, which means if you miss payments in the future your home is at risk.

We can look at other solutions to help you become debt free that don't involve taking out more debt. To find a better way to deal with your debts call our Helpline or use our online Debt Remedy tool.

I've heard my debts can be written off after six years. Is that right?

No, this is a popular myth based on a part of law known as the Limitations Act. If your creditor hasn’t contacted you for over 6 years then your debt becomes ‘unenforceable.’ This doesn’t mean it’s been written off, but simply that your creditors can’t take court action against you.

I think I need to go bankrupt. How would this affect me?

Your first step should always be to get expert advice on the best debt solution for you. It's only once you've done this that you'll know whether bankruptcy may be the right step. If you use our online Debt Remedy tool or call our helpline, we'll work with you to recommend a tailored action plan to help you deal with your debt.

In general terms, bankruptcy affects everyone differently. It depends on what assets you have (like a house or vehicles), the amount of money you’ve got left over once you’ve paid your household bills and the job that you do.

The best way to find out exactly how bankruptcy would affect you is to have a debt advice session with us. This way we can give you tailored advice based on your personal situation. You can find out more about bankruptcy in our how we can help you section.

Are you really free?

Yes, completely. We’ll never charge you for our help, support and advice. We firmly believe that you shouldn’t have to pay to get out of debt. And with almost 20 years’ experience of giving debt advice you can be confident that, even though we’re free, you’re definitely getting the best advice out there.  

I've had messages about reclaiming PPI. Can you help with this?

Reclaiming PPI, or payment protection insurance, isn’t something we do for our clients. And although you’ll find lots of companies who say they will do it for you we would never advise you to pay them to do this.

This is because you can do it yourself for free. If you visit websites like Money Saving Expert or Which? they have template letters that you can send to your creditors to start reclaiming your PPI. Using these free template letters means you can reclaim your PPI quickly and easily. And the only thing you'll need to pay is your postage!  

My payday loan keeps taking money from my bank account.

This is called a ‘continuous payment authority’ and is a common arrangement that payday loan lenders set up when you take a loan out with them. This lets them take money out of your bank account on a regular basis. It can sometimes be difficult to cancel this type of arrangement but if you contact your bank they must cancel it, if they don’t you can make a complaint to them.

Can I rearrange my telephone debt advice appointment?

If you’ve booked a phone appointment with one of our debt advisors and you need to rearrange, call our Helpline and we'll rebook it for a more convenient time.

Or if you’ve got around 40 minutes free when you call, we might be able to complete your appointment there and then.  

Where do I go to continue a saved session in Debt Remedy?

If you've partially completed a Debt Remedy session, returning to complete it is straightforward. Simply visit the Debt Remedy start page and enter your reference number in the box labelled 'Returning to Debt Remedy?' You will then be able to see all the answers from your previous session and add any new information you've collected. Once you reach the end of the process, Debt Remedy will recommend a debt solution that is tailored to your personal situation.

What information do I need for my debt advice appointment?

The main purpose of your debt advice session is to put together a personal budget so we can make sure that you’re paying all of your essential household bills before your debts. Once we’ve done this and we know what you’ve got left over, we can look at a solution to deal with your debts.

To do this we’ll need details of the money you’ve got coming in and the amount you spend each month. It might be useful to have a recent bank statement, utility bills and wage slips to hand. Just make sure you’ve got these details ready and we’ll do the rest.

How can I change the details on my debt management plan (DMP)?

If you’re already repaying your debts through a DMP with us and your details have changed you can log into our OnlineDMP service. Here you can update details such as account numbers and creditor names. It's quick and easy to do and it will save you the cost of a phone call. You can also view your last 6 months' statements and find the answers to some frequently asked questions.  

What can my creditors do if I’m making reduced payments?

If you’re making reduced payments to your debts, your creditors are allowed to contact you to try and collect their money back. This normally means that you’ll receive phone calls and letters from them to try to get you to make extra payments. Just because they ask for these payments doesn’t mean you need to make them. To find out exactly what they can do and what your rights are visit our what your creditors can do section.

How will being in debt affect my credit file?

You shouldn’t worry too much about your credit file. If you’re making reduced payments, it will almost certainly be affected and unfortunately there’s nothing you can do about this. The most important thing is to make sure you’ve got enough money to live on and you’re paying an amount you can afford towards your debts. You can always work on repairing your credit file once you've repaid your debts.

I’m struggling to live on a budget, what can I do?

We know that budgeting can be difficult, especially if you’ve not done it before. For really practical advice on how to make your budget work for you, read our money advice page or visit our MoneyAware blog. Both of these are packed with tips for making your money go further and hints on how to make it easier to stick to your budget.

If you feel like you’re struggling to pay your bills or don’t have enough money for your household costs, ring us and we’ll be able to review your budget and suggest how best to cover your essential costs.