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Dealing with phone calls

From time to time your creditors will contact you to try and get you to repay more of your debt. This can happen at any time, but it is most common at the start of your plan or when your review is due.

Phone calls from creditors can be one of the most stressful parts of being in debt. The best thing you can do is calmly explain that you are paying what you can afford through a DMP, and you cannot make any additional payments to them.

Try to stay calm, even if they pressure you to pay more.

When a creditor calls they may threaten to take further action unless you make a payment. Don’t let them pressure you into making payments you cannot afford or paying them directly outside your DMP.

Although you should not ignore your creditors, you don’t need to take these calls. Your creditors will send you letters to explain in writing any information they give you on a call.

Creditors are allowed to contact you when you are making reduced payments. But they must keep to the rules set out by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

The FCA checks creditors are following the rules and are there to protect your rights and make sure you are treated fairly. They made these rules to protect you from unfair business practices and physical or psychological harassment.

You may find it useful to read more about what your creditors can do when they contact you.

Common questions about phone calls

Sorry, we can't. Your creditors are allowed to contact you during your DMP and may call to ask for more information or extra payments. We cannot stop them calling but they are not allowed to threaten or harass you with phone calls.

If they call, ask them what they want. They often only need an up-to-date budget, which is nothing to worry about. You can contact us with any questions you have after you have spoken to them.

There are no guidelines or laws which state how often a creditor can call you, as long as the behaviour is reasonable. Most agree once a week is reasonable, but calling once a day is not.

If you think the volume of calls you are getting is unreasonable, you can ask them to stop by making a written complaint to the creditor. Contact us if you need help for this.

If you are not happy with a creditor’s actions or the way they are contacting you, the first step is to make a complaint to them. Send a letter explaining what you feel they are doing wrong and what you would like them to do differently.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has put together guidelines that explain what activities are considered to be harassment. The full guidelines can be found on the FCA website.

If you are concerned about how a creditor has acted, you can contact us for more advice.

Your creditors should not call you at 'unreasonable' times, but the law does not set any times when creditors can call.

If you feel calls are being made at unreasonable times, you should first make a written complaint to the creditor. Contact us if you need advice on this.

A creditor is allowed to call you on a work number if you included it on an application form for the credit, unless you told them not to.

If you don't want your creditors to contact you at work, write to them and clearly say that you do not want to be contacted at work. If they ignore your instructions, please contact us for further advice.

When we call, we need to check that we are speaking to you and not another member of your household. If you don't confirm your name, we will not be able to confirm who we are.

We understand that this can be confusing, but we have to be careful not to give away your personal information to anyone else. As well as helping to protect your confidentiality, we have to take these safety steps under data protection law.

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