Debt Advice
To contact your local Citizens Advice Lancashire West Debt Team, please phone: 01257 265432
(Mobile users, tap on the above phone number link to auto-dial)
Dealing with money issues can sometimes be scary. It’s always important to open all your post and either contact your creditor or seek help if you are struggling to pay a bill or don’t understand something.
Knowing your rights and the consequences of being in any arrears to your creditors can help you make the best decision on tackling your debt issues going forward.
The following links will give you some of the information you need to make the right choices, including how to avoid getting into arrears, help to deal with your debt issues, what to do if you have an emergency and how to get your finances back into shape.
To help you find the information you require more easily, we have broken each Category into relevant sub-categories. Please choose the one closest to your requirement:
Trouble Paying Bills Due to Coronavirus
General Debt Issues
Financial Capability
Budgeting
Priority and Non-Priority Creditors
Enforcement Agents
Rent Arrears
Mortgage Arrears
Credit Cards
Insolvency
Contacting Your Creditors
Trouble Paying Bills Due to Coronavirus
Citizens Advice: If you can't pay your bills due to Coronavirus.
The Money Advice Service: Trouble paying bills due to Covid 19.
General Debt Issues
Citizens Advice: debt and money fact sheets.
Advice Now: know your rights and the law.
The Money Advice Service: debt and borrowing.
National Debtline: Useful information from the National Debtline website including a helpline number.
Step Change: Get free debt advice from the Debt Charity
Financial Capability
Citizens Advice: Grants and benefits to help you pay your energy bills.
Citizens Advice: switch supplier for a cheaper bill.
Citizens Advice: Make sure you claim all the correct benefits you are entitled to.
United Utilities: help with managing your water bill.
Citizens Advice: If you are vulnerable make sure your fuel and water supplier know about it. Ask them to put you on the priority services register.
Budgeting
Citizens Advice: Create a budget plan so you know how much is coming in and going out.
The Money Advice Service: Jam Jar Approach – Stay in control of how you spend your cash.
The Money Advice Service: How to choose the right bank account - Make sure you have the right bank account type to avoid getting into debt.
The Money Advice Service: How to improve your credit score.
Priority and non-priority creditors
Citizens Advice: Find out which of your debts you should tackle first.
The Money Advice Service: prioritising debts.
Enforcement Agents
Citizens Advice: Dealing with a letter saying bailiffs will visit.
Citizens Advice: stopping bailiffs at your door.
Citizens Advice: stopping bailiffs if you don’t owe the debt.
Rent Arrears
Citizens Advice: Comprehensive information dealing with Rent Arrears on Citizens Advice.
The Money Advice Service: Help with rent arrears and problems with paying your rent.
Shelter: useful information from the Shelter website.
Step Change: Rent arrears. What to do if you're in debt with your rent.
Mortgage Arrears
Citizens Advice: how to deal with mortgage arrear.
Credit Cards
Citizens Advice: Comprehensive information dealing with Credit Cards on Citizens Advice.
The Money Advice Service: How to reduce the cost of your credit and store card debt.
Money Saving Expert: Useful advice and a forum of shared experiences.
Step Change: Credit card debt. What to do if you've got credit card arrears.
Insolvency
Citizens Advice: a link for Administration orders.
Citizens Advice: bankruptcy.
Citizens Advice: Debt Relief Orders (DRO).
Citizens Advice: Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA).
Contacting your creditors
Citizens Advice: Debts you’re not responsible for - Be careful about making contact in writing or making payment on a debt you have not actioned in a few years – There are time limits for creditors to enforce debts and you may reset the time limit by contacting them – Find out if your liable to pay first.
Citizens Advice: Template letter to ask for a hold on an account.
Citizens Advice: Make an offer to a non-priority creditor.
Citizens Advice: Request to write off a debt.