Benefit delays driving people into debt
Leading local advice charity, Citizens Advice Exeter, has published its advice trend statistics for the first five-months of the financial year. The charity has helped 12% more people with their advice and information when compared to the same period in 2015.
The advice trends over the period were as follows:
Debt
Overall, the charity dealt with 14% more debt enquiries. The main increases being:
• 49.0% about bankruptcy and debt relief orders
• 27.8% about water arrears
• 25.7% about council tax arrears
Client case studies – focus on debt and money problems:
1. A client whose Universal Credit payments had been stopped because it was claimed that they had failed to meet the requirements. Paperwork had been lost and an IT issue meant that the client was unable to find out why they had been sanctioned. They ended up with no food and no money to cover household bills.
2. A client whose Employment and Support Allowance payments had been stopped without being told and then ending up in considerable financial hardship as a result.
3. A highly vulnerable client had failed to be paid housing benefit as part of the Universal Credit payment and now faces the risk of losing their supported accommodation.
Welfare benefits
Overall, the charity dealt with 22% more welfare benefit enquiries. The main increases being:
• 39.6 about employment and support allowance
• 24.7% about disability benefits (PIP/DLA)
• 2.1% about tax credits
• 1.9% about local support for council tax
Housing
Overall, the charity dealt with 8% more housing enquiries. The main increases being:
• 70.9% about housing association property
• 45.1% about actual homelessness
• 4.0% about private sector property
Employment
Overall, the charity dealt with 15% more employment enquiries. The main increases being:
• 53.0% about pay and entitlements
• 46.2% about terms and conditions
• 18.1% about dismissal
Chief Executive Steve Barriball said: “We are regularly seeing people who end up in debt as a result of poor administration by the welfare benefits or tax credits systems. Whilst we are able to get payments reinstated in many cases, including taking cases to tribunal appeal, clients have to cover cuts to payments through short-term, and often high cost, borrowing just to make ends meet. Once they get their award backdated this is often less than the costs they have incurred through borrowing. This highlights the urgent need to address failings in the benefits system.”
Steve continued: “In relation to wider debt trends, these suggest that households may be putting themselves at risk by prioritising consumer credit debts - such as credit card bills, personal loans or overdraft repayments - ahead of household bills, like rent, mortgage, council tax and utility bills. The priority should always be to pay off household bills first, otherwise households risk further financial and emotional hardship”
Steve finished by saying: “Our commitment is always to provide the advice people need for the problems they face. However, we can only continue to do this if we have the necessary resources and we need to increase public and business donations. Anyone wishing to support our work can donate on-line by going to the Support Us section of our website (www.citizensadviceexeter.org.uk)”
Alternatively, donations can be made in person at the charity’s offices on Dix’s Field in Exeter.
