Information for Reading Borough Council Tenants and Private Rented Tenants

Transcription

1 Debt Advice Handbook Information for Reading Borough Council Tenants and Private Rented Tenants 1

2 Contents Contents... 2 Introduction... 3 Part A: Income... 5 Step 1: List the income you get now... 5 Step 2: Look for ways to increase your income... 5 Part B: Expenditure... 7 Step 1: List your spending... 7 Step 2: Look for ways to reduce your outgoings... 7 Step 3: Update your financial statement... 9 Part C: Disposable Income... 9 Part D: Priority Debts Step 1: List your Priority Debts Step 2: Decide an order to tackle your Priority Debtssmith Step 3: Negotiate repayment plans with your Priority Creditors Other things you can do Part E: Dealing with Non-Priority Debts What to do next Types of Action Council Tenants - Possession Orders Other Tenants - Eviction Liability Orders County Court Judgement Sample Financial Statement Sample Letters Sample Holding Letter Sample Pro-Rata Arrangement Letter Sample Token Payment Letter Sample 3 or 6 Month Holding Letter Sample Re-Request 3 or 6 Month Hold Letter Organisations offering free and confidential advice Inserts: Basic Bank Accounts Factsheet, 2x blank financial statements, Debt Advice Handbook Questionnaire & prepaid envelope 2

3 Step by step guide Tick when completed Income Maximisation List your income Can your income be increased? Page 4 Review your household expenses List your expenses Can you reduce your spending? Page 6 Disposable Income If you have disposable income - Page 8 If you do not have disposable income - Page 11 Priority Debts Identify and list your debts Negotiate repayment plans with your priority creditors Page 9 Non-Priority Debts Identify and list your non-priority debts Negotiate repayment plans with your non-priority debts Page 11 Financial Statement Produce your financial statement Page 15 3

4 Introduction Many people find themselves in financial difficulties - often through no fault of their own. This could be through loss of employment, relationship breakdown or ill health. Although it can be daunting to face your financial difficulties it is important that you take control of your financial difficulties to stop your situation getting worse. This handbook is designed to help you to regain control of your finances. It will help you: Look for ways to maximise your income and reduce your outgoings Create a financial statement and work out how much money you can afford to pay towards debts Prioritise your debts Decide the best way to deal with your debts This pack includes sample letters which you can use to write directly to your creditors to help you negotiate realistic and affordable repayment plans. DO seek help straight away. DON T borrow money to pay off your debts. DON T ignore letters. DON T ignore your debt problems - they won t go away. 10 Golden Rules DO get advice, remember, you are not alone. It is never too late to get advice, and you can get help anytime. DON T borrow money to pay off your debts - this kind of borrowing could easily make your situation worse. ALWAYS get advice first. MAKE SURE you claim all the benefits and tax credits you can (page 4). ALWAYS tackle your priority debts first if you don t you could lose your home or have your gas or electricity cut off. DO use our sample letters to write to your creditors (page 16-20). Contact EVERYONE you owe money to if you only make arrangements to pay some creditors you could run into difficulties again. DON T give up - if creditors don t agree to your request the first time try again DON T PANIC if a non-priority creditor takes Court action. Just fill in the reply forms and give all the facts - the Court will decide if you owe the debt, and if so, how much you should pay each month. ALWAYS keep copies of the letters or court forms you send or receive. DON T ignore letters, keep copies of the letters you send and receive. If in doubt, please contact Reading Borough Council s Debt Advice Team on

5 Part A: Income It is important to work out exactly how much money you have coming into your household each month and to look for ways to increase your income. Step 1: List the income you get now Use Part A of your financial statement to list ALL the income you receive like wages, Tax Credits, Benefits and Pensions. Step 2: Look for ways to increase your income Make sure you claim all the Benefits and Tax Credits you are entitled to Part A: Income Wages Partner Wage (if applicable) Child Benefit Child Tax Credits Working Tax Credits Maintenance Non-Dependent Contributions Job Seekers Allowance Income Support Employments Support Allowance State Pension Pension Credit Occupational Pension Personal Independence Payment Total Income Monthly If you are: You may be able to claim: Unemployed Job Seekers Allowance Income Support Housing Benefit/Council Tax Support Working Child Tax Credits Working Tax Credits Housing Benefit/Council Tax Support Sick or disabled Statutory Sick Pay Employment & Support Allowance if you are ill or disabled Personal Independent Payment if you are an adult with disabilities and need help with personal care Attendance Allowance if you are over 65 and need help with care Incapacity Benefit if you have worked in the past Severe Disablement Allowance if you don t qualify for Incapacity Benefit A carer Carer s Allowance if you look after someone who is dependent on you for care and support Some benefits (including contribution-based Jobseeker s Allowance, Incapacity Benefit or Employment and Support Allowance, pensions and maternity benefits) are based on the National Insurance (NI) contributions you have paid. 5

6 Other benefits are means-tested which means the amount you get is based on your household income and savings and you don t need to have paid NI to claim them. To find out what benefits you may be entitled to contact: o Job Centre Plus on or visit (new claims) o The Pension Service (new claims) o Personal Independence Payments (PIP) on (new claims) o Turn2us - Free and confidential helpline o Reading Borough Council s Benefit Helpline or visit See if you, your partner or others living in your home could take on more work There are a variety of financial incentives or bonuses for people to come off/reduce their benefits by taking, increasing working hours or becoming self-employed. For more information visit the Job Centre Plus office or Make sure those living with you contribute towards their keep Anyone living with you who is working or claiming benefits in their own right should contribute towards rent, food and other bills. Your entitlement to Housing Benefit and/or Council Tax Support will be reduced because they live with you, so at the very least they should paying enough to make up for this loss. Make sure you get enough child maintenance from your ex-partner If you have children with an ex-partner, they should contribute towards their keep. For independent advice about child maintenance options visit or call Any maintenance you receive won t affect other benefits, but you MUST declare any maintenance payments. Make sure you get your annual Winter Fuel Payment If have you reached state pension age you may be entitled to this lump sum. It is normally paid automatically, but if you haven t received your payment by Christmas call the Winter Fuel Helpline on or visit Protect your income To protect your income consider opening a basic bank account with a different bank - see the basic bank account factsheet included in this pack. If your wages and/or benefits are paid into a bank or building society where you are overdrawn or owe money they may take money from your account to pay off your debt. Step 3: Update your financial statement 6

7 If you have been able to increase your income make sure you update your financial statement. Part B: Expenditure The next stage is to look at your outgoings - it is important to work out exactly what you spend each month and what you are spending it on so you can look for ways to cut back on your expenses. Step 1: List your spending Use Part B of your financial statement to list down ALL the money you and your household spend each month - but DON T include any debts, arrears or any credit payments at this stage. As a guide: Work out your monthly Gas and Electric costs by adding up your bills for a year and dividing the total by 12. Housekeeping includes food, toiletries and cleaning materials - allow: o per week for a single person o per week for a couple o per week per child o per week per non-dependent adults Travelling expenses should include getting to work, school and the shops, Car Tax, insurance, repairs, MOT and petrol. Essentials and contingencies includes things like alcohol, lottery, birthdays and Christmas, repairs, papers, pocket money, children s clubs and entertainment etc. Part B Expenditure Rent Council Tax TV Licence Gas Electric Water Hire Purchase repayments Food & Housekeeping School Dinners/ lunch at Work Clothing Telephone (including mobile & internet) Travel (including car & public transport) Contents Insurance Dentist/Prescriptions/Health Haircuts Pets Essentials & Contingencies Childcare Costs Total Expenditure Monthly Use the extra space to add in other expenditure. Make sure that you include ALL expenditure in the financial statement to help you make realistic decisions to tackle your debts. Step 2: Look for ways to reduce your outgoings Check if you are entitled to a Council Tax discount or exemption If you live alone or with someone who is not counted (like a full-time student). You may be able to get a 25% discount off your Council Tax bill. 7

8 Call or visit Think about moving to a smaller home If you live in property that is larger than you need, you may want to consider moving to a smaller home with lower rent and running costs. Council or Housing Association tenants could be given a higher priority for rehousing - for more information call Homechoice on or visit Reading Borough Council tenants may get help with moving costs contact our Under- Occupation Officer on Make sure you don t pay too much for your phone(s),tv and internet You may be able to reduce your costs by: Renegotiating your contracts to reduce the charge or switching suppliers for a cheaper deal use an internet price comparison site to see what s around Getting a package deal for phone, TV and internet to save on separate subscription costs Cancelling* your TV subscription and investing in a Freeview box (one off cost) to watch TV without monthly charges Cancelling* either your mobile or landline contracts if your household can manage without Make sure you don t pay too much for your gas and electricity You may be able to reduce your costs by: Changing supplier* check on price comparison sites to see what is available. You should be able to switch supplier as long as you owe less than 200 even if you have a prepayment meter Buying both gas and electricity from the same supplier Check on price comparison sites to see if you are getting the best deal you can Get a water meter if your household doesn t use a lot of water you could significantly reduce your water bills (especially if you live alone) to apply for a water meter contact Thames Water on or visit *check you won t have to pay cancellation fees for leaving your contract early Make packed lunches Instead of buying sandwiches and/or snacks out Apply for free school meals If you receive an income based benefit (not including Working Tax Credit) - contact your child s school 8

9 Step 3: Update your financial statement If you have been able to find ways of reducing your spending make sure you update your financial statement. Be prepared to explain the Essentials & Contingencies figure to your creditors as they may query high amounts. Use the Comments box at the bottom of the financial statement to explain any high expenditure and any other information that you would like your creditors to know about your situation for example if you have medical needs or special dietary requirements. Part C: Disposable Income Once you have listed your income and expenditure you can work out how much money you have left, if anything, to use to start paying off your debts. Part C: Summary Total Income (Part A) Total Expenditure (Part B+D+E) Monthly Disposable Income/Overspend Total Income - Total Expenditure The sum to work out your disposable income looks like this: Total Income: Less Total Expenditure: 1,000 per month 860 per month = Disposable Income: 140 per month If you spend more than you have coming in, or you have very little disposable income go through Part A and Part B again to see if there is anything else you can do to increase your income and reduce your spending. If you find yourself in this situation it is best to get help from one of the advice organisations listed on page 21. If you are having difficulty paying your gas, electricity and or water bills contact your supplier and ask about their Customer Assistance Funds and Support Schemes 9

10 Part D: Priority Debts It is helpful to list all your debts, arrears and credit payments. If you have copies of letters or contracts, get all your paperwork together. Some of your debts will be more important than others because of what can happen to you if you don t pay them - these are called your Priority Debts. You MUST deal with your Priority Debts first. Priority Debts include Rent and or Service Charge Arrears Council Tax Arrears Gas or Electric Arrears Unpaid Magistrates Court Fines Maintenance Arrears Income Tax Arrears VAT Arrears What can happen if you don t pay If you don't pay these, you could lose your home The Council will apply for a Liability Order which allows us to: Set up Attachment of Earnings (AOE) or Benefits (AOB) to recover the money you owe from your wages/benefits Instruct Bailiffs to seize goods from your home Ask the court to imprison you Your services may be cut off You could go to prison You could go to prison You could go to prison Bailiffs may come to your home and take goods to pay what you owe Hire Purchase Agreement Arrears Your Hire Purchase goods may be repossessed Step 1: List your Priority Debts List your Priority Debts in the Balance column of Part C of your financial statement. The main ones are listed on the form, but there s room to add others if you need to. Part D: Priority Debts Monthly Balance Rents Arrears Council Tax Arrears Court Fines Gas Arrears Electric Arrears Total Priority Debts Step 2: Decide an order to tackle your Priority Debts If you have rent arrears you should ALWAYS deal with this debt first to avoid losing your home. After this you must decide what order you deal with other priority debts based on how you think the consequences of not paying will affect you and your family. 10

11 Step 3: Negotiate repayment plans with your Priority Creditors Contact your first Priority Creditor and: Explain your financial difficulties Tell them you are preparing a financial statement Suggest an amount to pay them each month - this will be your regular weekly/monthly payment PLUS a contribution towards your arrears) start paying this straight away If your creditor refuses increase your offer and try again Keep trying until they agree Once your first priority creditor has agreed a repayment plan Start paying the agreed monthly amount straight away Update your financial statement and recalculate your disposable income to take account of this payment Repeat Step 3 for each priority creditor one at a time until all your priority creditors have been dealt with If your creditors won t agree a repayment plan with you, or you don t have enough disposable income to deal with all your Priority Debts, get advice from one of the organisations listed on page 21 Other things you can do If you are billed annually, quarterly or over 10 months why not ask your supplier if you can pay in weekly, fortnightly or monthly installments to make payments easier to manage? If you get Income Support, Job Seekers Allowance or Employment & Support Allowance you may be able to ask the Benefits Agency to take an amount from your benefits to pay some suppliers direct. Contact your local Benefits Agency Office and tell your gas, electricity and/or water supplier you are doing this. Ask your energy supplier for a copy of their Code of Practice they should be willing to offer the following as an alternative to cutting off your supply: o Ask to pay your bill in weekly or monthly instalments to clear the whole amount owing before your next bill arrives. o Ask to set up a Budget Plan this means you pay for the gas or electricity you use plus a small additional amount to clear your debt over an extended period of time. The company should accept a rate of repayment which is based on your circumstances even if this means spreading the arrears over a longer period of time. Payment for the fuel you are continuing to use plus an amount you can afford off the arrears through a token, card or coin meter. 11

12 Part E: Dealing with Non-Priority Debts It is a good idea to send your creditors a holding letter (see page 16) to let them know you are having difficulties, ask them to stop action on your account and freeze the interest while you decide how you are going to resolve your debts. If you have any disposable income left after you have made agreements with your Priority Creditors you can decide how you want to deal with your Non- Priority Debts. Part E: Non-Priority Debts Monthly Balance These are debts where your creditors don t have the power to take more serious action against you, like evicting you from your home or sending you to prison. Non-priority debts include: Credit Card debts Total Non-Priority Debts Personal loans with finance companies (if not secured on property) Bank/Building Society loans and Overdrafts Charge Cards Catalogues/Mail Order Personal debts to friends and family Doorstep and Payday Loans Depending on your situation you may have more than one option for dealing with your Non- Priority Debts. Make sure you understand what each option means and the advantages and disadvantages, so you can make the right decision for you. Our booklet Paying Back Your Debts gives an overview of the advantages and disadvantages of each option for your copy visit or call the Debt Advice Team on What to do next If you don t have any disposable income left to offer any payments towards your nonpriority debts at the moment but you think this is likely to be a temporary situation, you should send a 3 or 6 month holding letter to your creditors asking them to suspend payments, interest and charges for a period of 3 or 6 months (see sample letter on page 19). If you only have a small amount of money left you should offer token payments of between 1 to 5 per month to each of your creditors. This is a temporary solution - your creditors will usually review these arrangements every 6 months (see sample letter on page 18). If you can offer more than token payments to your Non-Priority creditors, it is common to offer each of them a fair share of your remaining disposable income this is called a prorata arrangement (see sample arrangement letter on page 17). 12

13 To work out a pro-rata offer Add up all the money you owe to your non-priority creditors (listed in Part D of your financial statement) to get your total debt Take one Non-Priority debt and divide this by the total debt and multiply the result by the remaining disposable income - the sum looks like this: Amount owed to individual Non-Priority creditor Total amount owed to all Non-Priority creditor x Remaining disposable income = Offer Once you have an agreement update your financial statement and recalculate your disposable income If a creditor doesn t agree to your offer don t give up. Write to them again and tell them if other creditors have agreed to your offers. If you aren t sure what action to take, get independent advice to make sure you don t make things worse. See page 21 for a list of organisation who can help. Types of Action Council Tenants - Possession Orders If you do not pay your rent or do not stick to an agreement to pay off your arrears, your landlord can apply to the Court for a Possession Order. A Possession Order doesn t necessarily mean automatic eviction. The Court will consider your circumstances they may give you a Suspended Possession Order and order you to make regular payments to your landlord. If you don t keep up with the Court ordered payment your landlord can go back to the Court and you could be evicted. If you are finding it difficult to keep to your Court ordered payments get advice from one of the organisations listed on page 21 Always seek advice and attend any Court hearing. Other Tenants - Eviction If you do not pay your rent your landlord may evict you. The process of eviction depends on the type of tenancy you hold. If you are unsure what type of tenancy you hold, you MUST seek help straight away. For specialist advice please contact Reading Borough Councils Housing Advice Service on , or housing.advice@reading.gov.uk or visit For other organisations please refer to page 21 Always seek advice and attend any court hearing. 13

14 Liability Orders If you don t pay your Council Tax or keep to any arrangement to pay off your Council Tax Arrears, the Council will apply for a Liability Order at the Magistrates Court. The Court must issue the Liability Order unless: The Council didn t follow proper procedures You have paid the amount demanded Bankruptcy or winding up proceedings have started If you think one of these applies to you, contact the Council immediately. The Liability Order will order you to pay the amount outstanding plus Court costs. You can avoid paying Court costs by paying the full amount due before the Court date. Contact the Council Tax Team. Once the Liability Order is made the Council will make an arrangement with you to collect the money you owe. If you don t make an arrangement or you don t stick to your agreement the Council can: Issue an Attachment of Earnings Order (AOE) which requires your employer to deduct a given amount of money out of your earnings to pay the Council. Your employer can charge an administration fee of 1 per deduction so you may end up paying more than the just the arrears. Only two AOEs can be in place at any one time - you will need to make other arrangements to pay back any other Council Tax Debt. Issue an Attachment of Benefit (AOB) which requires the Benefits Agency to deduct a given amount from your Benefits to pay off your Council Tax arrears. Only one AOB can be in place at any one time. Refer your case to Enforcement Agents (Bailiffs) who will visit your home to collect the money you owe or take goods to sell to pay off the arrears. Additional costs will be added to your debt. Apply to the courts to have you committed to Prison if the bailiffs have been unable to collect the debt. County Court Judgement The County Court is able to settle disputes about money and how to repay it. It is not a criminal Court and it won t judge or punish you. If you receive a County Court claim you must: Complete the reply form attached to the summons (if you don t agree with the amount your creditor is claiming say so on your form) Include your offer of repayment Attach a copy of your financial statement Return the form to the Court before the deadline If you don t understand the Court letter, contact one of the organisations listed on page 21 for advice. 14

15 The Court will inform your creditor of your offer: If they accept you will receive a County Court Judgment setting out what you need to pay. If they don t accept the Court may grant a hearing for you and your creditor to attend. You must attend this hearing so you can explain your circumstances. The District Judge will then decide how much you must pay your creditor. If you have to attend Court: You won t need a solicitor Court staff and District Judges are used to dealing with people in your situation Your name will not appear in the local paper. Make sure you pay the Court ordered payments to your creditor regularly If your circumstances change and you can t afford these payments you can apply to vary the Court terms using form N245 available from the County Court office or If you already have a County Court Judgment against you, include this debt with other Non-Priority Debts in your financial statement and work out the offer of payment in the same way. You will need to use Court form N245 to vary the court terms currently in place. Advantages of Court action: The Court may stop interest being charged on a credit agreement - this will stop your debt getting bigger. The Court is likely to let you pay a monthly amount which you can afford - but it can only do this if you explain about your income, expenses and other debts. If you have more than one County Court Judgement you may be able to apply for an Administration Order to bring these debts together you then make one monthly payment to the Court and the Court Office shares it among your creditors. Your total debts must be less than 5,000 before you can apply. The application form N92 is available from the County Court office or visit Disadvantages of Court action: Court costs will be added to your debt. If you have a County Court Judgment your Credit Rating will go down and you may find it difficult to get credit. If you miss your Court ordered payments your creditors can take further action against you. 15

16 Sample Financial Statement Financial Statement Name Mr A N Other Partners name N/A Number of dependants 0 Number of dependants 0 Address 15 Example Road, Reading RG1 7AE Number of non-dependants 0 Number of cars in household 0 Part A: Income Monthly Part C: Summary Monthly Wages Partner Wage (if applicable) Total Income (Part A) 1, Child Benefit Child Tax Credits Total Expenditure (Part B+D+E) 1, Working Tax Credits Maintenance Disposable Income/Overspend Non-Dependant Contributions Total Income - Total Expenditure 0.00 Job Seekers Allowance Income Support Part D: Priority Debts Monthly Balance Employment Support Allowance Rent Arrears State Pension Council Tax Arrears Pension Credit Court Fines Occupational Pension Gas Arrears Personal Independence Payment Electric Arrears Total Income 1, Part B: Expenditure Monthly Total Priority Debts Rent Council Tax Part E: Non-Priority Debts Monthly Balance TV Licence Catalogue Gas Personal Loan Electric Water Hire Purchase Repayments Food & Housekeeping School Dinners/Lunch at Work Clothing Telephone (including mobile & internet) Travel (including car & public transport) Contents Insurance Dentist/Prescriptions/Health Haircuts Pets Essentials & Contingencies Childcare Costs Total Expenditure Total Non-Priority Debts , Comments 16

17 Sample Letters Sample Holding Letter Your name and address here Creditors name and address here Dear Sir/Madam Date Re: Account/Reference Number I/We are writing to inform you that I/we are seeking advice and assistance regarding our current financial difficulties. I/we would appreciate if you could hold any action on the above account for a period of one month whilst I/we gather all the information to prepare my/our financial statement for your consideration. During this period, could you please freeze interest and/or any other charges accruing on the above account so our debt does not get any higher. I/We look forward to hearing from you as soon as possible. Yours faithfully Sign your name here Print your name here 17

18 Sample Pro-Rata Arrangement Letter Your name and address here Creditors name and address here Dear Sir/Madam Re: Account/Reference Number Date Since making the current agreement with you, my/our circumstances have changed and I/we are unable to pay the current arrangement. I/We cannot now afford to agreed monthly payments because... Add a paragraph here We enclose a financial statement that shows my/our total income, and my/our outgoings. As you can see I/we have only... per month left for each of my/our creditors given my/our current circumstances. The offers I/we have made to my/our creditors have been worked out on a pro-rata basis, and I/we have written to all my/our creditors asking them to accept reduced payments. If interest or other charges are being added to the account I/we would be grateful if you would freeze these so that all payments made will reduce what I/we owe you. Should my/our circumstances improve in the future I/we will contact you again. I/We look forward to hearing from you as soon as possible. Yours faithfully Sign your name here Print your name here 18

19 Sample Token Payment Letter Your name and address here Creditors name and address here Dear Sir/Madam Re: Account/Reference Number Date Since making the current agreement with you, my/our circumstances have changed and I/we are unable to pay the current arrangement. I/We cannot now afford the agreed monthly payments because... Add a paragraph here I/We enclose a financial statement that shows my/our total income, and my/our outgoings. As you can see I/we have no money left for my/our creditors given my/our current circumstances. In view of this, would you please accept a token offer of... Add offer here. This would be reviewed after six months. If interest or other charges are being added to the account I/we would be grateful if you would freeze these so that all payments made will reduce what I/we owe you. Should my/our circumstances improve in the future I/we will contact you again. I/We look forward to hearing from you as soon as possible. Yours faithfully Sign your name here Print your name here 19

20 Sample 3 or 6 Month Holding Letter Your name and address here Creditors name and address here Dear Sir/Madam Re: Account/Reference Number Date I/We have enclosed a financial statement prepared using realistic budgeting figures, given my/our current circumstances. This also shows the current level of debts outstanding. You can see from this information, that I/we are finding it difficult to meet even my/our basic needs at this time. Therefore I/we are unable to make any realistic offer of payment at this time. I/We request therefore that you give consideration to allowing a suspension of the payments on the account for a period of 3/6 months, when the situation can be reviewed. Include here any possible future potential if appropriate to start repayments again e.g. expecting to go back into work If interest or other charges are being added to the account I/we would be grateful if you would freeze these so that all payments made will reduce what I/we owe you. I/we hope you will be sympathetic to my/our request as this would greatly relieve some of the stress the I/we are experiencing. I/we would appreciate any help you can give me/us. Yours faithfully Sign your name here Print your name here 20

21 Sample Re-Request 3 or 6 Month Hold Letter Your name and address here Creditors name and address here Dear Sir/Madam Date Re: Account/Reference Number I/We have enclosed a financial statement prepared using realistic budgeting figures, given my/our current circumstances. This also shows the current level of debts outstanding. You can see from this information, that I/we are finding it difficult to meet even my/our basic needs at this time. Therefore I/we are unable to make any realistic offer of payment at this time. Therefore I/we request that you give consideration to allowing a suspension of the payments on the account for a period of what you asked for last time, when the situation can be reviewed. Include here any possible future potential if appropriate to start repayments again e.g. expecting to go back into work If interest and charges are being added to the account, it would be appreciated if you would agree to waive these during this time, so that the debt does not increase further. I/we hope you will be sympathetic to our request as this would greatly relieve some of the stress the I/we are experiencing. I/We would appreciate any help you can give me/us. Yours faithfully Sign your name here Print your name here 21

22 Organisations offering free and confidential advice Reading Borough Council s Debt Advice Team: Tel: Fax: debt.advice@reading.gov.uk Web: Citizens Advice Bureau Advice line: Minster Street, Reading RG1 2JB Mon, Tues, Thurs & Fri 10am-4pm Weds pm Web: Post: Debt Advice Team, PO Box 2624, Reading, RG1 7WB Welfare Rights Unit: Tel: (direct line) Tel: (advice line) Mon-Thurs 9am-5pm Fri 9am-4pm Communicare: Tel: Kings Road, Reading RG1 4LS Mon 10am-3pm, Tues/Thurs 10am-4pm Fri 10am-1pm 101 Oxford Road, Reading RG1 7UD Drop in (new clients only): Tues 9.30am- 12noon Reading Frontline: Tel: London Street Reading RG1 4SQ Payplan (Mobile ) Mon-Fri 8am-9pm, Sat 9am-3pm Web: Mon-Weds 10.00am 3.00pm Money Advice Service Helpline Mon-Fri 8am-8pm, Sat 9am-1pm Web: National Debtline Mon-Fri 9.00am-9.00pm, Sat 9.30am-1pm Web: StepChange Advice line: Mon-Fri 8am-8pm, Sat 8am-4pm Web: 22

23 Notes: 23

24 If in doubt, please contact Reading Borough Council s Debt Advice Team on