The second of four MALG14 workshops, considering: “Debt Advice - panacea or sticking plaster - does it work in practice?”

1. Debt
Advice
-­‐
panacea
or
s2cking
plaster
-­‐
does
it
work
in
prac2ce?
Presenters: Lee Usher, Debt Advice Manager, UKAR
Chilli Reid, Head of Development & Policy, Advice UK
Facilitator: Nick Bussey, Director of Business Development, Clearstart
Scribe: Keith Osbourne, Counsellor, Health & Wellbeing,
Metropolitan Police and representing MALG’s South East
Discussion Forum

2. Different viewpoints
Customer
Creditor
Debt Advice
Provider
• Debt Free?
• In control of finances? Light at the end of the tunnel?
• Better sense of emotional wellbeing?
• Meet regulatory requirements?
• Improve customer engagement levels?
• Improve repayment performance?
• Good PR?
• Income stream?
• Providing essential public service?
• Both of the above?

3. What is the evidence?
UKAR
engaged
5%
of
1+
MIA
book
with
advice
2014
Over
90%
DMPs
maintain
/
No
impact
secured
performance
98%
UKAR
customers
sa2sfied
with
advice
provided
MAS
report
only
17%
over-­‐indebted
engage
with
debt
advice
MAS
report
76%
reduce
debts
and
71%
feel
less
stressed
MAS
report
debt
advice
works
for
9
out
of
10
over-­‐
indebted

4. What are the considerations?
Assessing
circumstance
s
Reduc2on
in
debt
levels
Customer
sa2sfac2on
Delivery
channels
Customer
engagement
Consistency
in
delivering
outcomes
Funding
models
Creditor
and
advisor
engagement
levels

5. Does debt advice work?

6. Unpicking the question
S2cking
Plaster
A
temporary
or
inadequate
solu2on
to
a
serious
problem
Panacea
Something
that
will
solve
all
problems

7. The common factor
Debtors
Money
Advice Trust
Insolvency
Practitioners
Money Advice
Service Solicitors
Debt Recovery
Companies
Fee-
Chargers
Free Advice
Sector
Bailiffs /
Enforcement
Officers
Priority Debt
Recovery /
Enforcement
Financial Conduct
Authority
Payplan
HMCTS
Creditors

8. Tip of the iceberg?
Systems
work
in
NoUngham,
Portsmouth
and
Cardiff.
Presen2ng
demand
and
underlying
causes
A
Whole
Person
Approach

9. Debt or glory?
Individual
Vol.
Arrangement
5
years
DRO/Bankruptcy
1
year
Debt
Management
plans
5-­‐6+
years
Informal
arrangements
?????

10. The debt industrial complex
Keeping
up
supply-­‐new
and
recurring?
Breaking
the
cycle-­‐In
whose
interest?
A
non
neutral
world-­‐debt
advice
is
not
alone

11. Does debt advice work?

12. Questions
1. Should
debt
advice
aim
to
be
a
panacea?
2. If
so,
who
is
responsible
for
achieving
it?
3. If
the
answer
to
1
is
no,
what
is
debt
advice
for?