Press Releases pre-May 2010

The British are over four times more likely to first turn to their family, friends, acquaintances or nobody to discuss financial or debt worries than they are to seek a professional source of advice, a survey from Community Legal Service Direct reveals today*.

It seems us British are still very much of the stiff upper lip mould as less than one in five who are worried about finances or debt would first turn to professionals for advice (18%). 

In general people would rather deal with a financial problem themselves (69%) than turn to others. However, when they do, over half of those with financial worries (54%) ask family, friends or acquaintances for advice first. One in five (18%) have even turned to their hairdresser, pub landlord, taxi driver or religious leader to discuss financial or debt worries.

With Britain’s personal debt increasing by £1 million every four minutes and 330 people being made insolvent in the UK each day** it appears we are more in need of well informed advice than ever before. John Sirodcar, Head of Community Legal Service Direct commented:

“It’s worrying that people, especially those that are most vulnerable, are not getting the financial and legal advice that they may need. While it’s natural for people to look to those they know to give them advice, well intentioned as it may be, this is clearly not always going to be the best advice.

“Community Legal Service Direct is a free and confidential advice service paid for by legal aid. The service makes it easier for those on a lower income or benefits to get quality legal help and information.”

The survey also revealed that young people (18–25) are the most likely to be worried about their finances with over a third (34%) stating they’ve had concerns compared to only 13% of the over 65s. Alarmingly, young people are also the least likely to first seek professional help (3%) and they are three times more likely to have spoken to their hairdresser about financial or debt worries than they are to first turn to an accredited source.

Men are twice as likely as women to take professional financial advice - 23% of men would turn first to a bank or financial adviser compared to 10% of women - but, unsurprisingly perhaps, men are also more reluctant to ask for help in the first place (24 % would never seek any advice, as compared to 20% of women).

Of those polled, less than half (47%) of those who sought financial advice – including from aquaintances - felt that they were given some good tips. Almost one in five (19%) said their source of advice on financial or debt worries was unhelpful. 

The main reasons revealed in the research for not turning to professionals for advice on financial or debt matters was that it costs too much (42%), the fact that they are strangers (41%) and an alarming 40% of respondents felt that they couldn’t be trusted.

If you need advice about debt, benefits and tax credits, housing, employment or education problems and are on a low income or benefits, call Community Legal Service Direct now on 0845 345 4 345.

* Based on a nationally representative poll of 1,000 people on 18-19 July 2007 by Populus
** Credit Action Debt Statistics: 1 August 2007

Media information

Please contact:

• Charlotte Jones  or Jenny Holt  (tel: 020 7260 2700)
• Daniel Kellingley (tel: 020 7759 0415)

Notes to Editors

1. Community Legal Service Direct is a free and confidential advice service paid for by legal aid. Our helpline 0845 345 4 345* provides independent advice about debt, education, benefits and tax credits, employment and housing problems to people who live on a low income or benefits. Visit the Community Legal Service Direct website to find out more.
   *Calls cost no more than 4p per minute from a BT landline but calls from mobiles are usually more. If you are worried about the cost just ask an adviser to call you back.
2. Community Legal Service Direct's advice line is available in England and Wales, Monday to Friday, 09:00 – 18:30.
3. Free advice leaflets can be read or downloaded from the Community Legal Service Direct website. You can also get free, independent and confidential debt advice on our website and general information and legal factsheets are available in Welsh, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Gujarati, Hindi, Punjabi, Turkish and Urdu.
4. Community Legal Service Direct completed 111,245 advice cases last year - an increase of over 50% on the previous year. 36,144 of these cases involved people with debt problems.
5. Client satisfaction surveys show that 95% of respondents were “Very satisfied” or “Quite satisfied” by the service they received and more than 98% of respondents said they were likely to recommend Community Legal Service Direct to someone else.

Case studies

The worst financial advice that was cited in the survey included poor mortgage advice, credit card offers and more debt to clear debt. In contrast, below are some examples of good advice given by Community Legal Service Direct:

• Sarah from King’s Lynn, Norfolk, was experiencing financial difficulties due to many years of living on either low wages or state benefits. She fell behind on various payments and was distressed and depressed. After contacting Community Legal Service Direct, her debts were amalgamated, her income and outgoings were assessed and a small monthly payment was agreed by way of an administration order paid to the court of her home town.
• Paul from South Staffordshire, could not return to work following a car accident. He amassed debts on credit cards and overdrafts and was in arrears with his water and gas bills. Community Legal Service Direct helped Paul avoid court proceedings and negotiated a grant that cleared his utilities arrears.
• Jeanette from Croydon, Surrey, had an outstanding penalty charge notice and bailiffs tried to enforce the debt by seizing her car. Community Legal Service Direct negotiated the release of the car and a program for debt repayment.