Ask us for help

Get help if you're struggling to make your loan repayments.

We want to do everything possible to help our Members who unexpectedly fall into financial hardship.

Talk to us about your current situation and we can normally arrange a suitable payment plan until your situation improves.

It may feel difficult to pick up the phone and talk to us but it can relieve some of the pressures by discussing ways to make short or longer-term plans.

You can speak to our helpdesk on 02392827980 Monday to Friday (except bank holidays).

Things can break down when you won't talk about why you can't make your repayments. So, it's really important you talk to us and keep us updated on your situation. We recommend that you seek independent, free, debt advice. You should also check whether you can get any state benefits or tax credits which could help to increase your income.

There are a variety of options available to help to resolve the issue.

If you fall into arrears we will:

  1.          Attempt to contact you as soon as possible to discuss your circumstances

  2.          Give you a reasonable period of time to pay back the debt

  3. Avoid charging you any fees which will increase your debt while you are talking to us

  4.          Attempt to arrange a payment plan with you or temporarily freeze interest

  5.          consider changing the method by which you make your payments or the date on which you make them

  6.          Consider whether we can allow you to pay back your loan over a longer period of time to reduce your monthly payments or capitalise your debt (add your arrears to your loan)

We would strongly advise that you seek independent, free, debt advice. You should also check whether you can get any state benefits or tax credits which could help to increase your income.

You may wish to talk to a professional adviser, such as a debt counsellor. We only recommend debt advisers which do not charge you a fee to discuss and arrange a payment plan such as stepchange.

Occasionally, when all communication breaks down and we are unable to talk or set up a payment arrangement, we may need to take debt recovery action.

What happens when we can’t get to talk to you

  • We may charge you reasonable fees as outlined in your loan contract. This may include our legal fees. You will be notified of any fees in advance.

  • If we can't agree on a payment plan or you refuse to talk to us about a solution to clear your arrears, we may go to court to start proceedings to recover the debt

  • We will offer you pre-court mediation before taking any legal proceedings and give you 30 days to respond to us with a payment plan or offer.

  • If you do not respond to mediation we will issue you with a pre-court notice advising you that we will be asking the Court to register a County Court Judgment (CCJ) against you. You will have a further 14 days to respond to this.

  • A County Court Judgment may have a negative impact on your credit file making future borrowing unavailable or more expensive.

    • We may attempt to recover the debt via our benefits (Eligible Loan Deduction Scheme). You can find out more about this by talking to the DWP.

    • We may also instruct a bailiff, apply for an attachment of earnings or ask you to attend a Court hearing.

You can complete and send us a budget planner if you would like us to review your repayments.