safe debt handbook 2017v3 debt handbook 2017v3...safe money & debt handbook, 2017 3 1. about us...

SAfE Money & Debt Handbook, 2017

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Debt Handbook E: [email protected] W: safeadvice.org.uk


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Contents

1. About us

2. Information for Clients

3. Information for Staff

4. Organisation Information

A. Policies

B. Finance

C. Quality

D. Monitoring and evaluation

Appendix


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1. About us Welcome to Debt Advice from SAfE: Smart Advice for Everyone. Our Mission Our mission is to improve the lives of people living, working and studying in North West Kent. We aim to do this by providing high quality generalist advice services, including debt advice. Our Values

Our service is free, confidential, impartial, independent, non-judgemental and non-discriminatory.

Organisation Overview SAfE is a project of the Council for Voluntary Services, North West Kent (CVS-NWK). CVS-NWK is a company limited by guarantee, Registered Company No. 5020016, Registered Charity No. 1102160. Its web site is at www.cvsnwk.org. More details about our organisation are available in SAfE’s business plan, a copy of which is available upon request. How are we funded? The service is funded by several small, local, short-term grants and is reliant upon finding new funding from time-to-time in order to continue. Our Services We provide free, independent and impartial general, money and debt advice to people who live, work or study in North West Kent. This document concentrates on the money and debt advice services.


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2. Information for Clients

The Scope of the money & debt advice service We provide free, independent and impartial money and debt advice to people who live, work or study in North West Kent. General support

• Fuel efficiency measures and fuel payment methods • General advice on a range of financial products, such as basic bank accounts • Financial inclusion • Budgeting and money management • Advice on welfare benefits and tax credits including entitlement checks • Advice on dealing with debt

Case work support

• Income maximisation • Expenditure reduction • Prioritisation of debts • Realistic and sustainable budgeting • Exploring debt options; including formal and informal options and referring clients to the

most appropriate agency for their needs;

Formal options

• Bankruptcy • Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) • Debt Relief Order (DRO, debts under £20k))

Approved by a competent authority • Administration order (debts under £5k)

Informal options

• Do nothing • Nil offer • Token offer • Pro-rata offer (may lead to DMP) • Write off – no income, no assets, no change in circumstances • Partial write off • Voluntary Charge • Sale of assets


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• Debt consolidation/ re-mortgage • Freezing interest and charges used in combination with other options • Moratorium: extended breathing space

Refer out

• IVA - refer to an insolvency practitioner • Voluntary charge – refer to a solicitor

Why do we provide this service? We are developing a money and debt advice service because we have identified a need for such a service in North West Kent. We will …

1) Work with you to identify all debts and any debts of a partner/ spouse

2) Identify priority and non-priority debts

3) Address any emergencies as a result of the above debts by supporting you to deal with them or by referring you on to the most appropriate agency

4) Assist with budget planning, including identifying any areas of saving

5) Offer advice on the debt options available

6) Contact creditors, where necessary/ appropriate

Any advice offered will always be in your best interests and provided in an empowering manner so we can …

• Understand and make sure any course of action is appropriate to your circumstances • Ensure any advice is based on a full assessment of your financial circumstances • Provide information about your available options and with you identify which are suitable

options and which are not. The reasons for these decisions will be explained in full. Role of an Adviser

Advisers may be either paid members of staff or volunteers who work with clients to provide information and advice on debt and money issues. All advisers are trained and competent in delivering generalist and case work level money and debt advice. Advisers receive a broad range of training, but are not legal professionals. On accessing the service you will be assigned an adviser. Advice is provided through a range of channels: by a face-to-face appointment, email or telephone.


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Casework

You will be provided with a full casework service from a named adviser.

Appointments

Most of the work will be done in face-to-face appointment with a named adviser, although it is sometimes useful to contact you by either by email or telephone


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3. Information for Staff Accessible Information

SAfE commits to providing all information in an easily accessible format for our service users. Risk Management You will identify priority and non-priority debts and discuss with the client which debts will be included in the chosen debt option, which will not and the reasons for this. You will explain to all clients the advantages, disadvantages, costs, risks and options available at each stage of the debt advice process. You will explain to clients the potential risks and consequences of failing to pay or continue to pay debts that would result in loss of access to essential goods and services e.g. eviction, loss of utility services. These debts include: taxes, fines, child support etc. Before offering any impartial information and advice on a particular course of action or range of debt solutions you will carry out an assessment of:

• Financial position; including income and expenditure (seek explanations if expenditure is particularly high or low)

• Personal circumstances and previous financial history (including the reasons for the financial difficulty, whether it is temporary or longer term)

• Other relevant factors (including any known or reasonably foreseeable changes

in circumstances)

• Credit Referencing Agencies: you will explain the impact that any debt option may have on the client’s ability to obtain credit in the future.

There are systems in place to adequately manage and prioritise client deadlines and time limits.

There is a Business Continuity Plan in place in order to enable SAfE to cope with the effects of an emergency. The policy aims to define and prioritise the critical functions, analyse the emergency risks, detail the agreed response to an emergency and identify key contacts during an emergency. For full details please see the full policy. CVS-NWK holds the Professional Indemnity Insurance policy covering SAfE.

Repayment Conditions You will discuss any repayment conditions of credit agreements, consumer hire agreements, and contact with lenders, those acting on behalf of lenders and the potential consequences and risks including further cost to the client.


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Debt Management Plans You must explain to clients that by entering into a Debt Management Plan (DMP) or another non-statutory repayment plan there is no guarantee that any current legal action will be suspended or stopped. Stages of Debt Advice Advisers will work through the nine stages of debt advice to provide a seamless and streamlined service for clients. The stages include: 1) Exploring the debt problem Advisers must build a relationship of trust with their client and an environment that is safe, comfortable and non-judgemental. Advisers need to understand the root of the debt problem, which means starting at the beginning with their client and gathering as much detailed information as possible. For further guidance see pg. 39, Chapter 3: Stages of debt advice. CPAG, Debt Advice Handbook. 2) Dealing with urgent issues This is usually the presenting issue or the trigger, which has brought the client to seek debt advice. Advisers should check if there is an emergency, i.e. a situation that will have a detrimental effect on the client if it is not resolved immediately. Examples include: an imminent risk to housing, essential goods and services. For further guidance see pg. 40, Chapter 3: Stages of debt advice. CPAG, Debt Advice Handbook. 3) Listing creditors and minimising debts You should gather details of all debts and all creditors, including those with no arrears. Start with a client’s credit reference file if there is no, or incomplete, paperwork. If arranging an appointment with a client request that the client brings along all the paperwork they have in relation to their debts. At this stage it is important to check whether the client is responsible for the debt and to prioritise the debts. For further guidance see pg. 41 - 43, Chapter 3: Stages of debt advice. CPAG, Debt Advice Handbook. 4) Listing and maximising income After dealing with any emergencies and gathering all the information with regards to creditors, the next stage is to look at the income of the individual and potentially her / his family. This includes areas such as: whose income to include, the types of income to include, capital and any ways in which to maximise the household’s income (e.g. through benefit entitlement or fuel and water tariff reduction). For further guidance see pg. 44 - 46, Chapter 3: Stages of debt advice. CPAG, Debt Advice Handbook. 5) Listing expenditure List everything on which the client is spending her / his income. This must include items such as: housing costs, fuel, furniture and bedding, laundry, telephone, television and license, other household items, toiletries and food, clothing and shoes, health, religious and cultural activities, transport, hire purchase, fines and other costs. It is important at this stage to look at ways of


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reducing expenditure. For further guidance see pg. 46 - 49, Chapter 3: Stages of debt advice. CPAG, Debt Advice Handbook. 6) Dealing with priority debts Identifying and dealing with priority debts removes the risk of homelessness, loss of goods or services or imprisonment. Stages 6 & 7 overlap as priority debts need to be identified first so they can be included in the financial statement, which is the next step. However, a financial statement may need to be drawn up at this stage in order to negotiate priority debts. For further guidance see pg. 50, Chapter 3: Stages of debt advice. CPAG, Debt Advice Handbook. 7) Drawing up a financial statement (CFS / SFS) Advisers should use the Common Financial Statement tool* when preparing a financial statement for a client. This includes income and expenditure, creditors, and any surplus income to pay these creditors. It must be based on a true and accurate assessment of the client’s circumstances and offers must be realistic and sustainable. The financial statement forms the justification for any repayment or request for non-payment. For further guidance see pg. 50 - 53, Chapter 3: Stages of debt advice. CPAG, Debt Advice Handbook. *Note: The CFS will be replaced by the Money Advice Service’s Standard Financial Statement (SFS) from 1 March 2017. 8) Choosing a strategy for non-priority debts The starting point should always be what the client wants. However, in order to make this decision the client should be made aware of the full range of options available so that s/he can make an informed choice. All advice given should be accurate, timely, and appropriate to the client’s situation and in the best interests of the client. For further information on: Choosing a strategy, The general approach to non-priority debts, Strategies for dealing with non-priority debts and Court-based strategies see pg. 54 - 57, Chapter 3: Stages of debt advice & Chapter 9: Dealing with non-priority debts. CPAG, Debt Advice Handbook. 9) Implementing the chosen strategies Implementation is by means of contact with creditors and requires communication and representational skills. The implementation involves more than individual casework. Implementation may be carried out by the client, SAfE or by referral to another agency. Factors taken into account here include:

• The client’s skills and abilities • The complexity of the case • SAfE’s remit and service limitations, e.g. we will refer out IVAs and DROs. See scope of

service section for further details. For further guidance see pg. 57, Chapter 3: Stages of debt advice. CPAG, Debt Advice Handbook.


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4. Organisation Information A. Policies Business Plan Please see SAfE’s Business Plan for 2016 – 2018. Complaints SAfE aims to provide high quality services that meet clients’ needs. We believe we achieve this most of the time: if we are not getting it right please let us know. In order to ensure our services remain at a high and improving standard, we have a procedure through which clients can let us know if for any reason they are not satisfied with their dealings with the organisation. Clients should be encouraged to tell us if they are not happy with our service. Client complaints are always welcome, because they can only help us to improve our services. If a client is unhappy with the service s/he has received, s/he has the right to make a free complaint to SAfE. In such situations, the client should be given c a copy of our complaints policy and procedure. If the client’s complaint relates to our debt advice service, the client must be informed that s/he has the right to take her / his complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service: - By post: Financial Ombudsman Service Exchange Tower, London E14 9SR By phone: 0800 0 234 567 – free for people phoning from a ‘fixed’ line (e.g. a landline at home) 0300 123 9 123 – free for mobile phone users who pay a monthly charge for calls to numbers starting 01 and 02. By email: [email protected] Website: www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk Please see full complaints policy and procedure for further details. Confidentiality All information concerning users at SAfE must be treated as strictly confidential at all times. Please see our confidentiality policy for full details. Equality & Diversity Statement SAfE is committed to actively opposing all forms of discrimination. We intend to ensure that equality of opportunity becomes a reality throughout its work, and the work of all its services and projects.


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SAfE will seek to ensure that no job applicant, employee (paid or unpaid), volunteer or client receives less favourable treatment on the grounds of disability, race, sex, age, sexual orientation, religion or belief, marital/civil partnership status, gender reassignment, pregnancy/maternity status. All workers have a legal and moral obligation not to discriminate and to report incidents of discrimination against any individual or group of individuals. Any worker found to be discriminating will face disciplinary proceedings. Please see our full equality and diversity policy for further details. Financial Controls The purpose of the policy is to define the financial systems used by SAfE and how they relate to all areas of the organisation. Please see the full policy for details. Risk Management Strategy The aim of this strategy is to proactively identify risks impacting upon SAfE’s activities as an organisation and then to take a deliberate course of action to either:

• Minimise the impact of risk for example with contingency planning • Accept the risk • Transfer the risk by ensuring there is appropriate insurance in place • Reduce the risk (if complete avoidance is impossible or disproportionately expensive in

time or money) • Monitor the risk

Please see full policy. Treating Customers Fairly SAfE aims to ensure that clients are the central focus of the services we provide. We aim to deliver the highest standards of information, advice and support in the most user-friendly, reliable and efficient way. We see the commitment to treating our clients fairly as a vital element in our approach and as such endeavours to meet client’s expectations of the highest possible standards. SAfE has based its Treating Customers Fairly policy (TCF) on the guidance provided by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to ensure that we are consistent in delivering fair outcomes to all of our clients. This also supports us to take full responsibility at all personnel levels to ensure we continue to develop a culture of transparency and openness. Please see full policy for details.


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B. Competence Recruitment Policy and Procedures SAfE has the following personnel procedures in place to ensure the correct competency levels of its Staff & Volunteers. Recruitment, Induction & Support Recruitment Identifying Need: The need for a role within a specific project or service area, whether supporting a new area of work or adding capacity to an existing area will be identified by SAfE’s management in consultation with the advisers. Advertising: The recruitment pack for the role will then be drawn up consisting of; advert (including checklist of where to advertise), letter regarding the post and timeframes, an overview sheet about the organisation, job description and person spec which outlines the skills, knowledge and experience required, application notes and form and equality monitoring form. Application: There is usually a two-week deadline once the post is advertised to return applications to SAfE. Shortlist: The panel (usually three people) identified to interview successful applicants will then shortlist applications against the person specification. In terms of the person specification for money and debt advisers we would be expecting at a minimum for the advisers to meet the wiser adviser generalist level competences and in some instances the case worker level competences also. Candidates rejected at this stage will be informed by letter. Candidates successful at this stage will be informed by phone and letter. Interview: Interview will usually be conducted within a week of the deadline and our aim is to inform candidates of the outcome the same day, where possible. The interview will test the key criteria outlined in the person spec. Induction Organisation: A start date will be arranged with the successful candidate and they will begin their induction into the organisation as a whole. Job specific: After the above staff and volunteers then go on to their job/role specific induction supported by their supervisor. All paid positions are subject to a six-month probationary period.

Support Procedures Probationary review at 6 months The probationary period is the initial period of employment during which time both the management and the employee assess the suitability of the arrangement. The Management will monitor and regularly assess performance, discussing his or her assessment with the employee. This review will cover training, conduct, attitude and standard of work performance.


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If a Manager has any concerns with any of these areas he or she will agree with the employee the appropriate corrective action which may include further training, retraining, redirection and/or an extension of the probationary period or termination of employment.

Supervision every 6 weeks The supervisor completes a summary of the session and sends the completed template to the supervisee(s) who check it is an accurate record of the discussions had and sends confirmation of this to their supervisor. The record is then filed in the staff member(s) personnel file and the actions are undertaken within the timeframes set. The previous supervision record is then revisited at the start of each subsequent supervision session to ensure all previous actions are complete. Please see template.

Appraisal on an annual basis An appraisal against an employee’s job description and competencies with regards to their role, teamwork and any external work is carried out between an employee and their manager once a year. At which an action plan with regards to any training, areas of development etc. is drawn up and signed off by the employee, their manager and their manager’s manager. Please see template. Independent File Review Independent file review (IFR) is a key quality assurance tool for advice work. It involves a detailed review of an enquiry/case to establish that advice given is appropriate and accurate and that, for advice work, our case management systems have been followed.

All advisers will have a sample of their cases selected for IFR. External Peer Review Arrangements will be made to establish regular External Peer Reviews of a sample of cases for each debt adviser at SAfE. Training All training plans are discussed at each supervision and appraisal. If there have been any performance-related issues, or any service or individual complaints in between supervisions, this will be discussed and any training needs identified. A training budget will be established when resources allow. We have access to the Money Advice Trust’s free Wiseradviser training programme through our membership of AdviceUK. We also have access to the Debt Expert Advice Team at Citizens Advice through our membership of AdviceUK. Meetings SAfE has regular organisation staff meetings which gives the staff the opportunity to come together and share what they have been doing and for everyone to receive updates on organisation development.


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Local Money Advice Groups Advisers will attend London Branch meetings of the Institute of Money Advisers. They are also aware of the Money Advice Liaison Group forums and will endeavour to attend meetings as often as possible. Support procedures Throughout an adviser’s time at SAfE there are various support and competency procedures in place to ensure the highest standard of work and job satisfaction. These include regular Independent File Reviews, six-weekly supervision, six-month probationary review and an annual appraisal and External Peer Review.

C. Quality

Equality Working towards equality is our primary aim and must be prioritised. It is not a tick box exercise. We need to monitor our service delivery by using equality monitoring forms and recording this on the relevant section on our database. Every year we collate the information and compare this against local authority statistics to see which groups we are not accessing. DBS Checking

We conduct Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) checks for all staff and volunteers and renew these every two years. The level of check required will depend on the role of the staff member or volunteer. Any staff or volunteers conducting home visits, working with clients on an on-going basis or one to one who meet the previous eligibility criteria for enhanced level checks with barred lists will be eligible for an Enhanced Check (without barred list). All other staff and volunteers are eligible for a basic level check. D. Monitoring and evaluation Independent File Reviews Scope and Purpose Independent file review (IFR) is a key quality assurance tool for advice work. It involves a detailed review of an enquiry/case to establish that advice given is appropriate and accurate and that, for advice work, our case management systems have been followed. All advisers will have a sample of their cases selected for IFR.


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Forms to be used with this procedure: - • Independent File Review – Master Checklist • Independent File Review – Checklist Debt/Money Advice Other relevant policies and procedures: - • Appraisal • Training and Development • Supervision Implementation File reviews will be conducted by the most experienced SAfE advisers. Workers with less than one year’s experience will have 3 enquiry sheet/files reviewed each month. Workers with more than a year’s experience will have 3 enquiry sheets/files reviewed every 2 months. This may vary according to the skills and experience of an individual, the number of cases undertaken and the outcome of previous file reviews. In addition, the IFR may include any other files the adviser wishes to discuss. The reviewer will select samples from current database enquiry sheets. An IFR checklist will be completed for each sample chosen. Substantive and procedural issues will be checked as listed on the checklist, which will thereafter be retained and stored in the central IFR file. A note that the review has been carried out will be made on each sample and signed and dated by the reviewer. What happens if corrective action is identified? In the event of an IFR disclosing a problem, the reviewer will discuss this with the adviser concerned. A note of the necessary action and the date by which it should be completed will be made on the checklist sheet and on the database. The date for corrective action will take into account the risk to the client. Once the action has been taken, the adviser should pass the file to the reviewer who will sign and date the checklist sheet and update the client’s records on the database to confirm that the work has been completed. Feedback to advisers The results of IFRs will be fed back to advisers by the person who conducted the review and a summary of the results will be discussed at each adviser’s appraisal. If there are serious or continued problems with an adviser’s performance, the person who conducted the IFR will discuss with the adviser the possibility of extra support or training. In extreme cases, disciplinary action may be appropriate. Identification of recurring trends An annual review of the checklists stored in the central IFR file will be undertaken by Management to identify any training needs or other organisational improvements


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necessary. The results of this review will be used to inform the annual service performance review. Outcomes We have a core set of service outcomes, which we monitor regularly throughout the year and review annually. These are based on the Money Advice Service Evaluation Framework. Service Evaluation We carry out an annual service evaluation via post, email and telephone to capture the experience and impact of the service on our users. Recording Feedback As an organisation we cannot improve unless we are honest. We consider key times when our projects can assess people’s journeys, gain their feedback in the most appropriate way so we can continue identifying gaps in service provision. We will record positive and negative feedback along with a gift register.


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Independent File Review – Master Checklist Client name/ID no.: Adviser: Checked by: Date checked: Issue (casework)

Tick or cross

Issue (procedure)

Tick or cross

Enquiry fully recorded Signposting/referral appropriate

Info required obtained from client Client name/details recorded

Information sources shown

Record legible, clear to others

Diagnosis recorded Record dated/signed

Options explored Deadlines/time limits recorded Consequences explained Key dates/diary system used

Advice clear DPA consent obtained

Advice complete & accurate Conflict of interest check

undertaken (if appropriate)

Advice appropriate to client & local situation

Relevant documentation attached

Record of action to be taken by advice centre/client

Client informed of any potential costs (if appropriate)

Action followed through by advice centre

Client kept informed of progress/outcome

Further help/follow up offered Request for feedback from client Missed issues Other All boxes to be marked tick/cross/not applicable Additional comments (inc. identification of corrective action): Corrective action completed by: Date: Confirmed by: Date: NOTE: This checklist must be completed for all client work


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Independent File Review – Checklist Debt/ Money Advice Client name/ID no.: Adviser: Checked by: Date checked: Issue (casework)

Tick or cross

Issue (procedure)

Tick or cross

Has the adviser sufficiently enquired about all aspects of client’s financial position: income, expenditure, debts, short term future changes, assets inc. pensions, potential mis-sold product refunds, previous insolvency?

Is the customer from England or Wales

Have the client’s financial statements been signed off, using the CFS and trigger figures?

Conflict of Interest check carried out

Does the customer’s financial statement provide an accurate and complete picture of their financial situation? And has this been confirmed with the client before it is used externally?

Signed DPA consent obtained.

Has the client provided an explanation as to any particularly high or low expenditure?

In this case, was it necessary for the advice to take account of the customer’s vulnerability? (e.g. a client with mental health and capacity issues - referencing MALG debt and mental health guidance.)

Has the advice and guidance in this case been provided: • With the best interest of the

customer in mind? • Appropriate to all the customers

individual circs? • Based on a full assessment of the

clients circs?

Has all the advice in this case been confirmed in writing and/or by email?

Has the full range of options available to the customer been explored and explained and was the advice provided suitable for the customer’s needs?

Has it been made clear to the customer the length of time information is held about them with credit reference agencies?


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Has it been explained to the customer why we consider the options identified to be suitable and other options unsuitable?

If applicable, has the customer been provided with details of how to dispute information held on their credit reference file? (e.g. Information Commissioner’s Publication – Credit Explained)

Has a full outline of the pros and cons of other debt solutions, that may be appropriate, been explained to the client? (e.g. IVAs, DROs and bankruptcy)

Has the customer been signposted to others sources of free debt advice in the event we cannot assist?

Is the recommended debt solution an affordable option for the customer?

Has the customer been advised that a DMP may not cease all interest and charges and that lenders may still pursue recovery action?

Has sufficient advice been provided in relation to priority debts? e.g. safeguarding client’s home, enforcement

Have all reasonable steps been taken to verify the customer’s identity, income, and expenditure as well as all their creditors?

Is the communication with the customer’s creditors clear, transparent and written in plain and intelligible language?

Has the customer in this case been informed of the outcome of any negotiations with lenders, including providing customers with relevant copy correspondence?

Have the client’s rights and responsibilities in relation to Enforcement Agents been adequately explained to the client?

Have any of the client’s creditors stated they will not deal with the Fed; and if so has the client been advised of this?

Have the consequences for the customer’s credit rating been detailed to the customer?

In this case, have we checked the accuracy of the customer’s account and made every effort to ensure information sent to creditors is correct?

Has it been necessary to assist the customer to obtain a copy of their credit file?

Have actions been diarised, during the course of the case to ensure the case is sufficiently kept up to date?

Has the customer been advised of the actual or potential consequences of failing to pay different types of debts?

Is it clear from the case notes what the next steps in the case are, who is responsible (client or adviser) and when?

In this case, was it is appropriate to advise the customer to not make a contractual repayment and/or cancel a payment method? If so, was it fully explained to the

Has the adviser carried out appropriate signposting/referrals?


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client the reason for this advice being in their best interests? Where it is suggested to a customer that they may wish to stop making contractual payments, has the customer been warned of the actual or potential consequence of taking this course of action?

Has the adviser made the client aware of any available financial help towards costs? e.g. trust funds.

In this case, have we become aware that non-payment of contractual payments is no longer in the customer’s best interest? If so have we advised the customer?

The case was closed at the appropriate time with adequate notice to the client?

All boxes to be marked tick/cross/not applicable Additional comments (inc. identification of corrective action): Corrective action completed by: Date: Confirmed by: Date: NOTE: This checklist only needs to be completed for money and debt client work


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APPENDIX Policies & Procedures referred to in this handbook

I. Business Continuity Plan II. Business Plan 2016 - 2018

III. Complaints Policy IV. Confidentiality Policy V. Conflict of Interest Policy & Procedure

VI. Data Protection Policy VII. DPA Explicit Consent Form

VIII. Equality & Diversity Policy IX. Equality Monitoring Form X. Financial Management & Controls Policy

XI. Risk Register XII. Treating Customers Fairly Policy


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Version Control

V1 19th Jan 2017 Initial V2 19th Jan 2017 Corrections V3 1st Feb 2017 Corrections, version control added

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