Dealing with Debt

George House Trust and other HIV services in the NW of England can help with dealing with debt.

This page tells you what help is available, where, in NW England.  

Citizens Advice have basic debt and money advice pages called Money Management.

Get help - not DIY

Unless your problem is really simple (one debt), always get expert advice. You can easily make things far worse by just dealing with what seems to be most urgent.

Good money advice that keeps working long term needs someone to understand the whole siituation and work out the best tailored solution for you, with you. It means not just dealing with the debts, but maximising your income, and helping you budget better. Otherwise you end up using sticking plaster remedies that come unstuck because you really need a whole-body financial treatment session.

The DirectGov website also has useful debt and money management advice 

National Debt Line is one of many services that can help

Loan Sharks

Loan sharks - people who lend money illegally - are a menace. Manchester and the other local authorities in Greater Manchester, are working with a team of experts from Birmingham's Illegal Money Lending Team to shut down loan sharks and take them to court for illegal money lending and related offences such as money laundering, counterfeiting and assault. The councils offer help and advice, working closely with victims to introduce them to groups such as credit unions and debt support agencies. It is estimated that the team has helped wipe out more than £2million of illegal debt 'owed' by some of the poorest members of society. It has also seized guns and drugs and recovered more than £100,000 worth of counterfeit items.

Anyone with concerns about illegal money lenders can contact the Illegal Money Lending Team on 0161 211 1122 or email the Stop Loan Sharks team