Bailiffs, Government and Councils ranked most unfair in dealing with debt

A report by charity Stepchange has found that  bailiffs, government departments and bailiffs are among the most unfair when dealing with people in problem debt. The report titled Creditor and debt collector conduct: What’s making debt problems worse? also found that some creditors are failing to take vulnerabilities such as depression and other ongoing mental health conditions into account. Other findings show how poor bailiff practices, such as intimidation and the addition of excessive fees, are still commonplace and are making people’s existing debt problems worse despite reforms implemented by the Ministry of Justice in April 2014.

Here is the result of the survey:

1 Bailiff 50%

2 Local authority 42%

3 Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) 36%

4 Mobile phone company 32%

5 Debt collection agency 30%

6 HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) 28%

7 Payday or short term lender 28%

8 Utility company 27%

9 Catalogue lender 26%

10 Fee-charging debt management firm 26%

11 Store card lender 23%

12 High street bank 21%

13 Credit card company 20%

The full report can be found be requested by going to the Stepchange website.