The general strategy

• Sheriff officers are threatening to visit the client’s home and/or remove goods
• The client is facing the imminent loss of essential goods – eg, if hire purchase goods are about to be repossessed
• The client is facing imminent disconnection of essential utilities
• The client is about to be evicted for rent arrears
• A warrant has been issued for the client’s arrest for an unpaid fine
• The client is due in court the next day
• The client has no money for food
• A deadline for a response to enforcement action is approaching
• The client attends with an expired charge for payment

•Check what stage the emergency is at and try to get some paperwork.
•Contact the creditor and ask for time to deal with the emergency.
•Ask the creditor what outcome they are looking for.
•Go over the client’s options for dealing with the emergency.
•Look at the whole situation.
•Choose a strategy or strategies to deal with the emergency situation.

The following are some common solutions to some of the emergency situations listed above.

Sheriff officers are threatening to visit the client’s home and/or remove goods

•Let the sheriff officers know you are dealing with the situation and ask them to hold action.
•Apply for a statutory moratorium for the client and advise the sheriff officers. This should prevent them from carrying out the exceptional attachment.
•You can then look at a solution to cover all the debts.
•See Chapter 9 for further information on attachments and exceptional attachments.

The client is facing the imminent loss of essential goods – eg, if hire purchase goods are about to be repossessed

•Check the paperwork to see what stage debt recovery is at. Speak to the creditor and ask what they want and if they will accept a time to pay offer (see Chapter 11).
•Check the agreement and see what the terms are. It may include a clause on insolvency, which you need to be aware of.
•Look at the options available and decide which route to take - ie, time to pay, a time order or a statutory debt solution. A statutory moratorium may prevent the recovery of money owed, but not the repossession of the goods.

The client is facing imminent disconnection of essential utilities

•Advise the supplier that you are dealing with the situation and ask for time to prepare a financial statement. Advise the client that they are in a multiple debt situation and that once you have all the necessary information you will be back in touch.
•Disconnection may be prevented if the supplier is contacted, and a debt repayment plan is arranged. As a last resort, this could also be rearranged by installing a prepayment meter. If the client is in a vulnerable group, fuel cannot be disconnected during winter months (from October to March).

The client is about to be evicted for rent arrears

Some options that may be available include:

•recalling the decree;
•applying for a Debt Payment Programme under the Debt Arrangement Scheme;
•looking at an insolvency solution to deal with the arrears of rent arrears.

Remember:

•Actions for repossession are generally in two parts: one for the money owed and one for repossession of the tenancy.
•The sheriff must be convinced to disallow the repossession action while the debt is being repaid.

A warrant has been issued for the client’s arrest for an unpaid fine

Contact the fines enforcement officer at the appropriate court and advise them of how you are dealing with the situation. Advise them that you will get back to them with an offer once you have completed a financial statement. Suggesting that the client gets legal advice as soon as possible may also be appropriate.

The client is due in court the next day

Imminent court action may not be an emergency. Remember, you may still have the opportunity to recall the decree (or equivalent) if the client does not attend and is not represented. You can also apply for a ‘time to pay order’ (see Chapter 11) after the decree. It may also not be an emergency if the client cannot pay the debt and is considering bankruptcy as a debt solution.

Always find out the client’s whole situation before making an offer under time to pay at court.

If your agency has a referral agreement with specialist housing advisers (eg, at the Civil Legal Assistance Office or Shelter), see if they will accept the client. They may be able to request a continuation in court.

The client has no money for food

Food banks provide short-term emergency support. Advisers should have local knowledge of what is available in their area. See also here.

Advisers could also look at the Scottish Welfare Fund crisis grants for help or any other more immediate crisis assistance locally.

A deadline for a response to enforcement action is approaching

Apply for a statutory moratorium to stop any diligence that has not been actioned or started by the creditor and give you time to assess the client’s situation in full. Remember to let the creditor/sheriff officers know that you have applied for a statutory moratorium, as they are not obliged to check the register. See Chapter 6 for more information.

The client attends with an expired charge for payment

A charge for payment of money is a final notice from a creditor and gives the client 14 days to pay before the creditor can take further diligence against the client (eg, a wages arrestment). Options could include applying for a statutory moratorium (remembering that if diligence has already been actioned, then a statutory moratorium will not help). You can still contact the creditor and make an offer of payment for the client that is affordable, if that is what the client wants to do.