Access to Debt Advice During Covid-19

• Context
• The study
• Key findings
• Points to consider

Context

The Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) published their UK Strategy for Financial Wellbeing in January 2020, and set a shared goal of having two million more people accessing free, high-quality debt advice by 2030. Through the Better Debt Advice Challenge Group, they brought together thought leaders from debt advice, financial services, and devolved governments to identify ways to achieve this goal. However, within weeks of setting this goal, the global pandemic necessitated the closure of the majority of in-person public services across the UK.

This rapid closure of in-person public services during the Covid-19 pandemic had a profound effect on the accessibility and delivery of debt advice in the UK. MaPS’ own research, and feedback from the debt advice sector, demonstrated that some groups already vulnerable to financial shocks were more likely to be negatively affected by the pandemic.

MaPS wanted to consider the extent to which the closure of community based in-person debt advice services disproportionately impacted any of these groups.

The study

This study builds on the evidence of five rapid evidence reviews, commissioned by MaPS, on the subjects of financial education, saving, credit use, debt advice, and pensions – to understand the impact of the pandemic on MaPS’ UK Strategy goals and financial wellbeing more generally.

Building on the insights from these reviews, and a recommendation from the Better Debt Advice Challenge Group, this study looks more closely at the effect the closure of in-person debt advice services had on the accessibility and delivery of debt advice in the UK, particularly for those groups already vulnerable to financial shocks.

These groups included the digitally disengaged, people presenting with certain complex needs, people with caring responsibilities (particularly mothers with dependent children), people with mental health problems, migrants with English as a second language, and young people at risk of long-term unemployment. The focus was on understanding the extent to which any of these groups were disproportionately affected by the closure of these services.

To support this research, a call for evidence was launched in late September 2021 to hear the views of the those working with and within the debt advice sector on whether there was an unserved population for debt advice due to the closure of in-person services. Twenty-eight responses were received from a range of individuals and organisations working with or within the debt advice sector. A number of semi-structured interviews were also carried out with MaPS funded debt advice organisations, MaPS colleagues, and groups working with different communities across the UK.

Key findings

The rapid closure of in-person public services during the Covid-19 pandemic had a profound effect on the accessibility and delivery of debt advice in the UK.

Responding to the immediate lockdown and the transition to remote delivery

• Despite the initial upheaval, debt organisations were able to adapt; from broadening and formalising their links with community partners to make the debt advice referral process more resilient, to increasing direct promotion and marketing to raise awareness of their services.
• For advisers and the wider debt advice workforce, the impact of the initial lockdown and the transition to remote delivery was testing, with some finding the move to home working challenging.

Adapting to the next phase of the pandemic

• The move to a digital-first model during the pandemic helped some organisations manage capacity and service availability more effectively.
• Investment in digital e-signature platforms and secure document transfer and storage solutions also made services easier to access and more convenient to use during the pandemic.
• Both behavioural and structural barriers prevented some people from accessing debt advice remotely.
  • Online safety and security concerns, limited digital skills, poor connectivity, and the cost of data were all factors stopping some people from going online for debt advice.
  • Yet, a digital and telephone service also brought benefits for clients by making appointments easier and interactions less stressful for some people in vulnerable circumstances.
• Responses from debt advisers tended to be more negative compared to those submitted by debt advice organisations.
  • Some advisers stated that delivering debt advice remotely was more complicated and time consuming, which negatively affected the wellbeing of the debt sector workforce.
  • Some advisers found working from home during the pandemic challenging, others relayed positive stories about their experiences in terms of better work/life balance.

Impact the closure of in-person services had on clients and cases

• An analysis of MaPS’ own data and data shared by MaPS’ funded agencies did not show any significant changes in the types of clients accessing debt advice before and during the pandemic.
• Women, single parents, renters, and younger people (under the age of 40) continued to be overrepresented in caseload data. These findings are in the context of a sharp drop in clients accessing debt advice at the start of the pandemic.

Points to consider

• Methodological strengths/weaknesses: Detail of the methodology used is limited in terms of the number of semi-structured interviews achieved and the nature of participant recruitment. However, there was a good response rate from a broad range of organisations and individuals across the debt advice sector (n=28) giving confidence that the sector was evenly represented. This research also builds on and supports the findings of previous calls for evidence on the subject.
• Generalisability/ transferability: The findings from this review are specific to the UK debt advice sector and relate to the unprecedented scenario created by the Covid-19 pandemic.
• Relevance: The insights and practical recommendations from this research will help the debt advice sector to reflect on how they can work together to build resilience and improve accessibility of services to clients in times of crisis.