Useful Links

We have compiled a selection of websites which you might find useful. We have broken these down into sections to make it easier to navigate. Each extract has some explanation about the organisation or agency itself and then highlights some points of interest on their site.

Government Departments
Regulators and Adjudicators
Credit Industry and Trade Bodies
Law Websites
Consumer Information
Money Advice Sites
Data Information and Credit Referencing
Journals and Publications

Government Departments

Communities and Local Government
www.communities.gov.uk
Communities and Local Government sets policy on local government, housing, urban regeneration, planning, fire and rescue and community cohesion and race equality issues. Previously the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, this site contains information, research and publications affecting local communities such as Housing, Environment, Planning and Building, Social Exclusion and Community Cohesion. The site includes guidance material for homeowners and tenants and policy information on housing issues. This office is also responsible for Neighbourhood Renewal and New Deal for Communities.

Department for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform
www.berr.gov.uk
Formerly Department of Trade and Industry, BERR www.berr.gov.uk includes information about business regulation from the Better Regulation Executive (BRE). It also has a section on consumer affairs including guidance on consumer protection legislation. BERR manages the UK’s energy liabilities, including prices, reliability and efficiency, and refers and links to issues around fuel poverty. The consumer credit review consultations including links to the various statutory instruments can be accessed from the site. There is information covering the consumer credit bill and DTI Over-indebtedness work.

Department for Work and Pensions
www.dwp.gov.uk
This site provides thorough and up to date information on all aspects of state benefits. It includes an indispensable resource centre containing Publications, Research and Consultations; Information about Policy and Welfare Reform. There is an A-Z of benefits and services, including introductions to new benefits such as the Employment Support Allowance. The website contains downloadable leaflets and a section specifically for advisers.

HM Treasury
www.hm-treasury.gov.uk
This website contains a great deal of economic information and data on financial services including consultations, including more recently publications and information on the Government strategy to improve financial capability and on the FSA national strategy, 'Delivering Change'. The site has a wealth of financial statistics and information about the UK and Global Economy. Information about and links to the Financial Services Authority for financial regulation.

Insolvency Service
www.insolvency.gov.uk
Informative site about insolvency containing information ranging from general background to how to petition for bankruptcy and alternatives to bankruptcy. It includes helpful leaflets in community languages and audio format, also court forms which can be downloaded. It includes a copy of the Enterprise Act 2002, 2008 amendments, the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 and various guides to the Acts’ insolvency provisions, including rules and regulations for the new Debt Relief Orders. Access to the insolvency register can also be gained through this site.

In Debt "Dealing with your creditors"

http://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_dg/groups/dg_digitalassets/@dg/@en/documents/digitalasset/dg_179015.pdf

The Insolvency Services Guide to dealing with debt problems: If you have debt problems there are various options for helping you make arrangements involving your creditors. This guide explains these options, how they work and some of the pros and cons of each. The guide can help you with personal or business debts, or both.

Do not use the guide as a substitute for getting independent expert advice on which option is best for you. Always seek independent advice early. The worst thing when you have money troubles is to do nothing and to hope the problem will go away.

Legal Services Commission
www.legalservices.gov.uk
The Legal Services Commission looks after the legal aid system and helps people access the help they need to address their problems. This site includes all statutory material and guidance relating to public funding and details about applying for and maintaining the CLS quality mark standard. The site contains all current downloadable contract forms including applications, claims, controlled work, legal funding and reporting forms in PDF. Vital information and guidance is available on the Unified Contract including General Provisions and Category Specific Specifications. Paper master copies of updates are no longer sent out and are now only available online. This site is also access to the LSC Online facility when this resumes service.

Ministry of Justice
www.moj.gov.uk
Formerly the Lord Chancellor’s Department, then the Department for Constitutional Affairs. The responsibilities have, since May 07, been transferred to the www.moj.gov.uk. The site contains information on the legal system, the courts of England and Wales and the judiciary. It includes some legislation, White Papers and consultations. Of key assistance to advisers is the section containing all of the Civil Procedure Rules together with all updates. The site also has some useful publications and statistical information about the number of court actions, possession orders by courts and region. The Department for Constitutional Affairs website www.dca.gov.uk is still available as an archive and information purposes only and will not contain the most up to date information.

Regulators and Adjudicators

Advertising Standards Authority
www.asa.org.uk
The ASA ensures all advertising meets the advertising codes. This is a very informative site about the role of the ASA and the rules on good advertising practice. The advertising standards code can be downloaded. It contains details of adjudication’s by subject index including numerous cases involving credit grantors. The site also has a comprehensive step by step guide to complaints and an online complaint form.

The Banking Code Standards Board
www.bankingcode.org.uk
The BCSB monitors and enforces the banking codes and ensures subscribers provide a fair deal to customers. The website explains the role of the BCSB and how it monitors compliance of the banking code. The code and guidance to subscribers is available to download. The site includes a list of those who have signed up to the code and also those organisations who have not.

Consumer Focus
www.consumerfocus.org.uk
Recently created through the merger of three consumer organisations – Energywatch, Postwatch and the National Consumer Council (including the Welsh and Scottish Consumer Councils). The new approach claims to allow a more joined-up consumer advocacy, with a single organisation speaking with a more powerful voice and able to more readily bring cross-sector expertise to issues of concern.

Finance Industry Standards Association
www.fisa.co.uk
FISA is a joint initiative of brokers and lenders in the secured loan (or second mortgage) sector to enhance, but not enforce, standards in the industry. FISA's purpose is to help members comply with Consumer Credit Act and FSA regulation as well as the FISA Code. The website includes a list of lender members, its code of conduct and responses to consultations. For the borrower the site includes an information guide about how secured loans work.

Financial Ombudsman Service
www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk
The independent service for settling disputes between consumers and businesses providing financial services. This site provides information about the scope of the Ombudsman scheme, how to complain and the type of redress available. The complaint form can be completed on screen. Also provides useful case studies via its “Ombudsman News” bulletins and some useful factsheets relating to complaint areas such as cheques, insurance and endowments.

The Financial Services Authority
www.fsa.gov.uk
The FSA is the UK’s financial services watchdog. The site contains a huge amount of material including the FSA handbook where the Insurance and Mortgage Codes of Business can be accessed (of particular interest for Money Advisers are sections 12 and 13 of the MCOB). The site has consultations and policy statements on financial services issues. There is a search tool which identifies FSA authorised individuals and companies and provides further details including their disciplinary history. For consumers, the Money Made Clear link is an in depth guide to financial products including mortgages, including calculation tools for testing affordability of products and comparisons of products.

Insolvency Practitioners Association
www.insolvency-practitioners.org.uk
The Insolvency Practitioners Association (IPA) is a membership body recognised for the purposes of authorising (licensing) insolvency practitioners (IPs) under the Insolvency Act 1986. The site mainly contains information for members but also includes a guide to professional conduct.

The Office of Fair Trading
www.oft.gov.uk
The OFT is responsible for making markets work for consumers. This is a very informative site with significant emphasis on credit and debt issues for which it includes a consumer information section. Various reports of the OFT on consumer credit and unfair contract terms are downloadable. It also has a new “Advisor Resources” section written specifically to provide resource information to different categories of consumer advisers.

Social Security and Child Support Commissioners
www.osscsc.gov.uk
The Office of Social Security and Child Support Commissioners are appointed by the Queen and are not connected to any government department. To challenge decisions made by the Appeals Service Tribunals, where leave to appeal is granted, application can be made to the Commissioners to make decisions about points of law. The site provides comprehensive information on the appeal procedures and also previous case decisions.

Credit Industry and Trade Bodies

Association of British Credit Unions
www.abcul.org
ABCUL is the main trade association for credit unions in the UK. This website includes sections on the role of credit unions, a list of members, a credit union search engine how they are run and regulated. It also contains information about the new CONNECT project, which assists in the building of relationships between advice agencies and local credit unions.

British Bankers Association
www.bba.org.uk
The BBA is the leading association for the UK banking and financial services sector. The site has information about banking regulations, legislation, up to date statistics on finance and credit. The Banking Code which can be downloaded. The site also has a section of consumer fact sheets and leaflets covering topics like borrowing money, managing finances and debt, finding lost accounts, availability of basic bank and business accounts, banking aboard and information about mental capacity.

British Cheque Cashers Association
www.bcca.co.uk
The British Cheque Cashers Association is the trade association of the cheque cashing industry in the UK. The site has a copy of their code of practice and a search engine to find members.

Building Societies Association
www.bsa.org.uk
The Building Societies Association (BSA) is the trade association for all of the UK's building societies. The website Includes general information about building societies and its members. It has consumer fact sheets covering topics such as dormant accounts, mental capacity, fraud, mortgages and ISAs. There is also a facility for tracing and finding lost accounts.

Civil Court Users Association
www.ccua.org.uk
The CCUA is a membership organisation that represents the interest of those using the courts. The CCUA lobbies the Ministry of Justice and The Court Service on behalf of users mainly creditors or collectors to improve the service provided by the courts.

Council of Mortgage Lenders
www.cml.org.uk
The trade association for the mortgage lending industry. The site lists all CML members with links to the lenders’ own sites. It has a good deal of information about mortgage regulation and home ownership matters. It includes The Mortgage Code, various policy statements and a range of consumer information. It also has factsheets dealing with complaints under the mortgage code, policy about arrears and possession and the voluntary agreement on mortgage shortfalls.

Consumer Credit Trade Association
www.ccta.co.uk
The CCTA is a trade association which supports and represents some businesses involved in consumer credit, hire and debt collection, motor finance and insurance brokers.

Consumer Credit Association
www.ccauk.org
The CCA is the trade body of the home credit industry. With around 500 lender members it is the focal point for contact by government, local authorities, other finance sector representative bodies, consumer groups who have an interest in the home credit industry and the media. The site has information about making a complaint to the CCA and includes the members pledge and the Code of Practice.

Credit Services Association
www.csa-uk.com
The UK trade body for companies connected to the tracing, collection and recovery of debt. The site includes their code of conduct and list of members. Also has a sub-site for the Debt Buyers and Sellers Group which represents the debt sales and purchase industry.

Enforcement Services Association
www.ensas.org.uk
A central organisation for certificated bailiffs and civil law enforcement agents. Formerly the Certificated Bailiffs Association, the ESA promotes ethical and professional conduct among members. The site includes access to the rules, code of conduct and complaints procedure.

Finance and Leasing Association
www.fla.org.uk
The major consumer finance trade body for the asset, consumer and motor finance sectors in the UK. The site contains a search facility for members. All FLA Lending Codes can be accessed depending on the relevant year of the agreement. The site contains useful consumer guidance about money advice and payment difficulties and has a detailed explanation about early repayment charges under the Consumer Credit Act. The site contains information about the FLA’s complaints procedure.

National Pawnbrokers Association
www.thenpa.com
Includes basic information about pawn-broking and its history.

Law Websites

Her Majesty’s Court Service
www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk
An indispensable site, providing details of court fees and all court forms and leaflets which are downloadable. The site provides access and guidance to the online claims service. It includes a facility for tracking claims and has details of all court addresses in the UK and has a directory to check which county court has jurisdiction in a particular location. The site has daily listing of cases in the Royal Courts of Justice and also provides many Court of Appeal judgments.

Consumer Information

Bank of England
www.bankofengland.co.uk
The Bank of England sets interest rates to keep inflation low, issues banknotes and works to maintain a stable financial system. The site provides information about legislation, governance and structure of banking and also has extensive statistical information and publications.

Consumer Direct
www.consumer.gov.uk
Consumer Direct is the government -funded telephone and online service delivered in partnership with Local Authority Trading Standards Services. The well organised and easy to use site offers information and advice on consumer issues and legal rights.

Direct Gov
www.direct.gov.uk
This is a Government information site giving access to information about all public services, including sections on benefits and debt information.

Financial Services Consumer Panel
www.fs-cp.org.uk
This is the watchdog that keeps the FSA in check. The site includes policy statements and research concerning financial and banking matters.

Money Saving Expert
www.moneysavingexpert.com
Martin Lewis is a specialist journalist dedicated to assisting members of the public get value for money in purchases, services, insurance, overdrafts and mortgages etc. This consumer advice website highlights deals, discounts and saving opportunities. Lewis presents information in a comprehensible way and helps the consumer navigate round ostensibly complex issues.

Personal Finance Research Centre
www.ggy.bris.ac.uk
University of Bristol site containing information on research undertaken on debt and poverty issues.

Trading Standards Central
www.tradingstandards.gov.uk
This site is supported and maintained by the Trading Standards Institute. It contains general information and leaflets about consumer rights and provides a search facility by location to find contact details of local trading standards departments.

TV Licensing
www.tvlicensing.co.uk
This site gives comprehensive information about TV licensing, including information about the newly universal ‘cash payment scheme’, with optional text reminders. The agency now has online facility for customers payments and change of details.

Money Advice Sites

Citizens Advice
www.citizensadvice.org.uk
All CAB in the UK are members of Citizens Advice, the national charity which sets standards for bureaux. The site has information about, policy issues including evidence reports and responses to consultations which are available for download. The site provides access to order the Adviser Magazine (subscription required to non members). Also on the site is a facility to find local bureaux and access to Adviceguide, the online information system.

Church Action on Poverty
www.church-poverty.org.uk
Provides information about campaigns dealing with poverty, including the ‘Debt on your Doorstep’ and ‘Get Fair’ campaign.

Credit Action
www.creditaction.com
Credit Action is a national money education charity committed to helping people manage their money better. This site contains a section on money saving and budgeting ideas, a section about debt statistics and publications. It links to the CCCS self-help guide for dealing with personal debt.

Money Advice Scotland
www.moneyadvicescotland.org.uk
MAS is the umbrella organisation to represent individuals and agencies involved in all areas of money advice in Scotland. The site has a local debt advice finder and links to advice, training and publications which including research, statistics and good practice guidance.

Money Advice Trust
www.moneyadvicetrust.org
The Money Advice Trust is a charity organisation working to increase the quality and availability of free, independent money advice in the UK. The invaluable website contains the newly developed Information Hub providing access to a wide range of Money Advice related material, access to and guidance for the Common Financial Statement and updates on the Money Advice Quality Model work.

National Debtline
www.nationaldebtline.co.uk
National Debtline is a national free, confidential and independent telephone helpline for people with debt problems in the UK. The site provides contact details and essential information and resources for dealing with debt including facts sheets, self-help packs, sample letters and personal budget sheets which can be downloaded. The site has a separate section for Scotland or Scottish debts and the site also has a useful links page.

Data Information and Credit Referencing

Credit Information and Fraud Avoidance Service
www.cifas.org.uk
CIFAS is a not for profit membership association dedicated to the prevention of financial crime and staff fraud. The site contains information about their work and its fraud prevention information sharing scheme and complaints system.

Credit Reference Agencies
All three main credit reference agencies provide useful information about personal credit information held, how to access your credit file and privacy and data protection issues.

Experian (www.experian.co.uk)
Equifax (www.equifax.co.uk)
Call Credit (www.callcredit.co.uk)

Information Commissioner
www.dataprotection.gov.uk
The Information Commissioner's Office is the UK's independent authority set up to promote access to official information and to protect personal information. The site contains everything you wanted to know about data protection and includes a free online search facility of its public register of all data controllers.
Calculators

FISA APR calculator
www.fisa.co.uk
Has an extremely useful APR calculator which can be downloaded for free and is simple to operate.

Improve Credit Score
www.freecreditreportsinstantly.org

Journals and Publications

Credit Today
www.credittoday.co.uk
The free online version of the lively credit magazine.

Institute of Credit Management Journal
www.icm.org.uk
Site includes access to its journal (Subscription required).

Useful Services

On Demand Collections
www.ondemandcollections.co.uk
On Demand from Intrum Justitia - the on-line collection service helping businesses improve their cash-flow

Business Insolvency-Licensed Company Business Insolvency Lines Henry offer free initial consultations on all personal and corporate insolvency matters.

Company Voluntary Arrangements-Licensed Company Voluntary Arrangements Lines Henry offer free initial consultations on all personal and corporate insolvency matters.