Tom’s Story
Tom lives with his partner and 3 children.
Tom and his partner had been claiming Universal Credit, after he had been made redundant from his job. Due to this, his mental health had deteriorated significantly to the point where he was no longer able to work and was feeling suicidal. Tom’s partner also experiences mental health issues, and the children have health conditions.
As a result of his mental health, Tom felt unable to manage his finances. He was behind with rent, energy bills, council tax and advance loans on his benefits, and was having a large amount of money deducted from his Universal Credit each week. This placed him in a very difficult position when trying to manage his other bills, such as ongoing energy costs, food and creditors, and he had bailiffs at his door.
The situation resulted in Tom not putting on his heating as he had to choose between eating and heating for his family. As the children require certain foods for their own health, Tom chose food overheat. This led to arrears accruing on his energy accounts. The energy debt was also compounded by the fact he had old and inefficient second-hand appliances, such as his cooker, washing machine and fridge-freezer.
Due to their financial issues, Tom had also been using the local foodbank on a weekly basis and was only eating one or two hot meals a week himself. Following an emergency assessment by an adviser, we were able to immediately provide a food voucher to help provide the family with healthy food, and an emergency fuel top up. We have also provided 3 new winter duvets to help keep the family warm through the night.
Crucially, we were able to completely clear his energy arrears. This reduced his financial burden and allowed him to focus on just managing his ongoing consumption moving forward. This has also helped to reduce the stress and anxiety they are all feeling regarding their situation.
Although his energy arrears have been cleared, he still has considerable deductions coming from his Universal Credit each week, and high energy costs due to inefficient appliances. We are therefore in the process of providing Tom with new energy efficient appliances, such as a gas cooker, washing machine and fridge freezer, which will help reduce his energy costs.
To address ways to deal with his rent and council tax arrears, as well as examine his ongoing budget, Tom has been referred to one of our specialist Debt Advisers through One Call, That’s All. They will examine whether the deductions could be reduced or removed, putting more money back into his budget, and provide longer term advice around his other debts.
Now, with the weight of the crisis lifted, Tom is feeling hopeful and looking to get back into work.