StepChange Debt Charity Avis 2 311

Really insightful, helpful and kind. Really appreciate staffs hard work. Highly recommend.

I wanted to mention a employee at stepchange who went above and beyond for me today (Gerry) did everything he could possibly do to put us into breathing space I am forever grateful and thankful for what he has done today .Again everyone at stepchange were fantastic but Gerry should be congratulated by his management on how helpful and compassionate and supportive he was to me when I was finding it very difficult in the situation I was in .

This company has saved me so many sleepless nights. The most wonderful helpful staff who go above and beyond. If you have financial difficulties these guys force the wolf from the door. Thank you!

With Stepchange help and assistance I know believe I am in control of my finances and life experience its taken awhile but it is truly worth it. If I can say one thing it is don't hide your head in your hands it takes one phone call and then a smile will show on your face believe me I have been there.

Despite the good feedback from others, I wish I could say and feel the same. I wouldn’t recommend going down this route if you have a mortgage. Going down this route, I’ve now got defaults, my credit report shows so many missed payments. I cannot tell you how much this affects your credit file. Of course they advise you of this but I didn’t not expect this sort of outcome. I’m stuck on the SVR. I’m just not happy and if I could go back a year, I would have gone directly with my creditors and made some arrangements with them. To top this I had to raise a complaint as someone from stepchange advised me no payments were made for 4 months so they removed me and this was not true at all. Payments were made via standing order so where did those payments go? I can’t tell you how many calls I got from my creditors because of this. Just poor. Granted they are busy but this really just stressed me out. They don’t send you a text, emails or letters to say, we’ve now stopped making payments to your creditors because of xyz. They don’t call customers which I don’t get why.

I am still waiting for a reply to several emails I sent six weeks ago; StepChange simply refuse to respond. They are taking my money, but not paying any of my creditors, so I am still having to pay the creditors myself, to avoid court threats, plus also make the monthly payment to StepChange. Several creditors are contacting me, and when I mention StepChange, they say they haven't heard anything from them and to ask StepChange to get in touch so they can arrange it. So I emailed them, and they haven't responded.

After becoming ill and unable to work I got myself into financial difficulty, thinking I would return to my career earning the same salary I used 0% cash transfers. But my illness got worse and going back to earn a high salary to pay off the debt was no longer an option.
StepChange Voluntary Arrangements have been a lifesaver in helping me find a solution and get my finances under control.

Helped me clear my debts, realise my outgoings, not to borrow money ever again, budget better

After being silly getting loans and credit cards l got myself into £18.000 worth of debt l am so glad l found stepchange they worked wonders for me sorted out everything for me and today l am now debt free it took two and half years but it was worth it. I want to thank everyone at Stepchange for everything and wish everybody there a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year. 4276361

Where do I start.
Back when I needed financial help with my financial trouble I had no choice but to turn to getting a Iva, Step Change VA, at first I was not sure or in the right place to take this any further but after talking to some amazing people at step change I decided to go with it. 5 years on and this has been a life changer for my situation. Step change are there to help, the staff are there to help along the way and every year I spoke to someone different or the same person (Claire). These people are amazing and made me feel so happy as they explain everything that’s needed and what will happen next, they are truly there every step of the journey. Yes it’s a long journey but its been a pleasant one.
They now have an online system where all documents are uploaded to which is so so easy.
If you really need to make IVA then definitely pick step change.

Thank you all so much

I got in touch to get some advice and consultation and i was not ready to go agead with any plans etc,but obviously i wasn't able too unless I filled in all my debt information and bank details. After talking to a few people, I was told that they have already infringed my creditors ( banks and credit card company) about my struggle with finances.
And I noticed that sone of my banjs and credit cards which were still giving me helpful offers , changed their offers straight away. These sneaky so called Charity probably sells these kinda information to banks for a fee . Dishonest and sneaky organisations snitches.
I absolutely resent them and will warn everyone about them

I am now coming to the end of my DMP after five years. I cannot thank the staff that helped me enough especially the first phone call and the early weeks. It lifted the worry and helped me to see a way out of the debt much of it forced upon me. My only thoughts are that I should have contacted StepChange sooner. The staff are not judgemental and offer practical advice. I look forward to a debt free life now. Thank you so much.

Mixed emotions with my experience.
I’m struggling badly so I reached out to step change I’ve don’t everything on my end and that’s it I received and email with very little details on what’s next. No call back or help about helping me deals with my creditors.

i didnt know where to turn when my circumstances suddenly changed, i was panicking and felt ashamed. I found Step Change online searching for help. i contacted them online and they got back in touch with me quickly. they were understanding and factual and advised me towards a VA which i agreed to, along with all the other advice they gave. life is now calm again thaks to them!!

I want to share my experience to warn anyone considering StepChange.
I asked specifically about how a debt solution would affect my credit score. At no point was I clearly told that a default could be added to my credit file. A default is far more serious than a score drop, yet this was never explained to me.

StepChange are the experts and I trusted them to provide the full picture. Instead, I was left unaware of the most damaging consequence. I was also told they would handle my creditors and that I didn’t need to do anything further, which added to the confusion.

The Financial Ombudsman later said that because I didn’t use the exact word “default,” StepChange didn’t have to mention it — which feels incredibly unfair. Most people don’t know that a credit score and a credit file are different things, and StepChange should be explaining this clearly.

I’m sharing this so others can make an informed decision. If you’re asking about your credit score, make sure you directly ask about defaults, markers, and how your credit file will look — because that information was not clearly communicated to me.

Worse than creditors how they speak to you , very rude

I thought it would never happen to me being in debt but it did,and stressed got me down but step changeI have never never been good at working things out ,but there was always a kind person at the end of the phone who always reassure me and help me and always made sure everything was ok and now I'm proud to say I'm debt free today so a big thank you all to everyone at the step change for Ur kindness and help

The staff are amazing

Excellent customer service

Step Change Debt Charity, helped me to stabilize my debts and arranged payments to each creditor by setting up one direct debit, which they distributed.
It took a lot of weight off my shoulders and I can't thank them enough and would recommend anyone in financial difficulties to get in tough with them.