Misleading Claims of a Debt Management Company

27th July 2010

Carefree Group Ltd has been subjected to Office of Fair Trading requirements regarding its advertising of debt management services on its website.

The requirements include: being clear that the debt management service is not free where a fee is payable for some of the services on offer; not guaranteeing a favourable outcome will be achieved in negotiations with creditors; promoting the benefits of debt management without also explaining the negatives, and providing information on all of the solutions which are available to a debtor.

The advertising and promotion of debt advice and debt management services is currently high on the OFT’s agenda. A review of hundreds of websites offering advice on debts and Trust Deeds has been completed, with many firms being asked to revise their websites for the benefit of consumers.

The accuracy of such websites is of particular concern in Scotland where the law, and therefore the debt management services available differ from the rest of the UK. With much of the UK’s debt advice industry being based in the North-West of England, concerns exist about the training provided to advisers, who may regularly speak with Scottish residents concerned about their personal debt.

Protected Trust Deeds, Sequestration and the Debt Arrangement scheme are not options available to UK residents outside of Scotland, and many advisers appear unprepared or unable to accurately advise the Scottish public about them.

These issues manifest further in many non-Scottish debt advice websites, where the information available on Scottish solutions such as Protected Trust Deeds is often incomplete or inaccurate.

It is hoped that announcements of action, such as the requirements imposed upon Carefree, will push the debt advice industry as a whole into providing better information and more accurate advice on all of the debt solutions available, wherever people reside within the UK.

Trust Deed Latest News

Trust Deed Firms