Having Trouble Making Your Mortgage Payments?

The first things you should do:

• Tell us as soon as possible if you are having problems repaying your mortgage or think that you might experience problems in the near future. You can contact us on 0800 378 669
• We can provide a budget planner which could help you better manage your finances
• Seek debt advice if you would like help managing your finances. The following agencies provide free advice on money problems:

• National Debtline - 0808 8084000 www.nationaldebtline.co.uk
• Citizens Advice Bureau - www.adviceguide.org.uk
• Consumer Credit Counselling Service - 0800 138 1111 www.cccs.co.uk
• Money Advice Scotland - 0141 5720237 www.moneyadvicescotland.org.uk

If you miss a payment on your mortgage:

• Where we have up-to-date contact details we will telephone you within 48 hours of the date that your payment was due to discuss your situation. If we don't have a telephone number we will write to you within 48 hours. Where you miss more than one payment we will write to you within 15 days
• We will consider your circumstances and may be able to:

• Arrange a new payment plan with you to repay this amount that works for both of us
• Change the way you make your payments or the date you make them
• Allow you to pay your mortgage over a longer period of time (to reduce your monthly payments)
• Allow you to move to interest-only payments for a short period

• We will provide you with full details on how any options which are suitable will work and give you time to consider any changes
• If we can't offer you any of these options we will explain why
• If we cannot offer any of these options we might agree to you remaining in the property to sell the property yourself.

You may want to talk to a professional adviser, such as a debt counsellor or a solicitor, before you change your mortgage arrangements. We would strongly advise that you seek independent, free debt advice.

We will always:

• Give you reasonable time to pay back the debt
• Talk to an agency which gives debt advice, like the Citizens Advice Bureau, about your circumstances if you want us to
• Only start proceedings to repossess your home if we cannot solve the problem with you

What else you can do to help us:

• Respond to us quickly when we try to contact you
• Make sure you keep other people responsible for paying the mortgage (and anyone guaranteeing the mortgage), up to date with what is happening
• Keep to any payment plan we may agree with you or tell us if there is a change in your circumstances which may affect the arrangement
• Tell us about any other changes to your circumstances, including if you move to a new address
• If you have a mortgage payment protection insurance, check if it would help with your payments
• Check whether you can get any state benefits or tax credits which could help to increase your income
• Check with your local authority or the Department for Work and Pensions to see whether you are eligible for Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) or Mortgage Rescue scheme
• If it is unlikely that your situation will improve in the future you may need to think about selling your home

If we cannot agree on a solution:

• We may go to court to start proceedings to repossess your home. If proceedings take place, we strongly recommend that you attend and seek independent, professional advice

If we repossess your home:

• We will sell it for the best price we can reasonably get
• We will try to sell it as soon as possible
• We will use the money raised from selling your home to pay what you owe us and any other loans which are secured on your home
• If there is any money left over we will pay this to you

If selling your home does not raise enough money to pay off your mortgage:

• You will still owe us the amount that is left and we will tell you what this is as soon as possible
• If you bought your home with someone else, each of you will be responsible to us for the whole amount borrowed regardless of who makes the payments normally
• We will tell you as soon as possible if we intend to take further action to recover this amount from you

Costs and Charges

If you are in arrears, we may charge you for any administration or legal costs which we incur. We will tell you about all charges which you may have to pay

If you do not think that we have treated you fairly you can contact the Society's Solicitor