The Money Advice Trust (MAT) has announced that there has been a 35% increase in the number of calls to their National Debt Helpline from callers concerned about their mortgage arrears.

The MAT and the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has launched a debt advice campaign which aims to give early advice for those who are due to come off fixed-rate mortgages over the coming year and may find themselves in financial difficulty. The CML has estimated that 1.4 million people are due to come off their fixed-rate mortgage over this period.

The partnership has produced a leaflet entitled ‘Fixed-rate mortgages – Some early advice’. The aim of the leaflet is to provide borrowers with information about what to do both before and after their fixed-rate term ends and where to find independent financial advice for those who find themselves in financial difficulty.

The CEO of MAT, Joanna Elson, recently met with Government ministers to discuss what can be done to support home owners who are facing financial difficulty.

Elson told PIN: “It was good to see ministers in listening mode and keen to assist with the problems currently facing homeowners. The extension of free independent advice to all county courts will make a real difference to people who are facing possession of their homes, and we are now talking to ministers about two further protections - how to extend the regulatory framework which covers first mortgage providers to second mortgages, and how to ensure that advisers have speedy access to the right person within a mortgage lender when problems occur.

“Keeping people in their homes in these difficult times must be our paramount concern, and we are working closely with lenders and the Government to try to ensure this happens.”