OUT OF WORK?
TALK TO CREDITORS
“Communicate and regularly talk to people you owe money to,” said Michael Laffey of MABS. “Tell them your circumstances and if you have lost your job, let your creditors know if and when your employer is planning to rehire you. If you’ve taken a pay cut, let your creditors know when your full pay will be restored. Initiate contact — don’t wait for a creditor to come to you. Don’t hide your difficulties and don’t bury your head in the sand. Don’t ignore letters in the post.”
CONTACT MABS Contact MABS for help
managing financial difficulties. “MABS will work with you to get a plan in place and to limit the financial toll [of any change in your circumstances],” said Laffey. Although MABS advisers cannot currently meet clients face to face, they are available by phone (0761 072000), email (helpline@ mabs.ie) and live chat (www. mabs.ie).
UPSKILL
Get a new qualification or learn a new skill to boost your chances of re-employment if you lost your job during the pandemic and are unlikely to get it back. Try to secure work elsewhere to get you through — even if it’s in a different line of work.
GET ENTITLEMENTS
It’s important to maximise the amount of income you have coming into your household if you are likely to be out of work for some time, so find out what social welfare you’re entitled to and be sure to claim everything you’re eligible for. “Our experience is that a lot of people who have never had to claim social welfare before — and who have never been without a regular wage before — aren’t as aware of their welfare entitlements as others,” said Laffey. You may, for example, be entitled to the Housing Assistance Payment, the working family payment or a medical card. Be sure to claim the Covid-19 unemployment benefit. This benefit — which is paid at a rate of €350 a week — is available to employees and the self-employed who lost their job as a result of the Covid-19 emergency.
TACKLE DEBT
“If your debts were unmanageable before Covid-19 or are now, explore the option of a personal insolvency arrangement (PIA),” said Laffey.
A PIA is a debt deal for people who have secured and unsecured debts. A PIA, therefore, is the option you would explore if struggling to repay the mortgage on your family home. Talk to MABS or a personal insolvency practitioner (PIP — a type of debt adviser) if interested in exploring a PIA. If you struck a debt deal with your bank or creditor before the Covid-19 crisis and you are now running into trouble honouring the terms of that debt deal as a result of the emergency, approach your bank or creditor and try to come to a new arrangement.