Lawyers have been touring New England offering free advice to people in financial trouble.
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They set up stall on the steps of the Court House in Glen Innes on Wednesday and talked to people about how they could cope with fines or other debts which were drowning them in money troubles.
The team from Legal Aid NSW said people had been coming to them on their trestle table on the veranda of the court. Glen Innes is part of a tour by Legal Aid NSW.
The main advice they gave was that all is not lost when and if the nasty letter comes, demanding money or your house or freedom – but you need to act immediately.
Ignoring a problem makes it bigger. The advice is that if a debt is addressed sooner rather than later, a plan can be negotiated to pay it off and stay out of jail or in your property.
Solicitor, Heidi Campbell, said: “The biggest advice to people is that they should act promptly.
“Don't ignore these problems they don’t go away. We often see people who come in and don’t open their mail because the fines are mounting, the debt is mounting. There are the overdue stickers.
“It can be very stressful for people so they tend to not want to deal with it, but you can come and speak to Legal Aid. We can help you navigate that process and assist people with access to service providers to help you get out of these situations.”
The solictor said that there were also actions people in trouble over debt to landlords could take. It wasn’t inevitable that tenants would lose their home if they couldn’t pay the rent immediately.
Nor was it inevitable that people who failed to pay fines would immediately find themselves hauled before the court and then prison.
“With traffic offences, there are things we can do with Revenue NSW for repayment for fines, so people can immediately get their licence back and start driving while they enter a payment plan. These are just basic things we can do.
“With housing and overdue rent, if someone’s received a termination notice they should definitely contact Legal Aid or their tenancy advocacy service because we can assist to make sure the tenant can stay in their house and enter a sustainable payment plan and not lose their housing. They’re the main things we can do, straight up.”
She gave a number for more information: (02) 6766 6322.
