Abuse victims in debt set to be better protected after government scraps fee
The fee that survivors of domestic violence previously had to pay to ensure their abusers cannot track their addresses through government records is being cancelled.
Survivors who sought a debt relief order (DRO), a way to erase your debt if you were unable to repay it, had to risk having their details published in public individual bankruptcy records.
The only way to avoid this is to apply for a people at risk of violence (Parv) order, but this costs more than £300 and means waiting up to 20 weeks for approval.
This left many survivors in debt, often due to domestic violence; She was faced with the choice of either remaining in a deteriorating financial situation or risking finding the addresses of her abusers.
Independent she had spoken to survivors who had been in this situation before, leaving them “horrified” and “panicked” as their details remained available to the abuser.
But ministers confirmed plans to scrap the charge on Monday.
The move means that from November, vulnerable people involved in debt transactions will no longer have to pay fees to have their personal information removed from bankruptcy records and the Gazette, the official public record.
Minister for Courts and Legal Services Sarah Sackman KC said: “For vile perpetrators of domestic violence, free access to the victim’s location is a golden ticket to continue their campaign of hate and harassment.
“Independent We have stood by these victims for years. “We want these women and others to know that this government heard and acted.”
The removal of the fee is part of the government’s plan to halve violence against women and girls (VAWG) within ten years.
Leading domestic violence charity Refuge said the fee meant survivors were at “risk of seriously increased harm and further abuse” if they were unable to pay.
Adam Rolfe, head of policy and public affairs at Money Wellness, said removing the fee would remove “a major financial barrier for people who are already facing unimaginable hardship.”
“This means survivors can focus on rebuilding their finances and moving forward without fear that seeking debt relief could put them at risk,” he added.
“We now hope to build on this progress to ensure that the entire insolvency system truly supports people to escape an abusive relationship in a safe and dignified way.”
This change will help women like Sierra*. Independent We talked in May. In 2019 she spent tens of thousands of pounds trying to escape an abusive relationship.
She had to move with her children four times in three months to escape and had to spend thousands of dollars to buy a new one when she suspected he had installed a tracking device on her car. The legal costs of obtaining an injunction against her abuser and providing for her children left her £40,000 in debt.
After seeking a solution, he was told he was entitled to a DRO, but his initial sense of relief soon faded when he was told his personal details, including the order’s address, would be recorded on the public register.
Parv could not wait for his decision to be approved by the court, as interest rates would mean he would have to exceed the £50,000 limit to qualify for the debt to be written off, so he decided to pursue the decision without Parv.
She was later approved and had her fee waived because she had universal credit, but by then her address had been public for several weeks, during which time she said she was “horrified” and “panicked”.
Francesca Ferrier, senior manager of economic empowerment partnerships at Refuge, said: “This is an overdue and positive step to better protect survivors of domestic and economic abuse seeking insolvency solutions.
“Accumulating debt in a survivor’s name is a common tactic used by perpetrators of domestic abuse. In fact, according to a report by Know Economic Abuse, more than half of those who suffered economic abuse reported being in or in debt as a result of the abuse.”
*Name changed to protect the woman’s identity
The national domestic violence helpline offers support to women on 0808 2000 247 or visit: Asylum website. There is a special section men’s advice line on 0808 8010 327. US residents can call the domestic violence hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). You can reach other international helplines at: www.befrienders.org.
