Debt and economic abuse: coerced borrowing and getting help

If someone you live with or used to live with has taken out credit in your name, put bills in your name, or pressured you into borrowing, you are dealing with what is often called coerced debt. StepChange estimates that 1.6 million UK adults have experienced coerced debt at the hands of a current or former partner, family member or friend in the last 12 months¹. A separate policy statement from Surviving Economic Abuse reports that 60% of those experiencing economic abuse have accumulated debts as a result of the controlling, coercive actions of the perpetrator².

The debt is real and the creditor will pursue it, but the rules are more protective than many people assume. Creditors cannot discuss your debt with anyone but you unless you give permission or the debt is in joint names³. They cannot force entry to your home, take anything from it, or demand cash payments from you⁴. And you can ask them to stop interest and charges, stop collection agencies recovering the debt, accept token payments, or write the debts off⁵.

This page sets out how joint debts work, what creditors can and cannot do, how to ask for help, how to keep your debts private from an abusive partner or ex, and where the line is on harassment.

Joint debt: you are both liable, whoever spent the money

If a debt is in joint names, you and the other person are both responsible for the whole amount of money owed, not just your own share or half⁶. This is called joint and several liability, and it applies regardless of who spent the money or what was bought⁸. A creditor can pursue either of you for the full balance.

This matters most in the situations people actually face. Sharing a rental agreement or mortgage means you have joint debts, and both of you can have action taken against you⁹. If you have been living in a property with an ex-partner, you will both be liable for any energy used during that time, even if only one name is on the bill¹⁰. A joint bank or building society account carries the same rule: you are each liable for the other's debts¹¹.

Separating or divorcing does not change any of this. Getting divorced does not change who is responsible for credit debts such as credit cards, loans or overdrafts, and the person whose name the debt is in remains liable¹⁰. If you have a joint mortgage, get legal advice¹². If you have a joint debt with your ex-partner, for example a mortgage or a loan, your credit files are connected, so how you manage your debts will affect your ex-partner if they apply for credit, and vice versa¹³.

There is one piece of good news for people in Scotland. The circumstances for a short term financial crisis payment break have been extended to cover cohabitees separating, so a person leaving a shared home can request a break on a debt payment programme¹⁴.

What creditors can and cannot do when collecting a debt

Creditors may contact you by letter or phone, and in some cases they may visit you at home¹⁵. They call because they want a payment, and they usually ask for a card payment over the phone³. They may ask for details of your current income and living costs, to see what you can afford³. They should always speak to you politely and truthfully, and they must tell you anything important in writing, so it is worth reading your letters³.

What they cannot do is narrower than many people fear. Debt collectors cannot force entry to your house, take anything from it, or demand cash payments from you⁴. They cannot force you to make a payment¹⁶. They are not allowed to threaten or harass you, take your belongings, or tell others about your debt without permission¹⁷.

Where a debt has reached the stage of a county court judgment, the picture changes. A creditor can then ask the court to allow further action to collect the debt, which could include taking money from your wages or sending an enforcement agent (bailiff) to your home¹⁸. Creditors can also take money from your wages or benefits, or apply to make you bankrupt, but this follows the proper process rather than happening automatically¹⁹.

If a formal solution is in place, the protection is stronger. Under a debt relief order, creditors cannot contact you to ask for payment, take you to court, or send a debt collector to your home²⁰. They cannot take action to recover the debts in your DRO, demand payments, or start any court action²¹.

Asking creditors for help: payment breaks, frozen interest and affordable plans

Many creditors agree to temporary payment arrangements which help you pay what you can afford instead of the whole amount⁴. Through a debt adviser, you can ask your other creditors to stop interest and charges, stop collection agencies recovering debt, accept token payments, or write off the debts⁵. You can also ask about an affordable repayment plan and other options like reduced repayments²³.

In Scotland, a debtor who is an individual may make a request to the money adviser for a short term financial crisis payment break in the circumstances set out in the regulations¹⁴. That is a formal route with defined conditions, and it sits alongside the informal arrangements any creditor can agree.

The practical steps look like this:

1. Work out what you can genuinely afford, using a budget that covers priority bills first. See which debts to pay first for how priority debts are ranked.
2. Contact each creditor in writing, setting out your offer and your circumstances.
3. Ask specifically for interest and charges to be frozen while you pay.
4. Keep a copy of everything you send and receive.
5. If a creditor refuses, ask again with a revised figure, and consider a formal solution such as a debt management plan or breathing space.

If you are dealing with a debt adviser, you must tell your debt solution provider about any money that comes in, for example if your family give you a loan for a wedding or cash you do not have to pay back²⁴. Being straight with the adviser protects the arrangement.

Keeping your debt private from an abusive partner or ex

Creditors cannot discuss your situation with anyone without your consent²⁵. That is the starting point, and it means a creditor should not be telling your ex-partner about a debt in your sole name. If the debt is joint, both of you are entitled to information about it, which is one reason joint debts are so difficult in an abusive relationship.

Some practical steps help. You can ask your creditors to remove your number from their records if you do not want to get any phone calls³. You can change how you receive statements and letters. Barclays, for example, can provide support with account security, changing how you receive statements and letters, removing the abuser as a named cardholder from your credit cards, and removing you from any joint accounts or freezing joint accounts, through a specialist domestic and financial abuse team²⁶.

If your ex-partner applies for a debt in your name without telling you, report it to the police²⁷. That is a separate matter from the debt itself, and it is the route that establishes the borrowing was not yours.

Keeping debt to yourself carries its own costs: it can add to stress, lead to conflict in relationships, and make it harder to recover²⁸. Where it is safe to do so, telling a debt adviser what is happening gives them more options to work with.

Where creditors must stop: harassment, pressure and misleading letters

Harassment by creditors is a criminal offence⁷. It may count as harassment if the people you owe call you too often³. There is no fixed number of calls that triggers it, but the Financial Ombudsman Service has found that almost daily phone calls about a debt were unreasonable³⁰. If a creditor continues to contact you after accepting the debt is statute barred and you have told them you no longer intend to pay it, you may be able to claim harassment contrary to the Administration of Justice Act 1970³¹.

You can write to a creditor to tell them you think they are harassing you and ask them to stop³². A warning letter of this kind puts the creditor on notice and creates a record if the contact continues.

The regulator's rules back this up. Firms providing debt counselling, debt adjusting and credit information services must not coerce or use pressure to sell their services, take advantage of a customer's lack of knowledge or understanding of the law relating to consumer credit or to insolvency, make unreasonably long or inconvenient home visits, or conduct unreasonable premium rate calls³³. Those rules have applied since 1 April 2014.

The evidence on why this matters is stark. Intimidating letters, phone calls or doorstep visits lead to a 15% increase in the probability of debt problems becoming harder to manage, according to a National Audit Office report³⁴. Pressure does not help people pay; it makes the situation worse.

If a creditor or collector crosses the line, you can complain to the firm first, then to the Financial Ombudsman Service, which is free. For more on the rules that apply when a collector calls or visits, see when a debt collector calls, visits or threatens you.

What happens to a joint loan if my partner and I separate

The debt does not move. You are jointly responsible for repaying it regardless of who spent the money⁸. If you have a joint mortgage, get legal advice¹². Debts in your own name stay yours: getting divorced does not change who is responsible for credit debts such as credit cards, loans or overdrafts¹⁰.

If only one of you goes bankrupt, the other person named on a joint debt becomes responsible for the whole debt³⁵. Joint debts are not written off unless the other person is also going bankrupt, and the debt becomes the other person's alone, who is then responsible for paying the remaining amount in full³⁶. This is one of the most important things to understand before either person considers bankruptcy on a joint debt.

Your credit files stay connected while the joint debt exists, so how you manage your debts will affect your ex-partner if they apply for credit, and vice versa¹³. Once the joint debt is settled and the financial association is closed, that link ends.

For the wider picture on how joint debts and a partner's debts work, see joint debts and your partner's debts.

Where to get free help

Free, impartial debt advice is available across the UK, and it costs nothing. StepChange, National Debtline, Citizens Advice and MoneyHelper all provide advice without charge. In Northern Ireland, Housing Rights offers debt advice and, where necessary, representation to prevent repossession and allow you to stay in your home³⁷.

If you are dealing with economic abuse specifically, tell the adviser. They can factor it into the solution they recommend, and they can help with the practical steps such as changing how you receive statements or removing a joint account. For more on the options, see free debt advice: where to get it and what happens and debt solutions across the UK.