The debt advice sector

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Organisations and specialist job titles working within, or closely with the debt advice sector.

  • Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB) - an agency of the Scottish government responsible for administering the process of personal bankruptcy and recording corporate insolvencies in Scotland. DAS falls within their remit.
  • CAB - The Citizens Advice Bureaux, now under the single banner of Citizens Advice.
  • CMS - Child Maintenance Service - the government agency previously called the Child Support Agency, to help parents support their children financially.
  • FCA - Financial Conduct Authority – the Consumer Credit Regulator who governs what we do.
  • FOS - Financial Ombudsman Service - An independent official body, established by Parliament, for settling disputes between UK-based financial companies and their customers.
  • IP - Insolvency Practitioner, who helps a client to manage their IVA or bankruptcy.
  • IS - The Insolvency Service, a Government agency that helps to deliver economic confidence by supporting those in financial distress, tackling financial wrongdoing and maximising returns to creditors.
  • MALG - The Money Advice Liaison Group (known as MALG), formed in 1987, is a not-for-profit UK membership organisation whose purpose is to galvanise organisations to ‘work together to improve the lives of people with problem debt’.
  • MAPS – The Money and Pensions Service is an organisation whose statutory objective is to develop and co-ordinate a national strategy to improve people’s financial capabilities. The service provides free money guidance and debt advice online and by telephone.
  • The Single Financial Guidance Body (formerly MAS) - The Single Financial Guidance Body - renamed Money and Pensions Servicein April 2019 - is an arms-length executive non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Department for Work and Pensions he body replaced the 3 existing providers of government-sponsored financial guidance – the Money Advice Service, the Pensions Advisory Service and Pension Wise – bringing together the provision of debt advice, money guidance and pension guidance.