Many people face financial worries at some point in their lives. Getting help and advice sooner rather than later is important and can help make sure the problem doesn't get any worse.
We're committed to treating our customers fairly when they're having difficulties, and we'll do our best to help you if you think you might be having financial problems.
Here you’ll find more information about how we, and others, may be able to help if you have money worries.
We also have a range of short videos with tips ranging from budgeting to borrowing and where to get help if you're struggling.
The first step in getting back on track is to recognise that you may be experiencing financial difficulties.
Review your budget
- Find out how much money you have coming into your household and how much you have going out.
- Make sure you can pay for essential items such as your mortgage or rent, council tax, food and utilities bills.
- Take some time to list how much you owe and who you owe it to.
- Use a budget planning tool like the ones below to calculate what you have left each month.
The next steps
- When you've worked out your budget, you should get in touch with the people you owe money to (often known as creditors) to let them your situation and what you can afford to pay. The most convenient way to do this is to phone them and offer a copy of your budget planner to support your proposals. Alternatively, independent debt advice agencies will do this for you. Please note that some of these organisations may charge for their services.
- If you do have enough money to make your payments but sometimes find they're not being paid on the most suitable date or in the best way, it may be beneficial to contact the company to discuss options. Changing Direct Debit dates to when you're paid may help. See our Help by Product section below for more hints and tips.
- It's also a good idea to check price comparison sites to see if you could save money on regular payments such as energy, broadband and insurance bills. And, in case you're entitled to benefits you're not claiming, take a look at the Department of Work and Pensions website
- If you're struggling to work out your budget, you can contact us directly for help and support. Check our 'Talk to us' section for more information. Our 'Independent advice' section also has contact details of useful organisations that may be able to help.
Budget planners
Santander's budget planner (pdf): This is a pdf version of Santander's budget planner that you can fill in and email to us. We'll then get in touch to see how one of our specially trained advisers can help.
National Debtline budget planner: this budget planner from nationaldebtline.co.uk helps you work out a detailed personal budget which you can save onto your computer or print off. It also provides you with a printable budget summary to help you work out affordable ways of payment to your creditors.
StepChange budget planner: a free online budget planner which will prompt you to seek free, independent debt advice if you need it. It takes 20 minutes to complete.
It’s vital that you talk to us if you’re having problems with your mortgage payments, as if you fall behind on payments, your home could be repossessed.
If you can't pay your mortgage or miss a payment please contact us on 0800 389 7000 as soon as possible. Before you call us please take a few minutes to write down exactly what you have coming in and out of your accounts each month. A budget planner can help with this. If you don’t have one to hand you can find some in our ‘Taking control’ section above.
This will help us to understand your circumstances and establish the correct and most affordable option for you.
If you have lost your job or recently retired, ensure you speak to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to check if you are eligible for 'Support for Mortgage Interest'. For more information visit dwp.gov.uk
When you speak to us, we may be able to help in a number of different ways:
- If you can't offer a regular payment plan right now due to financial difficulties, or if you're currently seeking help assessing your finances from an independent third party, please let us know. We will work with you or your nominated third party adviser to offer an appropriate solution.
- We may be able to offer you a short term payment arrangement.
- Or potentially reduce the monthly payments by refinancing your mortgage.
Terms & conditions apply.
Our ‘How we can help you' section will explain in detail why it's important that you come to an arrangement with us.
Once you agree a payment plan, we'll expect you to honour it. Only agree payment plans that you realistically expect to pay. If your circumstances change and you cannot keep up the arrangement, contact us immediately.
Remember, there are possible penalties for late or missed payments. They could be arrears charges or additional interest.
Any agreement to pay less than your contractual monthly amount may affect decision making when applying for products with Santander and other lenders and may also increase the amount you repay over the term of the mortgage or loan secured on your property.
If your personal current account has an overdrawn balance or you are exceeding your overdraft limit, it's very important that you contact us on 0800 587 1122.
Before you call us please take a few minutes to write down exactly what you have coming in and out of your accounts each month. A budget planner can help with this. If you don’t have one to hand, you can find some in our ‘Taking control’ section above.
If you’re overdrawn, exceeding your overdraft limit or regularly incurring charges, please read our understanding overdrafts page. Additionally, check if you still need all of your Direct Debits and standing orders. If so, can the monthly amount be reduced or due dates be changed to coincide with money being paid into your account?
Depending on the type of account you have we may be able to help in a number of different ways.
Find out more by calling us on 0800 587 1122 or visit your local branch
Our ‘How we can help you' section will explain in detail why it's important that you come to an arrangement with us.
If you can't offer a regular repayment plan right now due to financial difficulties, or if you're currently seeking help from an independent third party about assessing your finances, please let us know. We'll work with you or your nominated third party adviser to offer an appropriate solution.
Remember: A potential outcome for a bank account being overdrawn or exceeding an agreed overdraft and entering a repayment agreement could be that it starts affecting your credit file and internal credit score. This could affect what happens when you apply for products with Santander and other lenders.
If you’ve missed a payment and can’t repay the amount outstanding, we may be able to offer you a short term payment arrangement. It's very important that you contact us on 0800 389 6655 as soon as possible to avoid late payment charges. Before you call us please take a few minutes to write down exactly what you have coming in and out of your accounts each month. A budget planner can help with this. If you don’t have one to hand you can find some in our ‘Taking control’ section above.
This will help us to understand your circumstances and establish the correct and most affordable option for you.
When you speak to us, we may be able to help in a number of different ways:
- if you've missed a payment and can't repay the amount outstanding we may be able to offer you a short term payment arrangement.
- if you can’t offer a regular payment plan right now, or you’re seeking independent help from a third party, we'll give you up to 30 days ‘breathing space’ to help you have time to review your finances or receive independent advice. If this is the right option we’ll explain how it works when you speak to us.
Any agreement to pay less than your contractual minimum monthly amount due may affect your credit file and decision making when applying for products with Santander and other lenders.
We also have a guide to help manage your credit card payments and helpful tips on clearing your credit card debt in our ‘Your credit card repayments’ page.
If you can't pay your personal loan, or you miss a payment it's very important that you contact us on 0800 678 3322 as soon as possible. Before you call us please take a few minutes to write down exactly what you have coming in and out of your accounts each month. A budget planner can help with this. If you don’t have one to hand you can find some in our ‘Taking control’ section.
This will help us to understand your circumstances and establish the correct and most affordable option for you.
When you speak to us, we may be able to help in a number of different ways:
- if you've missed a payment and can't repay the amount outstanding, we may be able to offer you a short term payment arrangement.
- if you can't offer a regular repayment plan right now due to financial difficulties, or if you're currently seeking help from an independent third party about your finances, please let us know. We'll work with you or your nominated third party adviser to offer an appropriate solution.
- we may be able to reduce the monthly payments by refinancing your loan.
Our ‘How we can help you' section explains in detail why it's important that you come to an arrangement with us.
Only agree a payment plan that you realistically expect to be able to pay. Once you agree a payment plan, we will expect you to honour it. If your circumstances change and you can’t keep up the arrangement please contact us immediately.
Any agreement to pay less than your contractual amount may affect decision making when applying for products with Santander and other lenders. It may also increase the amount you repay over the term of your loan.
Managing your money isn’t always simple, but it can be a lot easier with help. There are certain tools which can help you keep track of your money. Take a look at the ‘Help by product’ section, for more hints and tips.
If you’ve missed a payment to us or feel like you might miss a payment in the near future, please get in touch as soon as possible. Our specially trained advisors can help you by offering education and support. We have a team dedicated to helping customers who don’t have enough income to meet their outgoings and they can help with budgeting and looking at ways you can save money in the future by reducing your monthly outgoings.
If you decide to seek independent financial help, it’s useful to let us know. Some companies will give you a reference number which you can give to us so that we can pause any collections we might make from you until they’ve helped you go through your finances and drawn up proposals for your creditors.
When you call us it's helpful to:
- have your account number ready
- have any budget planning you’ve done to hand
- remember that we’ll need to ask you some security questions to confirm your identity
- have any reference number an independent adviser may have given you.
If you've missed a payment, or feel you may miss a payment, please contact our specialist teams on the numbers below. They'll be able to help you with information on the next steps:
Alternatively, if you’re paying fees and interest on the products you hold with us, you may benefit from speaking to our Money Management Team. They can help with:
- avoiding unnecessary charges in the future
- maintaining a good credit rating
- managing money easily.
There are organisations that can help you with money worries as well as help you understand whether you’re entitled to more benefits or any other type of help. Santander isn’t associated with these organisations. Please note that some of these organisations may make a charge for their services.