The campaign aims to give stakeholders a clear understanding of the challenges money and debt advisers face and the impact these challenges have on people in debt.

As Scotland’s money charity, Money Advice Scotland has over 700 accredited debt and money adviser members across the country who report long telephone waiting times and repeated call disconnections when trying to reach creditors on behalf of clients. This results in advisers spending excessive time attempting to make contact, and in many cases the delays directly worsen client outcomes, increasing stress, financial harm, and the risk of escalation.

Accredited Debt Adviser from Christian’s Against Poverty (CAP), Scotland, Jean Innes, said: “Slow response rates from creditors can be a major barrier to gaining the clients’ trust and confidence in the free debt advice service.

“It also costs time and resources to have to wait in a queue with the rest of the creditors’ customers, all the while the anxiety of the client is growing, and other people cannot get through to the debt advisory team. An advisor-only line would help advisers particularly when dealing with people with mental health and other underlying issues that make them vulnerable. It reassures them that their debt is being dealt with and gives them some breathing space from that reassurance.”

Members report that where Adviser-Only Helplines exist, call waiting, verification and case handling times are significantly reduced, improving accuracy and consistency of outcomes, freeing up adviser capacity to support more clients. Existing direct communication partnerships provided by Tesco Insurance and Scottish Power have proven to improve outcomes for both our members’ clients and the service providers.

Tesco Insurance has partnered with Citizens Advice Scotland to create a reliable direct communication route for money advisers.

Alex Cross, chief customer officer from Tesco Insurance, said: “We recognise the vital role Citizens Advice Scotland plays in supporting people through challenging circumstances.

“That’s why we’re creating a dedicated adviser-only helpline to give Citizens Advice advisers faster access to our customer care team and remove friction for customers who need tailored support. Together, we can ensure more people receive seamless, joined up help when they need it most.”

Scottish Power’s Affordability & Support Team’s adviser-only communication channel has delivered positive outcomes for the clients of debt advisers at West Lothian Council’s Advice Shop. Having direct access to a trained specialist team has enabled debt advisers to raise complex issues clearly, resulting in quicker resolutions for their clients. In some cases, they have been able to coordinate supplier resolution alongside local grant support, which provides clients with a holistic response rather than fragmented advice. These positive outcomes, only achievable through structured communication, has increased trust between clients and Scottish Power.

Debt adviser Lynsey Stainsby said: “Having a dedicated third-party support channel makes a huge difference when supporting clients with complex energy issues. It allows advisers to speak directly with specialist teams, resolve queries more efficiently, and often prevents situations from escalating into formal complaints.”

As well as improved customer relationships, creditors and service providers can benefit from faster and more sustainable debt recovery, resource savings, and alignment with regulatory expectations when they introduce adviser-only helplines.

Money Advice Scotland’s chief executive, Janine Rennie, said: “The cost-of-living crisis has increased both the volume and complexity of debt cases, putting frontline advisers under sustained pressure.

“Increasingly, people seeking debt advice are in vulnerable circumstances and delays in communication with creditors is becoming untenable. Our research clearly shows effective, timely communication between advisers and creditors is essential to ensuring fair treatment and sustainable outcomes.”

“We’re calling on policy makers, service providers and creditors to commit to the actions we’ve set out, which represent a proportionate, low-cost intervention with significant benefits for both people in debt and their creditors.”