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Priority debts and your budget

Some debts are considered priorities and should be paid first. This is because the consequences of not paying these can be much more serious than not paying your unsecured debts.

Priority debts include expenses such as rent or mortgage, council tax, utility bills, TV licence and court fines. You can find a full list of priority debts here.

Some priority debts can be included in a DMP, but this will only cover arrears. It is your responsibility to ensure that you make the regular payments to keep on top of your priority bills.

If you’ve got arrears on any of your priority debts you need to call us as soon as possible. We’ll be able to change your budget so you can make an additional payment towards the arrears alongside your normal monthly payment.

FAQs

If you're struggling to make your DMP payment, every month we need to review your budget. Please check your budget online to see if all of your income or expenses are recorded correctly. If you need to change any of the details contact us.

If you're struggling but can’t see any changes that are needed to your budget, please contact us for advice on managing your finances.

If you have arrears with priority payments such as rent, mortgage or utility bills, please contact us as soon as possible to arrange a review of your budget. We'll alter your DMP payment to give you money to clear these arrears.

Remember that the consequences of not paying these priority bills can be very serious.