There are some things that you need to make sure you pay every month, as the results of not paying them can be serious.
These bills are classed as priorities because the consequences of not paying them are greater than the consequences of not paying others. For example, if you don’t pay your rent or your mortgage you could lose your home.
These bills are your priorities and you must always pay these before your other creditors. The table below highlights what your priority bills are, and what can happen if you don’t pay them.
| Type of debt | Consequence of non-payment |
|---|---|
| Mortgage | Losing your home |
| Rent | Losing your home |
| Secured loan | Losing your home |
| Council tax or rates | A visit from bailiffs, attachment of earnings order, or imprisonment |
| Magistrates court fines | A visit from bailiffs, attachment of earnings order, or imprisonment |
| Tax, VAT or National Insurance | A visit from bailiffs, attachment of earnings order, a fine or imprisonment |
| County court judgments | A visit from bailiffs, a charging order, attachment of earnings order, or imprisonment |
| Child maintenence | A fine, attachment of earnings order, or imprisonment |
| TV Licence | A fine, attachment of earnings order, or imprisonment |
| Gas / Electric / Other fuel | Disconnection |
| Hire purchase | Disconnection |
| Telephone | Disconnection |
If you’re worried because you’ve missed payments on your priority bills please if you’d prefer to call us, then please call us on 07541978789 to speak to one of our volunteers who will help you get your situation back on track and enable you to get your payments up to date. Or you can use a free online debt advice tool Debt Remedy from Stepchange.