Every UK debt type, on one page

Missed mortgage payments are a priority debt because your home is on the line. Here's how to protect it.

Rent arrears are a priority debt. How eviction actually works and the steps to protect your tenancy.

Council tax is a priority debt with fast, powerful collection routes. Here's what to expect and how to negotiate.

HMRC has enforcement powers most other creditors don't. Understanding the process — and the flexibility that does exist — is essential.

Energy and water are priority debts because of the risk of disconnection or forced installation of prepayment meters. Options exist — including grants.

Watching live TV or using BBC iPlayer without a licence is a criminal offence in the UK. Here's how enforcement works and who is exempt.

Council-issued PCNs and private parking tickets follow very different rules. Knowing which you've got is the first step.

Benefit overpayments can arise years after the event and be recovered from current benefits or wages. How the process works and how to challenge it.

Deductions from Universal Credit for advances, overpayments, sanctions and third-party debts. Knowing the cap — and how to negotiate — matters.

How credit card debt builds up, how minimum payments really work and the options if repayments are becoming unmanageable.

Understanding personal loans, the difference between secured and unsecured borrowing, and what happens when you fall behind.

Short-term, high-cost credit designed to be repaid on your next payday. Rules changed in 2015 — knowing them is often the key to a refund.

Why bank overdrafts have quietly become one of the most expensive ways to borrow — and what to do if you can't clear the balance.

Store cards look like store loyalty programmes but are credit agreements — often with the highest APRs on the high street.

Mail-order and online catalogues (Very, Littlewoods, JD Williams and others) act like credit accounts — and can accumulate quickly.

Klarna, Clearpay, Laybuy and PayPal Pay in 3 look interest-free — but missed payments and stacking multiple BNPL agreements can cause real harm.

A guarantor loan makes someone else jointly responsible if you can't pay. It's a serious commitment — for both of you.

Hire Purchase (HP) and Personal Contract Purchase (PCP) agreements are secured on the vehicle. Missed payments can lead to repossession.

Enforcement agents (bailiffs) have strict legal powers — but also clear limits. Knowing the rules protects you.

A CCJ is a court order confirming you owe money. It's a serious mark on your credit file — but there are ways to reduce the damage.

A charging order turns an unsecured debt into one secured on your home. It doesn't force a sale, but it changes the risk profile.

An Attachment of Earnings Order tells your employer to deduct money from your wages to pay a judgment debt.

A statutory demand is a formal warning of possible bankruptcy proceedings. It has to be taken seriously — but it's not itself bankruptcy.

A creditor petition asks the court to make you bankrupt. It's rare — but when it happens, timing matters enormously.

Debt collection agencies act on behalf of creditors or buy debts outright. Their powers are the same as any other unsecured creditor.

What a default really is, when one can be registered and how long it stays on your credit file.

How to read your credit file, what actually affects your score and how to rebuild after debt problems.

Joint debts remain joint until formally settled — regardless of what a divorce court decides. The distinction matters.

Debts are paid from the deceased person's estate. Family members are not personally liable — except in specific situations.

Steps to take in the first weeks after job loss to protect your finances and stop debt problems building.

Debt and mental health are deeply linked. The UK has specific protections — including a Mental Health Breathing Space.

Self-employed people face specific pressures — variable income, tax bills, and the blurring of business and personal debts.

UK student loans (Plans 1, 2, 4, 5 and Postgraduate) work like income-contingent repayment obligations rather than typical debts.

Fixed retirement income and rising living costs are combining to push more pensioners into debt. Extra support exists — and is often unclaimed.

Beyond the student loan, students face overdrafts, credit cards and rising rent arrears. The rules for tackling them are the same.

Sole trader debts are personal debts. Limited company debts are separate — until a personal guarantee is signed.

Gambling-related debt often hides behind other borrowing. The route out is treatment and structured debt help together, not one without the other.

How the cost-of-living pressure is turning into debt for households that were previously coping — and the immediate steps to take.

Identity theft can produce debts you didn't take out. There is a clear process for correcting them.

Fee-charging 'debt help' companies, IVA-only firms and cold-call scams. How to spot the traps and where to go instead.

Debts owed abroad, or by someone who has moved abroad, can still catch up with you. Enforcement rules differ.