Some bills and debts are higher priority than others.
Priority debts
- Mortgage
- Rent
- Council Tax
- Utilities (water, gas and electricity)
- Court fines
- Any debts secured on your property
These are all classed as priority debts, either because you have to pay them by law or because they meet basic living requirements for every individual or family. If you cannot pay these bills, you may lose the property or service. Because of this, they are a higher priority than your unsecured debts.
Unsecured debts
- Credit cards
- Store cards
- Catalogue debts
- Unsecured loans
- Bank overdrafts
If you have received redundancy pay, we recommend you use it to pay for essential household bills only. This is because you don’t know how long it may take to find a new job.
Make sure you put your redundancy pay into a bank account where you do not owe money. If you don’t, the bank may take it to repay any money you owe them.
You may want to continue to pay your National Insurance contributions while you are looking for work. If you are able to claim certain benefits, the government will pay the contribution on your behalf. But if you cannot claim benefits, you can make the payments yourself to complete your qualifying year. For more information visit www.direct.gov.uk
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