The Commercialisation of Advice Services for Social Security Claimants
After Citizens Advice Scotland highlighted the growing presence of private firms offering a ‘no win, no fee’ service to access social security payments. These organisations operate through targeted social media campaigns to encourage individuals who require support and advice in their claims for payments such as Adult Disability Payment (ADP). However, rather than operating free of charge as the Citizens Advice network in Scotland does, such private commercial providers often offer a ‘no win, no fee’ arrangement which can result in charges of up to £400 plus VAT per successful application, with as much as a 10% deduction from ongoing monthly payments.
Whilst not unlawful, such practices can result in the loss of essential income, often for those most in need who may be particularly vulnerable to exploitation. There is currently no system of quality control for such providers, and nor are commercial providers subject to training requirements regarding the complexities of the benefits system.
This project, which is conducted in partnership with Citizens Advice Scotland and will be led by Professor Nicole Busby, will explore such practices in order to establish:
- The nature and extent of the commercialisation of social security advice-giving in Scotland
- The impacts of such practices on individuals, families and communities
- Levels of awareness of such practices among those involved in administering the social security service in Scotland.
GO Justice recruited several students to support with research and development of this report. The project’s output will be in the form of a report outlining our findings and recommendations regarding future actions. As well as conducting and writing up the research, the student researchers will be named as co-authors of the report.