National Debtline and Business Debtline help more people than ever before as cost-of-living pressures continue
Charity publishes 2024 Annual Report
Posted October 1, 2025
National Debtline and Business Debtline provided more free debt advice in 2024 than ever before as cost of living pressures continued to hit household finances, according to the Money Advice Trust’s latest Annual Report. The charity’s free, independent debt advice services for individuals and small businesses provided six million minutes of debt advice, with 271,900 interactions by phone and webchat through the year – an increase of 36% on 2023.
Helping people deal with problem debt
In 2024, National Debtline helped 118,300 people over the phone and via its online debt advice tool (an increase of 64% on 2023). The service also helped 32,200 people via webchat and received 2.18 million visits to its website, with free advice, information and tools to help deal with problem debt.
Household budgets continue to be stretched to breaking point for many, with energy, council tax and water arrears featuring in the top five debts National Debtline clients struggled with in 2024, alongside credit cards and overdrafts.
More than nine in 10 people reported a reduction or stabilisation in their debts following advice from National Debtline. Four in five (78%) National Debtline clients reported that their debt problem was completely, mostly or partly resolved as a result of the advice they received. Crucially, more than 7 in 10 (72%) reported a positive impact on their mental or emotional health, indicating the holistic as well as practical benefits of seeking free, independent advice on dealing with debts.
“Your service has possibly just saved my life. I was in a very distressed state. Jodie, your adviser, was absolutely amazing. She wasn’t judgemental. She helped me really think about my situation and create a plan. I feel so much clearer and so much more in control and I am so grateful.” -National Debtline customer
Supporting small businesses to survive and thrive
The charity’s unique Business Debtline service helped 37,800 small business owners over the phone in 2024 (an increase of 32% from 2023) and 15,400 by webchat, with the website receiving more than 667,000 visits. 90% of people saw their debts reduce or stabilise as a result of the advice given, while 68% now feel more confident about the future of their business.
“I started the phone call feeling the weight of the world on my shoulders. I now feel that I can navigate my future, my immediate future, medium and long-term future and I feel greatly relieved.” - Business Debtline customer
With the charity’s recent research showing that around half (49%) of small business owners don’t know where to go to get support with their business finances, 2024 also saw the Money Advice Trust develop its new Building Up Business programme in partnership with Aviva – delivering free online learning to help small businesses thrive.
In addition to its frontline advice services, the Money Advice Trust continued to partner with creditors to support vulnerable customers, with more than 30,000 training places were delivered to staff in 50 creditor organisations in 2024. The charity’s Wiseradviser service also provided 14,500 training places to thousands of advisers in 750 free-to-client agencies in the UK, resulting in 99% of participants reporting improved outcomes for their clients.
With eight million people in the UK in need of debt advice, the Money Advice Trust is embarking on a refocused mission to help prevent financial difficulty and remove problem debt from people’s lives – developing a new strategy to transform its debt advice services, broaden the reach of free debt advice, and explore ways to prevent financial difficulty from occurring in the first place.
Christine Farnish CBE, Chair of the Money Advice Trust, says: “As the impact of cost of living pressures continued to bear down on household budgets, National Debtline and Business Debtline helped more people in 2024 than ever before.
“But – with 8 million people in need of debt advice - we know there is so much more we need to do. We are looking forward to working with our many partners to significantly grow our reach and impact, as the Money Advice Trust enters what will be a new era for our charity’s contribution to tackling problem debt in the UK.”
Steve Vaid, Chief Executive at the Money Advice Trust, says: “Our latest report underscores the significant impact our National Debtline and Business Debtline services have – helping to remove problem debt from people’s lives, supporting them to take control of their finances and improve their wellbeing.
“We know there are many more people who need our help. We are transforming our services and broadening the reach of our work to improve access to life-changing debt advice amongst groups who are currently less likely to seek help, as well as focusing on preventing financial difficulty occurring in the first place.”
