Economic abuse often leaves victim-survivors facing coerced debt, arrears, damaged credit, financial insecurity and ongoing post-separation harm.
Victim-survivors may have been coerced into debt through force of fraud, or by being prevented from paying bills, having their ability to earn or access benefits sabotaged, or left financially responsible for debts created by the perpetrator.
On this page
Why supporting victim-survivors with coerced debt matters
Coerced debt can have a significant impact on a victim-survivor’s safety, wellbeing and ability to rebuild after abuse. Worry about arrears, enforcement action or damaged credit can make it harder to leave an abuser, secure housing, access essential services, or rebuild economic independence.
Many victim-survivors may not recognise their experiences as economic abuse and may instead describe themselves as “bad with money” or blame themselves for financial difficulties.
By understanding coerced debt as a form of economic abuse, practitioners can help identify hidden forms of coercive control, provide effective advocacy, and support victim-survivors to access specialist debt advice and wider support.
Early recognition can reduce further harm and help victim-survivors move towards safety and long-term economic stability.
Economic abuse advocacy on coerced debt in practice
Coerced debt can look very different depending on a victim-survivor’s circumstances.
The case study below shows how frontline practitioners identified economic abuse within situations initially understood as “financial problems” or “rent arrears”, and how advocacy, partnership working and specialist support helped improve outcomes for the victim-survivor.
The situation:
A woman fled domestic abuse and left the joint social tenancy she shared with her ex-partner. He remained in the property and stopped paying rent, building up over £10,000 in arrears in both their names.
Two years later, she was living in emergency accommodation and seeking support from a Homeless Prevention Team. During a risk assessment, she disclosed that during the relationship her ex-partner had controlled her income, accessed her bank account, and spent her earnings on his own needs while contributing little financially.
The arrears had initially been treated as standard rent debt. However, this disclosure reframed the situation: the debt had been built up in the context of economic abuse, both during the relationship and after separation.
Without intervention, she remained legally tied to the coerced debt and unable to fully move on, with the risk that the arrears would continue to affect her housing options, financial stability, and long-term recovery.
The economic abuse advocacy:
The Homeless Prevention Team at Brighton & Hove Council:
- Following training to spot the signs of economic abuse, the team identified the arrears as potential coerced debt linked to economic abuse
- Sought specialist advice to reframe the debt within this context
- Supported the caseworker to advocate with the housing provider
- Clearly set out the impact of domestic abuse and inability to safely return
- Connected the victim-survivor to specialist debt and housing advice
What changed:
- £7,000 of rent arrears reduced through discretionary payments
- Joint tenancy brought to an end, removing ongoing financial ties
- Victim-survivor better able to move forward with secure housing options
- Economic abuse recognised within the housing response
Why this matters:
- Rent arrears may be a direct result of economic abuse, not just financial difficulty
- Naming coerced debt can change how institutions respond
- Housing providers can use discretion when given the right evidence
- Post-separation economic abuse can continue to cause long-term harm if not addressed
Recognising coerced debt as a form of economic abuse
A victim-survivor who has been coerced into debt may:
- have debts they do not recognise or understand
- appear fearful or ashamed when discussing money
- avoid opening post or speaking to creditors
- have rent, council tax or utility arrears linked to abuse
- disclose pressure to take out loans or credit
- have damaged credit caused by a partner
- say they are “bad with money” or blame themselves
Remember: victim-survivors may not identify this as economic abuse.
Coerced debt is a form of economic abuse where an abusive partner, ex-partner or family member forces a victim-survivor into debt. Perpetrators can coerce victim-survivors into debt in multiple ways, including:
- Fraud: An abuser taking on a joint or sole debt in a victim-survivor’s name without their consent or knowledge.
- Force: Using harm, or its threat, to a victim-survivor or others (such as their children) so that the victim-survivor takes on a debt.
- Misinformation: Providing false or misleading information to a victim-survivor about a debt, such as how and when it was repaid, its size, repayment rate, or what the abuser will contribute towards repayment.
- Other: A victim-survivor may experience debt because the abuser has used other forms of economic abuse to force the victim-survivor into debt. This could include controlling the victim-survivor’s income so that they cannot pay a debt or restricting the victim-survivor’s access to money in such a way that they must take on debt to meet their or their children’s basic needs.
Starting conversations about debt
The following questions can help the person you’re supporting explore whether they have been coerced into debt:
- Has anyone controlled your access to money?
- Were you pressured to take out credit or bills in your name?
- Has debt ever been used to frighten or control you?
- Did someone make you take out credit but then use it for a purpose you didn’t agree to?
- Did someone take out debt without your consent or knowledge that you found out about at a later stage?
- Are there financial issues making it harder to feel safe or move forward?
- Are there debts you feel were caused or worsened by the abuse?
What debt advisors can do
Debt advisers can play a vital role in supporting victim-survivors of economic abuse to address coerced debt and other financial difficulties safely.
Surviving Economic Abuse (SEA) and Money Advice Plus (MAP) jointly deliver specialist Economic abuse and debt advice (EADA) training for debt advisers, helping them recognise economic abuse and respond safely and effectively. Find out more about the EADA course here.
MAP’s Centre of Excellence for Debt and Economic Abuse Services (CEDEAS) also provides specialist support to debt advice organisations working with victim-survivors of economic abuse. This includes case reviews and supervision, consultancy and specialist advice, and organisations can also establish referral pathways with MAP for particularly complex cases.
MAP advisers also use the Economic Abuse Evidence Form (EAEF), which enables qualified debt advisers to provide creditors with relevant evidence of economic abuse and support requests for appropriate responses to debts linked to abuse.
What domestic abuse practitioners can do
Domestic abuse practitioners can’t replace the importance of regulated debt advice, but you can provide effective support. Your role is to recognise economic abuse, provide trauma-informed advocacy and practical support, and help survivors access specialist debt advice safely.
Practitioners should:
- validate the victim-survivor’s experience
- recognise coerced debt as part of coercive control
- help gather paperwork safely
- support access to credit reports or financial information
- advocate with landlords, councils, banks or utilities
- explain support options and referral pathways
- prepare victim-survivors for debt advice appointments
- work collaboratively with specialist debt advisers
- consider safety and confidentiality risks at all times
Knowing your boundaries
Domestic abuse advocacy and debt advice are different, but both are essential.
Practitioners should not:
- recommend a debt solution
- advise on insolvency or repayment options
- promise debts can be written off
- undertake regulated debt advice activities unless authorised
- assume debt is caused by “poor budgeting”
When to refer for specialist debt advice
Refer to specialist debt advice when a victim-survivor:
- has experienced coerced debt
- needs advice on debt solutions or insolvency
- is facing court action or enforcement
- needs creditor negotiation support
- may need Breathing Space or other debt relief schemes
- has multiple or complex debts
Wherever possible, support the victim-survivor by making a referral, rather than signposting them to support and leaving them to make contact themselves.
Some specialist debt advisors are also authorised to use the Economic Abuse Evidence Form.
Tools for practitioners
We are currently developing tools for domestic abuse practitioners (who are not debt advisors) to use to support advocacy on debt.
The tools may be useful for IDVAs, refuge and outreach workers, housing advocates, economic abuse practitioners and service managers supporting victim-survivors directly. They may also support wider domestic abuse and safeguarding practitioners who encounter victim-survivors experiencing coerced debt as a form of economic abuse.
Quick reference card for domestic abuse practitioners
This quick reference card is designed to provide busy frontline practitioners with a simple, practical tool to support conversations about coerced debt as a form of economic abuse.
It can be printed, shared with colleagues, used in supervision or team discussions, and kept nearby as an easy reminder of key signs, questions, actions and referral boundaries.
Download the quick reference cardAdditional tools and resources for practitioners are coming soon. If your area would be interested in finding out more or supporting with testing, please contact [email protected]
The situation:
A Bangladeshi woman seeking asylum in the UK was living in hotel accommodation with her young daughter. She had fled abuse from her husband, who had since returned to Bangladesh, but the abuse had not ended. Despite being in a different country, he continued to contact her and demand money. With no right to work and limited financial support through the asylum system, she felt pressured to send what little she had to him. Over time, this ongoing coercion led to her building up more than £9,000 in debt.
She was attending a drop-in service for asylum-seeking and refugee women, primarily for practical support such as food, clothing and advice. While her situation was initially understood as financial hardship, the pattern of control and demands from her husband indicated ongoing economic abuse and that the debt was coerced. Without recognising this, there was a risk that the debt would continue to grow, and that she would not access the specialist support needed to address both the financial harm and the abuse underpinning it.
The economic abuse advocacy:
The Network of International Women caseworker:
- Following training on how to spot the signs, the caseworker was able to screen for abuse and run facilitated sessions which created a safe, culturally-sensitive context to disclose
- This allowed them to identify indicators of economic abuse within the context of financial hardship
- Provided economic abuse awareness through group workshops
- Supported understanding of coerced debt
- Connected her to a specialist economic abuse-informed debt advice helpline (CEDEAS, run by MAP)
- Enabled ongoing support through regular drop-in sessions
What changed:
- Economic abuse recognised as the driver of her debt
- Referred for specialist support to address coerced debt
- Increased understanding of her rights and options
- Continued access to safe, supportive services
Why this matters:
- Economic abuse can continue across borders and after separation
- Financial hardship may mask ongoing coercion and control
- Awareness-raising is a critical first step in enabling disclosure
- Specialist, trauma-informed debt advice is essential for victim-survivors with complex needs
- Immigration status can significantly limit options and increase vulnerability
Guidance for commissioners and domestic partnership boards
Detailed guidance for commissioners and domestic partnership boards is coming soon. Join our practitioners’ network to keep up to date with the latest information and guidance.
Join the practitioners’ network