Hardship Helper

You answer a few questions about your situation: what happened, who you owe money to, and your state. The tool then creates a clear, professional hardship letter you can send to each provider, a prioritised action plan with phone numbers and scripts, and a plain-language summary of your rights with each creditor type. The letters are written in plain English, tailored to your situation and ready for you to review and send.

Under Australian law, banks and lenders must genuinely consider a hardship request and respond, generally within about 21 days. Energy providers must run hardship programs and work with you on an affordable payment arrangement. Telcos must consider your request and work with you on a payment arrangement before disconnection. Debt collectors must follow strict contact rules. In every case they must consider and respond, but they are not obliged to say yes.

In most states, your energy provider cannot disconnect you while you're on a hardship program and meeting your agreed arrangement (the exact rules depend on where you live — Victoria, WA and the NT have their own equivalent protections). Even outside a hardship program, providers must follow strict disconnection procedures first, including working with you on payment options and giving proper notice, and disconnection is generally prohibited during extreme weather. If you're at risk of disconnection, call your provider's hardship line immediately and ask for their hardship program.

Under Australian law, you have the legal right to apply for a hardship variation on any regulated credit product: mortgages, credit cards, personal loans, and car loans. Your lender must respond, generally within about 21 days, and genuinely consider options like extending the loan term, reducing or pausing repayments, waiving fees, or restructuring the debt. They don't have to say yes, but they must consider your request. If they refuse, you can escalate to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) for free.

Debt collectors must identify themselves and verify the debt is yours. They cannot contact you more than 3 times per week or 10 times per month, and not before 7:30am or after 9pm. You can request written-only communication. You can dispute the debt and they must pause collection while verifying. After typically 6 years, debts become statute-barred, so the creditor cannot take you to court. If a collector breaches these rules, complain to AFCA or the ACCC.

Every Australian state has grant programs for utility bills. Examples include EAPA in NSW (up to $400 per fuel per application, up to twice each financial year — no concession card needed), URGS in Victoria (up to $650 per utility type over two years), HEEAS in Queensland (up to $720 once every 2 years), and WA's HUGS scheme. If you hold a concession card (Health Care Card, Pensioner Concession Card), you may also qualify for ongoing energy concessions worth hundreds per year. This tool shows you the specific grants available in your state.

The tool produces: (1) A clear, professional hardship letter for each creditor you select, written in plain language. (2) A prioritised action plan: what to do today, this week, and within 2 weeks. (3) A plain-language breakdown of your rights by creditor type. (4) State-specific grants you may qualify for. (5) Escalation paths if a creditor won't cooperate, including ombudsman details. Each letter includes the right phone number and the right words to say.

No. This tool provides general information based on Australian consumer protection law. It is not a substitute for legal advice, and laws can change. For complex situations, especially if you have a court date, are facing repossession, or are experiencing family violence, contact the National Debt Helpline on 1800 007 007 for free professional advice, or a community legal centre in your state.

Your answers are sent securely to our server to generate your personalised plan, then deleted. We don't store your personal information, create accounts, or track your usage. The generated plan is displayed in your browser and can be saved or printed locally. No data is shared with creditors, government agencies, or any third party.

Yes. The tool covers government debts including ATO tax debt, Centrelink overpayments, and council rates. For ATO debt, it creates a letter that asks about a payment plan, a reduction of interest charges, and serious financial hardship support in the ATO's own plain terms. It includes the ATO's payment support contact details, with escalation to the Inspector-General of Taxation and Taxation Ombudsman if needed.

The tool covers insurance disputes including denied claims, delayed claims, and premium hardship. Under the General Insurance Code of Practice, insurers must respond within 10 business days of your claim, update you at least every 20 business days, and decide within 4 months. For premium hardship, insurers must genuinely assess your hardship request. The tool includes escalation to AFCA for free external resolution.

This tool was built by TEKVA Limited, an Australian charity (ABN 88 689 519 686) that helps people in financial difficulty. TEKVA is a Public Benevolent Institution (PBI) with Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) status. The rights data and creditor details are maintained and verified by the TEKVA team. If you'd like to support this work, visit tekva.org.au.