Ms Ruth Fanning:

On the concept of an advisory group, there is money to fund a panel of accountants for people who have been offered options by their banks but people are not accessing the panel. The Department of Social Protection is trying to expand that panel so other people who are used to giving advice on mortgages can benefit from that fund. The money there is not being used and that could be raised with the Central Bank because that is where it is stuck. On the banks deeming people unco-operative, the code of conduct says the banks must send a warning letter before they deem a person unco-operative. We do not see that happening across the board. People are being told they are unco-operative and the effect of that might be to rule them out of taking the insolvency route. If they have been found not to have co-operated with the bank, they are ruled out from a personal insolvency arrangement. The consequences are grave.

People may not know that one has to be warned before being deemed uncooperative but that often does not happen.