A Profile of the Clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS, and the Extent and Nature of their Financial Difficulties (with a Focus on Utility Debt )

A Profile of the Clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS, and the Extent and Nature of their Financial Difficulties (with a Focus on Utility Debt ) A Report for Dublin 10 & 20 MAB 2013 Researchers: Dr. Stuart Stamp Annette McMahon/Money Adviser Caitriona McLoughlin/ Money Adviser Dr. Stuart Stamp is a Research Associate with the Department of Applied Social Studies at NUI Maynooth. 0

Foreword I find that some things have changed in Ballyfermot and Cherry Orchard since I took up residence there in 1991. For instance, average family size has reduced from an average of 5.6 to 2.7. Superficially people seem to be materially better off. Car ownership was rare in Cherry Orchard in 1991, but now it is much more common. Houses and gardens are generally better maintained. Yet, a lot of people have been left behind by the rising tide. The average household income of those seeking advice or assistance from Dublin 10 & 20 MABS is 420 a week, as against a figure of over 800 per week for the general population of Ireland. We decided to mark the 21 st anniversary of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS by commissioning a piece of research focusing on fuel poverty in our area. Since the beginning, this type of poverty has been easily seen among our clients in the high proportion of household debt owed for gas and electricity, as against mortgage debt in the population at large. Nearly 60% of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients owe or have owed considerable amounts of money to utility companies, and a large amount of the time and energy of our excellent MABS staff goes into negotiating with energy companies and preventing disconnections. This excellent Report of Dr Stuart Stamp, Research Associate in NUI Maynooth; and Annette McMahon and Caitriona McLoughlin, who work or have worked with the Dublin 10 & 20 MABS service, highlights the fact that 52% of our clients report having gone without heat during the year as a result of lack of money. Many people hearing this may say that everyone in the country switches off heat to save money, yet the comparable response to this question among the population at large is only 12.2%. Almost all MABS clients report being unable to keep their homes adequately warm. Apart from being unable to pay their bills, few can afford any insulation other than double glazing, though it has been shown that less than a fifth of heat loss from homes is through windows. A better system of schemes and grants to allow poorer people to insulate their homes properly would help. But the basic solution to the problem of fuel poverty is to find ways and structures by which poorer people can increase their income. Sadly unemployment is very high in Dublin 10 & 20, and only 24% of MABS clients list a wage (as against social welfare payments etc.) as their primary 1

source of income. Unless ways can be found to tackle the deep structural and economic problems that prevent people in disadvantaged areas from accessing paid employment, the problem of fuel poverty, and the suffering it causes, will remain intractable. The Board of MABS is very grateful to the Department of Social and Family Affairs, and to our parent body of recent years, the Citizens Information Board, for providing the financial resources for this piece of research, which we hope will stimulate some reflection on the problem of fuel poverty, its causes, and its possible solutions. Bill Toner, S.J., Secretary and Founding Member of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS. 2

Acknowledgements The researchers wish to thank sincerely all the clients who kindly agreed to be interviewed for the fuel survey aspect of this study. Thanks also to the Board and Staff of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS both for their assistance with, and input to, the research. Special thanks to Thomas Nolan of MABSndl for all his assistance in the provision of both local and national anonymised MABSIS data. We would like to express our thanks to Dr. Noelle Cotter for her insightful comments and peer review of this report. We would also like to thank Gwen Harris Co-ordinator of Finglas/Cabra MABS for her assistance also. We hope that this study will help in some way towards addressing the particular debt problems and financial difficulties experienced by clients of Dublin 10-20 MABS. July 2013 3

Table of Contents List of tables... 6 List of charts... 7 Executive Summary... 8 Section 1. Introduction... 12 1.1 The history and development of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS... 12 1.2 A profile of the Dublin 10 & 20 MABS client catchment area... 13 1.3 Levels of over-indebtedness within the catchment area... 15 1.4 The rationale for the research... 16 1.5 The Research Objectives... 16 1.6 Methodology... 17 1.61 MABSIS Data... 17 1.6.2 Primary data sourced from a sample of current MABS clients resident in Dublin 10... 18 Section 2. The socio-demographic and economic characteristics of the client population of Dublin10 & 20 MABS... 19 2.1. Gender... 19 2.2. Marital status... 19 2.3 Household size and composition... 20 2.4 Age Profile... 21 2.5. Tenure status... 22 2.6. Employment Status... 23 2.7. First income source... 24 2.8 Household income, individualised (equivalised) income, and poverty. 25 2.9. Summary... 26 Section 3. The extent and nature of debt problems among clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS... 28 3.1. Types of debt... 28 3.2. Combinations of debt... 29 3.3. Gender and age dimensions to the reporting of debt... 30 3.4 Amount of Arrears... 32 3.5. Summary... 34 Section 4. Energy consumption, management, payment and associated issues among Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients... 36 4.1. Age and type of accommodation,... 36 4.2. Insulation and weather glazing... 37 4.3 Energy Supplier... 38 4

4.4. Arrears and threats of disconnection... 39 4.5. Self-disconnection and cutting back... 40 4.6. Methods of payment and pre-payment... 40 4.7. Fuel poverty... 42 4.8. Servicing of central heating boilers... 44 4.9. Summary... 45 Conclusion... 46 Appendix Questionnaire Template and Explanatory Notes... 47 5

List of tables Page Table 1: 31 Type of Debt Reported by New Dublin 10&20 MABS clients in 2012, by Gender Table 2: 32 Type of Debt Reported by New Dublin 10&20 MABS clients in 2012, by Age Group Table 3: 34 New MABS Clients during 2012 by Median Amount Owed per Type of Debt Table 4: 37 MABS Clients (2013) Resident in Dublin 10 by Type of Accommodation Table 5: 41 MABS Clients (2013) Resident in Dublin 10 by Frequency of Payment for Fuel Table 6: 42 MABS Clients (2013) Resident in Dublin 10 by Service Provider for Payment for Fuel Table 7: 44 Net Weekly Incomes and Amounts Spent on Fuel MABS Clients 2012 & 2013 6

List of charts Page Chart 1: 15 % Household Population of the Ballyfermot/Chapelizod Area by Tenancy Status Chart 2: 20 % New MABS Clients during 2012 by Martial Status Chart 3: 21 New MABS Clients during 2012 by Age Group Chart 4: 23 % New MABS Clients during 2012 by Tenure Type Chart 5:: 24 % MABS Clients (2013) Residents in Dublin 10 by Employment Status Chart 6: 25 % New MABS Clients during 2012 by First Income Source Chart 7: 29 New Dublin 10&20 MABS clients during 2012 by Type of Arrears Chart 8: 29 % New MABS Clients during 2012 by Numbers of Types of Debt Reported Chart 9: 33 % New MABS Clients during 2012 by Amount of Arrears Chart 10: 39 MABS Clients (2013) Resident in Dublin 10 by Type of Energy Supplier Chart 11: 41 MABS Clients (2013) Resident in Dublin 10 by Method of Payment for Fuel Chart 12: 43 % Extent of Fuel Poverty (on the 10% Measure) Among MABS Clients 2012 & 2013 7

A Profile of the Clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS, and the Extent and Nature of their Financial Difficulties (with a Focus on Utility Debt ) Executive Summary The policy debate following the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) in 2008 has focused to a considerable extent on the issue of mortgage arrears and associated personal insolvency. People in other tenure types and those with financial difficulties which relate more to coping with the day-to-day costs of living, have therefore been largely excluded from this debate, and measures to address their problems have been notably thin on the ground. This study illustrates that the clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS form such a cohort. A large proportion live in non-mortgaged accommodation, and clients problems stem mainly from economic vulnerability and income inadequacy relative to current living costs, rather than from any so-called personal debt over-hang. By way of example, the average debt per client in terms of arrears on outstanding bills and unpaid debt repayments amounts to a little over 5,700. Experiences of financial difficulty relate predominantly to an inability to heat the home adequately and to meet the costs of utility bills. In this regard, the economic downturn and associated austerity measures, particularly cuts to social welfare, appear to be having a significantly adverse impact on clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS. The clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS do not, by and large, have mortgage arrears nor do they appear to be insolvent, hence the measures put in place since 2008 to address personal over-indebtedness have little or no relevance to them. What they require primarily are incomes that are adequate to meet the costs of living, and policy measures to address the combined issues of utility debt and fuel poverty. Some notable work has been done in this regard at local level in the Ballyfermot area, but the findings of this study point to a need to renew efforts to tackle these issues in light of the economic downturn that has impacted on the 8

community. 1 As this study illustrates, Dublin 10 & 20 MABS has a key role to play in such efforts. The key findings of this study may be summarised as follows: Characteristics of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients first presenting in 2012: As is the case with MABS clients nationally, the majority (60%) are women. In terms of marital status, the largest single category (31%) is people parenting alone. The average household size is 2.7 persons, in line with the population as a whole. The majority of clients (68%) are aged 40 or under and therefore significantly younger than MABS clients overall. The proportion of local authority tenants using the services of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS (27%) is almost twice that of clients of MABS services nationally. Only just over a third (37%) are employed/self-employed to various degrees, but around two thirds are not for various reasons. The majority of clients (64%) depend on a social welfare payment as their first source of income; of those on social welfare the leading category is Jobseekers Allowance (JSA) followed by the One Parent Family Payment (OPFP) Average (median) net household incomes are very low at around 420 per week, which is substantially lower than that of the population as a whole. Extent and nature of the debts of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients who first presented in 2012: Nearly 60% of clients owed outstanding debts to utility companies debts to all other types of creditor were much less frequently reported. 1 See for example: WRC Social and Economic Consultants, 2012. The Ballyfermot / Chapelizod Partnership Area: Census 2006-2011. Dublin: WRC Social and Economic Consultants. 9

Around 50% of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients reported multiple debts this was considerably less, however, than among MABS clients nationally. The average (median) amount of debt per new client presenting to Dublin 10 & 20 MABS in 2012 was 5,735; the corresponding figure for MABS clients nationally was 12,580. The majority of clients (64%) owed less that 10,000, and only a minority (20%) owed more than 20,000. The top five largest average debts all related to different types of credit: smaller average debts related, by and large, to household bills. Clients owed more on average to moneylenders and in respect of rent arrears than MABS clients nationally, suggesting there to be higher levels of financial exclusion among Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients. Energy utility issues among a sample of current (2013) Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients who live in Dublin 10: The majority live in two and three bedroom houses, which were built between 30 and 60 years ago. In almost three quarters of instances (74%), respondents stated that their property is not insulated at all. In contrast, the majority of respondents (66%) reported that they have weather glazed windows and doors. Respondents are using a range of suppliers for their electricity, but the vast majority (75%) use the same supplier for the provision of gas. Experience of arrears is widespread with regard to both electricity (53% of respondents) and heating bills (45% of respondents) - threats of disconnection were received by substantial minorities in each instance. Over half (52%) of respondents report going without heat at some stage in the past twelve months through lack of money. The vast majority of respondents (84%) report having been unable to keep their homes adequately warm at some stage during the past year. Energy is generally paid for on a weekly basis, in cash, using local shops and post offices, and prepayment was frequent. 10

Electronic payment methods are used by only a small minority (11%) of respondents. Around half of the respondents responsible for servicing their own boiler (49%) report being unable to do so through lack of resources. The majority of respondents, and indeed the majority (60%) of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients, are in fuel poverty on the conventional 10% measure. 11

Section 1. Introduction 1.1 The history and development of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS The current Dublin 10 & 20 MABS developed out of one of the five initial MABS pilot projects established by the then Department of Social Welfare in 1992, namely COMAC or the Cherry Orchard Money Advice Centre. Cherry Orchard remains part of the service s catchment area to this day and the service continued to have an office in Cherry Orchard up until this year (2013), when a decision was taken to locate all staff within a single location in the Ballyfermot Civic Centre. Renamed Dublin 10 & 20 MABS in November 1998, the service now has a large catchment area, encompassing Chapelizod and Lucan, in addition to Ballyfermot and Cherry Orchard. 2 The service employs one Co-ordinator/Money Adviser, two point two money advisers and two Administrators. The profile of the first set of clients from Cherry Orchard in 1993 is interesting, in that it acts as a historical comparator for the current client cohort. The average household size of clients presenting to the service in 1993 was quite large, at 5.6 persons, welfare dependency was high and lone parents made up a considerable proportion of the then client base: Virtually all the clients were dependent on social welfare payments. One third of the clients are claiming Unemployment Assistance (UA) with a (further) high proportion (35%) of lone parents. 3 Analysis of the weekly expenditures of the clients on file in 1993 revealed that food, utilities and cigarettes/sweets were the items taking up the major part of clients income. In terms of utilities, the most common combination - electricity and other fuel - took up over 13% of household expenditure on average. 2 2 The majority of active clients as of June 2013 reside in Ballyfermot/CherryOrchard (127). The remainder live in: Palmerstown (29); Lucan (22); Clondalkin (12); Chapelizod (11); Drimnagh (7); Kildare (6); Inchicore (5); Crumlin (2); Other (5). 3 Dillon, B. and Redmond, D. 1993. Evaluation of Pilot Projects to Combat Moneylending and Indebtedness, Dublin: Nexus Research Cooperative. 12

In terms of debt problems, 35% of these early client households had one debt, 29% had two, 18% had three and 18% had four or more- or put another way, 65% were experiencing multiple debt. The distribution of these debts by debt type is also interesting with outstanding moneylender loans being the most commonly reported debt type followed by rent arrears; no client at all appeared to have a mortgage. 1.2 A profile of the Dublin 10 & 20 MABS client catchment area The Dublin 10 & 20 MABS client catchment area includes some of the most disadvantaged communities in Dublin, as described in a recent study for the Ballyfermot/Chapelizod Partnership by WRC Social and Economic Consultants: 4 The Ballyfermot / Chapelizod area still includes a number of localities that are, in absolute and relative terms, still among the most disadvantaged within the Dublin Region in 2011. In terms of socio-economic development, the gains made in the earlier part of the decade up to 2006 have been reversed, particularly in respect of the labour market where employment rates have decreased and unemployment rates have increased. In terms of demography, the WRC study identified an increase in the proportion of family units within the Partnership area that comprise lone parents with children, and noted that this increased proportion is higher than that within the Dublin Region as a whole: 4 WRC Social and Economic Consultants, (2012). The Ballyfermot / Chapelizod Partnership Area: Census 2006-2011. Dublin: WRC Social and Economic Consultants. 13

120 100 80 60 40 20 4.6 3.7 4.6 3.6 26.2 26.8 41.7 44.2 70.1 69.6 53.7 51.1 Lone fathers with children Lone mothers with children Couples with children 0 Ballyfermot-Chapelizod 2006 Dublin Region 2006 Ballyfermot-Chapelizod 2011 Dublin Region 2011 Source: WRC Social and Economic Consultants The WRC study (2012:10) also identified a higher incidence of disability within the Ballyfermot/Chapelizod area in comparison to the Dublin Region in general: The total number of people with a disability in Ballyfermot / Chapelizod is 4,776 corresponding to 19.0% of the population. The corresponding figures for the Dublin Region are 164,339 and 12.9%. The tenure profile within the Partnership area is distinctive in that the incidence of people renting from the local authority is relatively high compared to the population as a whole. According to the 2011 Census, the tenure status of households within the area is as follows: 14

Chart 1 % Household Population of the Ballyfermot/Chapelizod Area by Tenancy Status 16% 1% 1% 1% 23% 25% 33% Owner Occupied Mortgaged Owner occupied no mortgage Rented private landlord Rented Local Authority Rented Voluntary body Occupied free of rent Not Stated Source: Census 2011, Central Statistics Office Concerns about energy issues and fuel poverty particularly within the Ballyfermot area, led to the carrying out of energy audits in 2004 and 2005 within the community; Dublin 10 & 20 MABS played a pivotal role as the catalyst for this work. Arising from the results of these audits, reported in the Ballyfermot Residential Energy and Fuel Poverty Report (and supplementary Dwelling Report), a community insulation programme was recommended, ideally to be supplemented by a central heating strategy and upgrade to energy efficient boilers. Little progress appears to have been made, however, in terms of implementing the report s key recommendations. 5 1.3 Levels of over-indebtedness within the catchment area No data were available on levels of over-indebtedness for the catchment area as a whole. However, research at a societal level 6 has identified a relationship between the incidence of over-indebtedness and a lack of household resources (associated with low income, poverty and unemployment); high-risk groups include local authority tenants, lone parents and people with a persistent illness 5 Some work has however taken place with owner occupiers in the Ballyfermot Area: http://www.housing.ie/our-publications/housing-management/11-04-13-pilot-central-heating-and- Insulation-Sche.aspx 6 Russell, H., Maitre, B. and Donnelly, N. (2011). Financial Exclusion and Over-indebtedness in Irish Households. Dublin: Economic and Social Research Institute; Stamp, S. (2009). An Exploratory Analysis of Financial Difficulties Among Those Living Below the Poverty Line in Ireland. Dublin: Combat Poverty Agency. 15

or disability. The profile of the Dublin 10 & 20 MABS catchment area, described above, would therefore suggest there to be relatively high numbers of overindebted households residing within it. As discussed in the findings below, the characteristics of the Dublin 10 & 20 MABS client cohort (for 2012) reflect the profile of the catchment area, and are very much in line with what would be expected on the evidence of previous research. 1.4 The rationale for the research As no independently undertaken, portrait of its client base had been undertaken since its pilot stage, in November 2012 the Board of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS decided its twentieth anniversary presented a timely opportunity to commission an up -to-date profile of its service users and the debt issues with which they are presenting, given the significant growth in levels of both indebtedness and overindebtedness that have taken place in the intervening period. Such data would, it was hoped, provide Dublin 10 & 20 MABS both with timely information to assist with service planning, community education and development initiatives, and with evidence which would form a basis for its social policy activities. 1.5 The Research Objectives The specific objectives of the research are as follows: To identify the characteristics of the client population of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS; To identify the extent and nature of the debt problems with which these clients present to MABS; To explore particular issues in relation to fuel debt such as accommodation type, supplier(s) of utilities, use of energy, deployment of economy measures, experience of disconnection and self-disconnection, frequency and method of utility payment, and experiences of fuel poverty; To highlight issues to inform Dublin 10 & 20 MABS in its planning, education, development and policy activities. 16

1.6 Methodology Two sources of data were used for the purposes of this study, namely (i) The MABSIS database and (ii) interviews with current MABS clients living in the Dublin 10 area (Ballyfermot and Cherry Orchard). 1.61 MABSIS Data MABSIS administrative data relating to new clients presenting for the first time to MABS services during 2012, were kindly provided and anonymised by MABSndl, 7 and were subjected to secondary data analysis for three specific purposes: (i) In order to develop a socio-demographic/economic profile of the clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS in respect of: gender, marital status, household size and composition, age, location, tenure status, employment status, 8 income source, net household income, individualised income and poverty. (ii) For the purpose of identifying the types and combinations of debts owed by the clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS, and the amounts of arrears associated with these debts. (iii) In order to identify the amount of expenditure spent on fuel costs by clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS relative to their net household incomes. Debts with a zero debt balance were excluded when analysing MABSIS data in respect of the types and amounts of debt reported by these clients. 9 Data were analysed using Microsoft Excel and the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). 7 We would particularly like to thank Thomas Nolan at MABSndl for all his help in this regard. 8 As there is no MABSIS category for employment status, this was identified on the basis of responses to a specific question incorporated within the fuel survey hence, the data here refer solely to the sub-set of clients (n =101) interviewed for the fuel survey who live in Dublin 10. 9 A zero balance may exist on MABSIS because proofs of debt are in the process of being obtained. 17

1.6.2 Primary data sourced from a sample of current MABS clients resident in Dublin 10 In order to identify factors that may help to explain the reasons for energy difficulty among clients of Dublin10 & 20 MABS, an interview survey was carried out of clients living within the Dublin 10 area during February-March 2013, a particularly cold period as it transpired. A structured questionnaire - see appendix (i) - was developed, piloted and then subsequently used to collect data from existing service users on issues pertaining to their use of fuel. An independent interviewer was used to lessen the demands on advisers and to ensure consistency in the collection of data. A total of 101 existing MABS clients, all from the Dublin 10 area, completed the survey. 5 clients refused to answer the questionnaire, 55 were non-contactable (due to no phone, no answer etc.) 18 clients were living with parents, 2 were unable to be interviewed one due to a language barrier and the other had a hearing disability. Among other matters, interviewees were asked about: Household and socio-economic characteristics Nature of accommodation Insulation and weather-proofing Use of energy Arrears and disconnection Supplier of energy Payment method and frequency Ability to heat the home Fuel costs relative to income Data were recorded and analysed again using SPSS. 18

Section 2. The socio-demographic and economic characteristics of the client population of Dublin10 & 20 MABS In this section, the following characteristics of the Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients base are explored: gender; marital status; household size and composition; age; tenure status; employment status; first income source; net household income; individualised income; and risk of poverty. These characteristics are identified through analysis of MABSIS data with respect to clients who first presented to MABS services, including Dublin 10 & 20 MABS, in 2012. 2.1. Gender In line with trends over time, and in common with MABS services nationally, the majority of clients (60.4%) are women. A similar trend is evident in the national MABS data where 55% of clients are women. There is evidence in the literature that this gender dimension may be due to the way responsibility is assigned and money is managed within the household, 10 and in particular within low income households which have formed, and continue to form, the majority of the MABS client base. The slightly higher percentage of female clients approaching Dublin 10 & 20 MABS compared to other MABS services is probably related to the relatively higher proportion of local clients who are parenting alone (see below). 2.2. Marital status As can be seen from Chart 2 below, those parenting alone (that is those who are categorised as single with children, separated with children, divorced with children, and widowed with children) comprise almost one third (31%) of the Dublin 10 & 20 MABS client cohort, and around a quarter (26%) of the national MABS client base. The relationship between financial difficulty and lone parenthood has been identified by a number of studies. 11 10 See for example: Rottman, D. (1994). Income Distribution Within Irish Households: Allocating Resources Within Irish Families. Dublin: Combat Poverty Agency. 11 Conroy, P. and O Leary, H. (2005). Do the Poor Pay More? A Study of Lone Parents and Debt. Dublin: One Parent Exchange and Network; Stamp, 2009 (ibid); Russell, Maitre and Donnelly 2011 (ibid). 19

It is noticeable that there is a higher proportion of lone parents using the services of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS compared to MABS services in general. Single persons (at 29%) 12 comprise the second largest category of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients, followed by people classified as either married or a couple with children (26%) and those living as a couple (whether married or not) without children (10%). Chart 2: % New MABS Clients during 2012 by Martial Status Not Known Widowed with children Widowed Divorced with children Divorced Separated with children Separated Couple with children Couple Married with children Single with children Single Married % National (n=19,705) % Dublin 10 & 20 ( n=278) Source: MABSIS 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 2.3 Household size and composition The average size of a Dublin 10 & 20 MABS client household is 2.7 persons, comprising 1.5 adults and 1.2 children. This figure is considerably smaller than that of the early client households approaching the then COMAC around twenty years ago, when the average client household size was 5.6 persons. The average size is almost identical both to the size of the average MABS client household nationally, and to that of the population in general. 13 This similarity masks a slight divergence between Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients and their national 12 i.e. Clients categorised as single, separated, divorced or widowed. 13 Central Statistics Office, 2012. This is Ireland: Highlights from Census 2011 Part 1. Cork: Central Statistics Office, p.25. 20

counterparts however: a slightly larger proportion of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS client households contain children (60% local v 52% national), but in slightly smaller numbers - of those households with children, over 4 in 10 (42%) of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS client households contain 1 child, compared to around a third (33%) of MABS client households nationally. 2.4 Age Profile Money advisers do not in general record the specific age of a client, rather they record clients by age range. The following categories are used: 15-18; 19-25; 26-40; 41-65; and over 65. The age range distribution for clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS is similar to that for that of MABS clients in general, the majority being in the 26-40 age group followed by a substantial minority in the 41-65 age range, and a smaller minority in the 19-25 category. There are very few clients presenting to MABS who are over 65, and hardly any aged 18 or less. Chart 3: % New MABS Clients during 2012 by Age Group 60 50 40 30 20 % Dublin 10 & 20 (n=278) % National ( n= 19,705) 10 0 15-18 19-25 26-40 41-65 Over 65 Source: MABSIS What is noticeable is that the Dublin 10 & 20 MABS client cohort is somewhat younger overall than the national MABS client base. Over two thirds of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients (nearly 68%) are 40 or younger, compared to 57% of MABS clients nationally. This divergence is probably linked to tenancy status as described below, a substantially larger proportion of MABS clients nationally are mortgage holders, a group of clients that has recently been identified as falling 21

predominantly into the (older) 41-65 age category. 14 In comparison, there is a larger proportion of tenants, and in particular social tenants, within the Dublin 10-20 MABS cohort. 2.5. Tenure status Within the population as a whole, according to the 2011 Census, the majority of households (70%) are owner-occupiers, followed by private tenants and social tenants (those renting from a local authority or housing association). 15 Since the Global Financial Crises (GFC) in 2008, and associated economic downturn, the proportion of MABS clients nationally with a mortgage has risen year on year. 16 Based on 2012 new client figures, owner-occupiers (i.e. those owning their home outright or purchasing it in some way either by way of mortgage, shared ownership or tenant purchase), comprise half (50%) of the entire MABS client base this compares with a considerably smaller percentage (38%) of the Dublin 10 & 20 MABS client cohort. The proportion of local authority tenants using the services of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS (27%) is almost twice that of MABS clients nationally (14%), whilst the proportions in respect of private tenants are strikingly similar. Thus, while clients with a mortgage form the largest single category by tenure status both locally and nationally, there are proportionally less of them in the Dublin 10 & 20 MABS cohort. In contrast to MABS services nationally where the second largest category is privately rented, within Dublin 10 & 20 MABS it is local authority rented, reflecting both the tenure profile of the catchment area and the relationship between local authority tenants and over-indebtedness, which has been consistently identified within the research. 17 14 Bennett, C. (2013). MABS Clients and Mortgage Debt - a profile of MABS clients in Mortgage Difficulty and the factors associated therewith. Dublin: MABS National Development Ltd. 15 Central Statistics Office, (2012). Census 2011 Profile 4, The Roof Over Our Heads. Cork: Central Statistics Office. 16 See MABS quarterly statistics: http://www.mabs.ie/news-press/mabs-statistics/ 17 Stamp, 2009 (ibid); Russell, Maitre and Donnelly, 2011 (ibid). 22

Chart 4: % New MABS Clients during 2012 by Tenure Type 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 % Dublin 10 & 20 (n=278) % National (n=19,705) Source: MABSIS 2.6. Employment Status As there is no MABSIS category for the recording of employment status, a specific question in this regard was asked of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients resident in Dublin 10 who participated in the fuel survey (n =101). The responses are shown in Chart 5 below. Just over a third (37%) are employed/self-employed to various degrees (including 10% on a training scheme of some description), but around two thirds are not for various reasons. The biggest single category is unemployed (28%) and in addition, nearly a fifth (19%) describe themselves as unable to work through sickness or disability ; both of these categories are strongly associated with over-indebtedness. 18 A further 13% are on home duties, a category which includes those caring for children, older persons, and persons with a disability. 18 Stamp, (2009) (ibid); Russell, Maitre and Donnelly, 2011 (ibid). 23

Chart 5: % MABS Clients (2013) Residents in Dublin 10 by Employment Status employed unemployed self-employed Unable to work through sickness/disablility Retired Source: Fuel Survey of Sample of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS Clients, February-March 2013 2.7. First income source The largest single first income source category among Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients is a wage (24%) followed by Job Seekers Allowance (22%); the figures in both categories are almost identical to the national MABS client percentages. However, there is a clear divergence in terms of the third most common income source category: although in both cohorts it is the One Parent Family Payment (OPFP), the proportion of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients in receipt of this payment is 18% (nearly one in five), compared to 11% of MABS clients nationally (around one in nine). Again, this reflects the relatively high proportion of lone parents among the Dublin 10-20 MABS client cohort. The majority of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients who presented for the first time in 2012 (nearly two thirds or 64%), depend on a social welfare payment as their first source of income, as can be seen from Chart 6 below - this compares to 54% of MABS clients nationally. Social welfare dependency is, as might be expected, closely associated both with over-indebtedness specifically 19 and with financial difficulty in general. 20 19 Russell, Maitre and Donnelly, (2011) (ibid). 20 Stamp, (2009) (ibid). 24

Chart 6: % New MABS Clients during 2012 by First Income Source 25 20 15 10 5 0 Source: MABSIS % Dublin 10 & 20 MABS (n=278) % MABS National (n= 19,705) 2.8 Household income, individualised (equivalised) income, and poverty The clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS, in common with MABS clients in general, are in receipt of relatively low incomes. The average (median) net household income of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS client households presenting for the first time in 2012, is 420.00 per week (or 21,840 per annum); this is strikingly similar to the figure of 425.00 (or 22,100 per annum) for clients new to MABS as a whole in 2012. By way of comparison, the average net household income figure for the population at large, according to the most recent data available for 2011 was 801.43 per week (or 41,819 per annum). 21 MABS clients presenting in 2012, therefore, are living on just below 50% of average 2011 household incomes, which may go a long way to explaining why they present at MABS services, including Dublin 10 & 20 MABS. 21 Central Statistics Office, (2013). Survey on Income and Living Conditions 2011. Cork: Central Statistics Office, p.10. 25

In its annual Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC), the Central Statistics Office (CSO) uses the concept of individualised or equivalised income, to reflect the fact that households have different sizes and compositions. This concept involves dividing household income among household members in proportions which reflect the numbers of adults and children within each household. 22 Average equivalised income (per individual) for the general population in 2011 was 21,440 per annum or 410.88 per week. In comparison, the average equivalised (median) income among the Dublin 10 & 20 MABS new client cohort for 2012 is 212.17 per week. Applying the CSO methodology to the Fuel Survey sample of 101 MABS clients resident in Dublin 10, the comparable equivalised income (per individual) is 191.45 per week. 23 As regards the relationship of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients to the poverty line, the CSO uses the concept of At Risk of Poverty (AROP), defined as a situation where a household or individual has an income which is less than 60% of the national average (median). This national poverty line stood at 10,889 per annum, or 209.40 per week in 2011, and 16% of the population was below that line, or at risk of poverty. An indicator of the chronic lack of resources among the Dublin 10 & 20 MABS 2012 client cohort is that nearly half of these households (46.5%) have an individualised income which is less than the 2011 national poverty line figure 24-58% of the 2013 fuel survey sample of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS client households also have an individualised income which is less than the 2011 national poverty line figure. 2.9. Summary There are several distinctive features of the Dublin 10 & 20 MABS client base compared to that of MABS nationally. It contains notably larger proportions of women, people aged 40 or less, lone parents, social tenants and clients 22 The equivalence scale used is: 1.00 (for the household head). 0.66 (for each additional adult within the household) and 0.33 (for each child within the household). 23 Time and resources did not permit us to make a similar calculation for MABS clients in general. 24 Again, we were unable to calculate same for MABS clients nationally owing to time and resource constraints. 26

dependent on a social welfare payment as their main income source. Some of these factors (lone parenthood, social tenancy and social welfare dependency) are strongly associated with financial difficulty and over-indebtedness; other such factors, namely unemployment, inability to work through sickness or disability, low income, and poverty, are all significant features of the Dublin 10 & 20 MABS client base and reflect the profile of the local MABS catchment area. These findings suggest income or resource inadequacy to be the main reason why people are approaching Dublin 10-20 MABS for assistance with their personal finances, rather than any sort of debt over-hang from the Celtic Tiger period. In the next section, we explore the extent and nature of the difficulties with which they present to MABS, and identify both the types and combinations of debts owed, and the amount of arrears associated with these debts. 27

Section 3. The extent and nature of debt problems among clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS In this section, the types, combinations and amounts of debt owed by clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS are identified. Further research may be useful in terms of exploring potential gender and age dimensions to the reporting of particular types of debts. 3.1. Types of debt The most noticeable feature of personal debt among clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS who presented for the first time in 2012, was that the vast majority 83 out of 143 or nearly 60% - owed outstanding debts to utility companies; other debts featured much less prominently. It should be noted that the utility category is used by money advisers to record debts owing to both energy and telecommunications companies, although according to the money advisers in Dublin 10-20 MABS who record the data, the majority of debt under this heading relates to balances on energy bills. This finding is in line with previous research, in that debt to utilities is the type of debt most commonly associated with lowincome households, low income being a significant feature of the Dublin 10-20 MABS client cohort. Secondary debts in relation to credit cards, credit union loans and personal bank loans were much less frequently reported than may have been anticipated, although these debts were nonetheless owed by sizeable minorities of clients. Notably, given the overwhelming policy focus on distressed mortgages and mortgage arrears, only 1 in 6 Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients reported a mortgage arrears balance. Further, and in stark contrast to the debt profile of clients in 1992 at the inception of the service, only a relatively small percentage of clients reported debts to moneylenders (1 in 8), and in respect of rent arrears (1 in 10). Debts are now owed in respect of a broad range of debt types. 28

% Chart 7: New Dublin 10&20 MABS clients during 2012 by Type of Arrears 90 75 60 45 30 15 0 83 39 37 25 24 23 18 14 11 11 11 6 1 Frequency (n=143) Source: MABSIS 3.2. Combinations of debt Multiple debts (defined as debts owed to two or more creditor types) were, however, common among clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS, and almost half reported more than one debt as shown in Chart 8 below. However, in comparison with MABS clients nationally, Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients were much less likely to report multiple debt, again suggesting that the problems they are experiencing are not related to taking on a range of credit during the boom. Chart 8:% New MABS Clients during 2012 by Numbers of Types of Debt Reported 60 50 40 30 20 % Dublin 10 and 20 % National MABS 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 or more Source: MABSIS 29

There were some identifiable trends in terms of the combinations of debts reported by clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS, although further research would be needed to explore these in more depth, as sample sizes were very small in some instances. In 37 of the 83 cases (45%) where a utility debt was reported, an additional debt was also reported. In 10 of the 14 cases where a local authority arrears debt was reported, utility and credit union debts were also reported. 25 Other findings, possibly worthy of further investigation are as follows: Of the 11 clients who reported an outstanding overdraft balance, 7 also reported a credit card debt. In 10 of the 18 cases where there was a moneylending debt, there was also a utility debt. In 13 of the 23 cases where mortgage arrears were reported, there was also a credit card debt. In 20 of the 37 cases where a credit union debt was reported, clients also had a utility debt. 3.3. Gender and age dimensions to the reporting of debt There are indications in the data, albeit again based on relatively small sample sizes, that there may be both a gender and age dimension to the reporting of certain debts among Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients. As regards gender for example, given that there were more females (n=80 or 56%) than males (n=63 or 44%) in the sample, there are some potentially interesting divergences from what would be expected, divergences which might be worthy of further research. For example, more males than females reported hire purchase, personal bank loan and credit card debt, whereas, a larger than might be expected proportion of females reported rent, utility, credit union and moneylender debts. 26 25 In 11 of the 14 local authority arrears cases, a utility debt was reported as well. 26 Analysis of a larger client sample (e.g. of the entire MABSIS database) might be worthy of consideration here. 30

TABLE 1: Type of Debt Reported by New Dublin 10&20 MABS clients in 2012, by Gender Males (n=63) Females (n =80) Total Mortgage 11 12 23 Rent 3 11 14 Utility 29 54 83 Hire Purchase 8 3 11 Fine 5 6 11 Waste charge 0 1 1 Personal bank loan 14 11 25 Credit union loan 14 23 37 Credit card 20 19 39 Moneylender 7 11 18 Catalogue 3 3 6 Overdraft 5 6 11 Other 10 14 24 Source: MABSIS In terms of age, given that there were twice as big a proportion of clients (n= 87, 61%) in the 26-40 age group compared to the 41-65 age group (n= 44, 31%), there appeared to be more reporting arrears on a mortgage 27 or personal bank loan than might be expected in the 41-65 age range, whereas there were higher than might be expected proportions of clients owing rent, fines and moneylender debts in the 26-40 age group. There was only one new client over 65 who had contacted Dublin 10 & 20 MABS with a reported debt in 2012. 27 In line with Colette Bennett s recent (2013) study on MABS clients and mortgage arrears (ibid). 31

Table 2: Type of Debt Reported by New Dublin 10&20 MABS clients in 2012, by Age Group Age 19-25 (n=11) Age 26-40 (n =87) Age 41-65 (n =44) Age 66+ (n=1) Mortgage - 13 10 - Rent - 11 3 - Utility 8 51 23 1 HP 2 6 3 - Fine 2 8 1 - Waste charge - 1 - - Personal bank 1 13 11 - loan Credit union loan 1 23 13 - Credit card - 25 14 - Moneylender - 14 4 - Catalogue 1 4 1 - Overdraft - 8 3 - Other - 19 5 - Source: MABSIS 3.4 Amount of Arrears The total of outstanding debt for each new Dublin 10 & 20 MABS client presenting for the first time in 2012 suggest that past personal (credit) consumption is not a factors explaining their financial difficulties - the average (median) amount of debt per new client presenting to Dublin 10 & 20 MABS in 2012 was 5,735; the corresponding figure for MABS clients nationally was 12,580. As regards the distribution of the amount of outstanding debts owed by clients, the majority of new Dublin 10-20 MABS clients (64%) owed less that 10,000, and only a minority (20%) owed more than 20,000. The comparable figures for the (2012) MABS client population as a whole were 45% and 39%. 32

Chart 9: % New MABS Clients during 2012 by Amount of Arrears 48 43 38 33 28 23 18 13 8 3 1-5000 5001-10000 10000-15000 15001-20000 20001-25000 25001-30000 30001-35000 35000-40000 40000+ -2 % Dublin 10 & 20 MABS (n=143) % MABS National (n= 8,318) Source: MABSIS As regards average amounts owed in respect of different types of debt by clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS, although it was the most frequently reported, the average (median) amount owed on a utility debt - 370- was considerably less than the average amount owed in respect of almost all other debts; the largest (average) debt - 6859 related to mortgage arrears, as might be expected. The top five largest average debts all related to different types of credit: smaller average debts related, by and large, to household bills. A similar pattern was evident in the MABS national data as shown in Table 3 below. The average (median) amount of mainstream debt owed by clients per category of debt was, however, notably higher among the national MABS client base than it was among clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS, again indicating that the problems of the local client cohort are not primarily associated with a consumer debt over-hang. There were only two categories of debt where Dublin 10 & 20 clients owed more per debt on average than their national counterparts rent and moneylendingand greater use of these sources as a means of borrowing 28 would suggest there 28 There is evidence in the literature that money is sometimes effectively borrowed by not paying rent. 33

to be higher levels of financial exclusion among clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS than among MABS clients nationally. TABLE 3: New MABS Clients during 2012 by Median Amount Owed per Type of Debt Dublin 10 & 20 MABS (n =143) MABS National (n =8318) Mortgage 6859.23 40000.00 Credit union 5666.27 8283.85 Personal bank loan 4314.75 7689.68 Credit card 3067.08 3769.50 Hire purchase 2060.00 6118.72 Rent 1790.41 1231.00 Moneylender 895.00 831.00 Overdraft 848.16 1685.97 Other 773.89 2000.00 Fine 450.00 471.00 Utility 370.88 450.00 Catalogue 334.77 391.46 Waste charges 50.00 319.97 Source: MABSIS 3.5. Summary There are a number of significant features of the types, combinations and amounts of outstanding debt/arrears owed by clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS. The debt reported most frequently by clients relates to utilities, whilst sizeable minorities reported different types of secondary (unsecured) credit debt. The incidence of reported mortgage, rent and moneylending arrears was comparatively low. 34

Clients were as likely to report more than one debt as not, and where there was multiple debt, some indications of particular combinations emerged, although more research would be needed to explore these combinations more fully. There were indications that gender and age may be associated with the reporting of particular types of debt. As regards amounts of outstanding debt, the average debt per client (median), which was in the region of 5,700, was much lower than the corresponding figure for MABS clients in general. Furthermore, the majority of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients owed less than 10,000 in total, whereas MABS clients nationally tended to owe considerably more. Although utility debt was the debt by far most frequently reported, the amounts involved were relatively small compared to most other debt types. Larger amounts were owed on average in respect of credit debts, although such debts were much less likely to be reported, and there are indications within the data that financial exclusion is a particular issue among clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS. There is little or no evidence of personal consumption or debt over-hang being a major contributory factor to financial difficulties among the Dublin 10-20 MABS client cohort for example, the incidence of mortgage arrears (at just 16% of clients) was very low indeed. 35

Section 4. Energy consumption, management, payment and associated issues among Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients The findings presented in this section are based primarily on a fuel survey sample of current or active clients of Dublin 10 & 20 MABS who are living in the Dublin 10 area, that is to say, in Ballyfermot and Cherry Orchard. Data from MABSIS is used to further explore the extent of fuel poverty among both Dublin 10 & 20 MABS clients and MABS clients in general. As regards the fuel survey, a total of 101 (Dublin 10-resident) MABS clients completed a telephone survey questionnaire 29 during February and March 2013 which, as previously stated, were particularly cold months. The purpose of the survey was to help explain why such a high proportion of clients are presenting with fuel utility debts. In addition to the socio-economic profiles of the clients concerned (as described earlier see Chart 5), the key issues that arose related to: the age and type of accommodation; absence of insulation; the range of energy suppliers, particularly for electricity; arrears and threats of disconnection; self-disconnection and cutting back on use through lack of money; the method and costs of (pre-) payment; fuel poverty; and inability to service the central heating boiler in several cases, again through lack of resources. Each of these issues is now considered in turn. It should be noted that the data presented below is based solely on survey participants responses to questions. 4.1. Age and type of accommodation, The vast majority of respondents live in a house as shown in Table 3 below. Almost all (29 out of 30) local authority tenants live in a house, as do a large majority of owner-occupiers (47 out of 55); however, only 3 of the 11 private sector tenants live in a house (the majority reside in an apartment, flat or duplex). The average age of properties (mean) is around 40 years, but the most frequently reported age of property is 60 years thus most properties in which clients live were built between the 1950s and the 1970s. According to Walker 29 A completion rate of 56% 36