A question about : PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING: Money Saving Expert / CAB pilot service
Welcome to the Citizens Advice Bureau discussion board which aims to help people get started on selected topics.
Post your queries in the relevant board below and a Citizens Advice representative will aim to answer your question within 2 working days.
If you're already receiving support and advice from your local CAB, then please continue your discussion with them rather than post on this board.
Please be aware, this type of forum collaboration is new for MSE so it's currently a trial. We hope it is well used, but as we'll all be finding our feet, please be patient as it grows.
Citzens Advice has several bureau advisers on this board, based around England & Wales, initially answering questions on four different topics:
· dealing with debts and debt disputes - see board
· housing benefit - see board
· tax credits & benefits for people in work or looking for work - see board
· your basic rights at work and redundancy problems - see board
You'll recognise a CAB adviser as their username will be displayed in bold purple, eg CAB Malvern Hills representative, and have a special representative signature.
If you have a question about other topics or issues, please see if the Citizens Advice self-help website has the information you need Adviceguide. If you need more help, please contact your local bureau. You can get their details from the CAB directory. Comments on CAB services are always welcome, so please let it know what you think using its Feedback form.
As usual, please report any inappropriate/illegal posts by clicking the Report button in the bottom right corner and don't reply. The CAB advisers aren't part of the MSE Forum Team and aren't there to deal with this so please don't contact them. This is for their sanity as much as ours!
This board's for help, not judgement so it's not the place for discussion about benefits political policy.
Best answers:
- Nice to see the first fruits from the merger?
Should we be extra careful to say in which country the advice applies?! - Very Interesting!
Can only be good for forum users and the Citizens Advice Bureau.
DD - I'm afraid I can't see any great benefit to this board. Surely we already have boards covering any topic that is likely to be raised on here, would it not be better for the CAB reps to just monitor the boards in which they have expertise? As it is we're now going to have confusion over whether to post here or on one of the subject specific boards.
The other issue is that we're already seeing non-CAB people answering posts, and we're seeing people who either work or volunteer for CAB but who aren't accredited reps answering. I don't really thing this propositin has been properly thought out. - How about waiting to see how it pans out before suggesting it will be of no benefit to users?
As said its something MSE are trialling and it means the official reps don't have to trawl through the myriad of threads elsewhere to be answer a question quickly. - The timespan is also a disadvantage, if the CAB reps take 48 working hours to answer the posts, then not many are going to hang about for the reply. People come on here for quick advice, it will end up being double posted on here and the consumer rights board.
- Maybe you should only be refered to this forum by the board guides, when answers cannot be found on the main forums ????
I'm not sure that is right, it is a suggestion, but otherwise it will be a free for all.
DD - CAB covers more than consumer rights issues.
- great idea
If you go to the local CAB you often wait hours before being seen and you also have to find time to visit the local office.
So I will vote for this thread. - Something new and helpful from MSE...and I like the colour scheme
- Well so far every answer given has been from a normal forum member, so are we to take it that the official CAB resposes are only made during working hours? Not great if you have an urgent question, and if a change is made to limit responses to just the reps (which might well be a good idea) then some posters might be better off starting their thread on the relevant subject board.
There may also be a need to move some threads away from this board as they are not on one of the 4 topics described in the OP. - Post your queries in the threads below and a Citizens Advice representative will aim to answer your question within 48 working hours.
- I apologise for replying to threads, didn't realise it was meant to be a Q&A session by CAB specialists, therefore, why, if it's advice, is it left open to other members to reply and discuss enquiries.
With forum based advice you will always get peoples judgements within the advice given, it is a good idea that non-judgemental advice will be given to enquiries but surely once posted others shouldn't be allowed to answer.
Most especially, newbies posting will get an answer to the query from other members and could use the advice further as given by the CAB when it may be wrong/judgemental.
Just a thought:
Wouldn't it be better with a message based enquiry and then the specialists can put it up on the wall when answered, then, other users will use it for their own benefit similar to a FAQ wall. - Good luck and very best wishes. Maybe this is what MSE has been wanting/needing all these Years.
*Puts my Amateur Welfare Rights Advisors Hats on* - Hi all
Really great to see an official Citizens Advice section on here.
Although NEDCAB are not currently one of the pilot bureaux giving advice on here we wish our colleagues & all others involved the best in making this a real success story.
NED-CAB - *Stands by her MSE should have Official Welfare Rights Advocacy on these Boards* position....
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