The purpose of the Debt Expert Group
Several of the ECDN’s members were present during the former financial crisis of 2008. Most of us remember the uncertainty and consequences related to that time, and many fear that likely national and international challenges will arise in the aftermath of Covid-19. In the coming months and years, we expect a rise in the number of people in need of our help to get back on their feet. In the wake of the pandemic, millions of EU citizens became unemployed, and millions of households across Europe experienced financial problems. Households were hit differently due to reduced work and pay, as well as social problems related to long periods of living in lockdown. The situation especially affected social and financially vulnerable citizens and may have contributed to increases in substance abuse, psychological issues, and other serious issues. The purpose of the ECDN Expert Group is therefore to help citizens prevent and fight financial problems like these.
The work of the Expert Group
The ECDN’s Expert group can be considered as a resource of tools and ideas for current and future members looking to set up new debt counseling services, or looking to improve and expand their current offers. The work of the expert group consists of collecting and coordinating information about the debt counseling citizens receive from our members and partners. This is done to improve our work as well as the quality and effectiveness of debt counseling across Europe. The information collected will be presented on our website and serve as an inspiration on how debt advice could and should be done, and through this we can improve debt advice across Europe it would not only benefit our members, but also future organization working with debt advice, and of course the thousands of people who seek their help every year.
Meet the members
All members of the ECDN who offer debt counseling with best practice, and live up to high quality standards and an ethics code of conduct can also become a member of the expert group. Other debt counselling organisations with desirable features and who share our vision can also be a part of the expert group. You can read more about the current members of the expert group in the boxes below.
IS YOUR ASSOCIATION WORKING WITH DEBT COUNSELING IN EUROPE?
If your organization has important information about debt advice in your country, or if you have useful tools that you want to share with the expert group, please contact us. The ECDN expert group is always looking for useful information, experiences, and tools in order to improve the quality and availability of debt counseling across Europe.