Crisis loans/grants.

jmabnc

Hi would like to ask about crisis loans and grants, what did they ask for when applying for these and did you get it ? asking for a family member,(4 children,1 has a disability, they claim I.S) they have been down to the DHSS(Northern Ireland) and quite a few people seem to get these no problems,they are paying off a loan at the moment,but are worried about applying for these,even though they should get some help due to family problems, Thanks and hopefully someone could maybe help.

dmg24

What do they need the loan for?

montymud

It needs to be an actual crisis. For example a friend of mine lost everything that they had. She has two children and a husband like myself. They rented out a place but had no furniture at all. They applied for a crisis loan to get beds, sofas, fridge-freezer, washing machine as they literally had nothing. They got the crisis loan but it was only awarded for the 3 beds - a double and a single, so your friend is going to really specify what the crisis is. x

tcr_3

Crisis loans are there to prevent a serious risk to your health & safety. If you lose your wallet or purse, for example, and don't have enough money to keep you going until your benefit comes through again. Or if your benefit has been delayed and you need money to keep you going until it's been sorted.

It can cover certain domestic items too, bed & bedding for example ... but it all depends on your circumstances and what you ask for. But most household items should be claimed for through a budgeting loan or community care grant.

You should generally ask yourself "is there a serious risk to my health & safety" before applying. If there's no serious risk, then a crisis loan application maybe isn't the best way to get the help you need.