Lesley's story

When Lesley and her husband separated after twenty years of marriage, she found herself in a vulnerable situation, before turning to Lowell for help. 

“My husband had always looked after the household finances, so I was a bit naïve. When the family home was sold, I had to move into rented accommodation and the equity from the house didn’t last that long. I wasn’t aware that I could have claimed benefits, so I was struggling along with my son, and I ended up taking out a doorstep loan, which I couldn’t afford at the time. I didn’t know what to do, so I ignored it. Lowell took time to understand my situation, how I got into it, and why I’d ignored the problem. They didn’t judge or blame me, they just tried to help me. They can help you with your finances, and with your mental health – basically, help you with your future,” Lesley, a UK Lowell customer.

Lesley’s story isn’t the only one, with 334,234 UK customers receiving additional support in 2022 due to being in vulnerable situations. Our approach is to listen and develop tools and services that really help people. Launched in June 2022 with input from our Customer Panel, a new online Benefits Calculator provides a quick and easy way for our customers to check what financial support might be available to them. By inputting data about their incomes and households, they can find out what benefits they might be entitled to – and how to claim them.  

These leading tools and services are part of our sustainability ambition to be ‘Better for Customers’ and ultimately enabling broader financial health for people.