We offer added help and support to customers with Autism

This week is World Autism Acceptance Week and we thought we’d share with you how we help customers who are autistic or have a family member who is autistic. 

According to the National Autistic Society, more than one in 100 people are on the autism spectrum and there are around 700,000 autistic adults and children in the UK. Managing money is a much harder skill for people with autism to learn than it is for the general population. It’s estimated that people with learning difficulties, such as autism, or those with mental health issues are three times more likely to be in debt. 

We have a dedicated vulnerable customer team who have all undertaken specialist training so that they can provide the best possible care to help people with autism manage their problem debts. The team recognise that they are helping with important and sometimes complex financial decisions and offer time and space to facilitate this. They also; 

• Are aware that a person with autism may take information or instruction literally
• Allow extra time for autistic customers to process the information they’re being given
• Check the person’s understanding of the process
• Are mindful that debt is an emotional discussion and the situation can cause anxiety
• Watch out for 'shutdowns' where due to being overwhelmed the customer may suddenly become passive in their responses or go quiet.

People with autism show us how to live authentically and how not to be so impacted by how we are perceived by society. We could all learn from this. In recognition, we have also set up a Neurodiversity Employee Group where colleagues with autism (or other neurodiversity) can come and discuss their experiences at Money Wellness, make positive change, and have support from our community.  

The group is also for parents who have neurodiverse children so that we can gain insights in to how the business can support these colleagues too.