The 12th March 2020 is a date which will be seared in our memories for decades to come. It was the day that life as we knew it changed, both personally and professionally. As a public-facing organisation, MABS had to quickly adapt to the restrictions imposed by the lockdown so that we could continue to provide our essential services to those who needed us. We recognised that the financial impact of the pandemic would be felt by huge sections of the population, many of whom would never have experienced financial difficulties before. MABS had to be in a position to be able to respond without compromising the quality of the service we offer, whilst ensuring the safety and welfare of our staff. The mantra adopted by MABS from the earliest days of the pandemic was ‘Even if we can’t meet face-to-face, we will always have your back’.
Prior to March 2020 MABS had 3 pathways to access the service:
- The MABS National Helpline (0761 07 2000)
- The MABS Website (www.mabs.ie)
- MABS Local Offices at 60+ locations nationwide.
These pathways remain available to everyone, with some adaptations.
MABS National Helpline (0761 07 2000)
The MABS Helpline continues to offer the same service as it always has. When you call our Helpline, you will be asked for information about your situation. This is done to help us determine how best to help you, and how urgent your situation is - the more information you can give us the better, and if you are in the middle of a crisis, you will not be left waiting. Those who require further support will be referred to a local office for an appointment with a Money Adviser. Others are supported by our Helpline Advisers to deal with their finances and negotiate with creditors themselves. Many of our clients use a combination of our online resources and our Helpline to negotiate with their creditors themselves. The MABS Helpline is open Monday – Friday 9am to 8pm.
The MABS Website (www.mabs.ie)
Pre-COVID, the MABS website had an extensive range of resources available to support people in dealing with their personal finances. These included debts and budgeting tools, factsheets on a range of issues and information on MABS and what the service has to offer. These continue to be available on www.mabs.ie.
Since March we have expanded the resources available on the website in an effort to reach our clients in a new way. MABS has successfully launched a Webchat facility which has proven to be very popular. This can be accessed on our website by clicking on the Messenger symbol which appears in the bottom right-hand corner of each page. A MABS Money Advisor will be there to listen, support and respond, signposting where appropriate. The messenger service is available Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm. Any queries submitted outside of these times will be responded to when the service resumes at 9am the following morning or 9am Monday morning should a message be sent to us over the weekend. We have a 100% response rate and will respond to any queries that come in from the public.
Another area of the website which has been expanded on over the last 6 months is the MABS Blog section, where Money Advisors share their experience, giving practical advice in a variety of areas. Recent blogs have included ‘Preparing for Christmas’, ‘Top Tips on Energy Saving’ and a series on ‘Top Tips for Your Weekly Food Shop’. There is also a series of radio interviews with one of our experienced Money Advisers and Phoenix FM which cover a broad range of topics which can be accessed in this area of the website. All of the blogs can be accessed at here.
MABS has also developed a live feed with daily updates with all things COVID-19, in particular relating to concerns about finances, which can be accessed here.
Social Media- MABS has a new national Facebook page: you will find us by searching for @MABSinfo. We are also on Twitter, and more recently, Instagram - search for @MABSinfo. Twitter & Facebook are updated daily providing accurate, up-to-date information as well as sharing important information from trusted sources.
MABS Local Offices: https://www.mabs.ie/en/contact/
MABS operates over 60 offices nationwide. All our offices remain open, although in person face-to-face appointments may change depending on the restrictions in place nationally and locally. Currently in Level 5, and in Level 4, we are unable to offer face to face appointments, however we can facilitate appointments in Levels 1 to 3.
Each of our offices continues to offer full money and debt advice service, to our existing and new clients. We are providing our service by phone, video conferencing (where available), email & post.
While we understand not everyone is fully confident with technology, we will ensure no one is left behind and will continue to encourage contact by phone or by post.
MABS will continue to provide a full service to everyone who needs us, regardless of the level of Government restrictions imposed. Some aspects of the way we provide that service may have changed, but remember, we will always have your back.