The CAB has helped me! (Citizens Advice Bureau)

Member Name: Holidaying

Product:	Citizens Advice Bureau
Date:	27/02/09 (97 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Good service, volunteers are trained, specialist knowledge.

Disadvantages: Internet available in many homes.

The Citizens Advice Bureau are an organisation (in fact a charity, I think) that members of the public can go to when they have a query about something that they cannot find the information for, or, as suggested in the name, when they need some advice.

They can help with all sorts of queries, including money matters, legal advice, consumer problems, and more.

There seem to be bureaux in most towns and cities and they keep good opneing hours such that people who work from Monday to Friday 9-5 can still visit them. Some of the bureaux also have a telephone number which you can call to ask for some advice.

When you go in, they ask you to fill out a New or Existing Client Form. On this form you give some basic details about yourself including your name, address and date of birth, and what your query is about. I have never asked if I could not give them my name but I think that they keep the date under the Data Protection Act and would not use it or sell it.

The CAB, as it is often known, is staffed by volunteers. These volunteers are given, I have been led to believe, a comprehensive period of training both before and during their work with the CAB. I have found the advisors that I have dealt with to be almost entirely friendly and helpful.

The CAB can get very busy and I have on one occassion waited over an hour to be seen. The advisors recommend that appointments are not more than 45 minutes, but in practive I have found that they do not kick people out. Whilst this may leave other people waiting, it is nice to not feel that you are bing rushed out when perhaps you haven't gleaned all the information you need.

The CAB do make advance appointments in some places. I think these vary depending on the advisors that they have available and what the advisores know the most about. It could be worth asking for an advance appointment if you are short of time.

When you get seen, the advisor will take you into a private room where you can talk in confidence. The advisor will ask you to explain what your query is and will ask you questions to clarify the main points. The stetting is very informal and sometimes you get offered a cup of coffee or tea!

In each of the private rooms there is a desk and a computer and that's about it. The advisor will often look up points on the computer, especially with legal queries and they sometimes use the internet. If the advisors themselves need advice, they will speak to their colleagues. This can take a while and I have been ledft for about fifteen minutes in the past.

I think that the strengths of the CAB are that the people are volunteers, so they seem to be very willing to help. They have been through a lot of training and they treat you well and the information that you provide is confidential. It can be nice to talk to someone about things with the hope of them getting resolved, especially if they are legal queries or money matters.

On the other hand, the tools that the advisors use are usually available to people at home, and if you can search the internet then you are likely to be able to find the same information. This doesn't mean that the advice, service, and specialist knowledge is not worth going for- it is!

I recommend the CAB!

Summary: Recommended.