Everything about calling Citizens Advice from abroad
Which Citizens Advice line is which
Adviceline, 0800 144 8848, is Citizens Advice's national phone service for England, put through to the local office that covers your area. Some local offices accept calls outside the usual weekday hours, and Citizens Advice says the line is busiest at the beginning of the day. The debt helpline, 0800 240 4420, is for anyone having problems with money or debt. Wales has its own phone line, Advicelink.
How Adviceline finds your local Citizens Advice
Citizens Advice says that if you call from a mobile, it will ask you to say your postcode and use it to find your local Citizens Advice. If you don't have a postcode, it suggests using one nearby, such as a GP surgery, takeaway shop or taxi company. There are a few parts of England it does not cover yet, and callers there are given other options. It also says that most local Citizens Advice can only help you if you live or work in their area. At busy times you might wait up to an hour, and a call not answered within an hour is disconnected.
Calling from outside the UK
0800 144 8848 and 0800 240 4420 are UK freephone numbers. Citizens Advice says calls to them are free from mobiles and landlines, though your service provider might charge. Its contact pages publish no number for callers abroad, say nothing about calls from outside the UK and give the hours without a time zone. From a foreign network, a UK 0800 number may not connect, depending on your operator.
What Losali does with these lines
Losali is an independent dialler that works in a web browser. Your call travels over the internet and Losali's telecom carrier connects it to 0800 144 8848 or 0800 240 4420 in the UK, so all you need is a data connection. There is no app to install and no UK SIM card to buy. Minutes are prepaid and there is no subscription.
- A postcode in England, or one nearby if you have none: Adviceline asks mobile callers for one to find their local Citizens Advice.
- Brief details of your problem and what you have done so far to sort it out.
- Time to wait: at busy times it can take up to an hour.
- The hours: Adviceline usually 9am to 5pm on weekdays; debt helpline 9am to 8pm on weekdays and 9.30am to 1pm on Saturday.
Other ways in
Citizens Advice runs online chat by topic: debt problems during the debt helpline's hours, claiming Universal Credit 8am to 6pm on weekdays, and energy, consumer and other problems 9am to 5pm on weekdays. Debt chat asks for your postcode too, and if you are asked to leave a message, it says an adviser should reply within 4 working days. Its consumer service, by helpline or chat, advises on faulty goods and problems with energy, water or post, and its Help to Claim service helps with a new Universal Credit claim. Its website also has a finder for local Citizens Advice in England and Wales.
What kind of number is this?
Freephone 0800 / 0808. Free to call from inside the UK. Losali shows the price before the call starts.