Being sent to prison is a great fear for many people with serious debts. In most cases, it's not very likely, since a prison sentence is only a last resort.

Apart from fraud,  it can happen only for three types of debt. They are for when:

• You haven't paid fines from the Magistrates' Court;
• You haven't paid your Council Tax; or
• You haven't paid maintenance for your husband or wife or your children.

You can be sent to prison only if the magistrates believe that you 'won't pay' rather than 'can't pay' your debts (you have deliberately refused to pay, or you have chosen to spend the money on other things that weren't essential).

If this is the case, the court will probably give you a 'suspended committal order'. This means that the magistrates will set an 'instalment order'. You would have to pay certain amounts at certain times to repay the money you owe. You would be sent to prison only if you miss any of these payments. If that happened, you would be sent a warrant to be arrested and brought before the magistrates. You cannot be sent to prison without another hearing, although you may be put in police cells overnight.

If you receive a warrant, you should:

• Get expert advice, if you can;
• Prepare a personal budget statement by setting out all your income, your expenses (what you spend your money on) and all your debts;
• Report to the police or magistrates when the court is actually sitting.

Sometimes, magistrates will ask you to spend the whole day at court to satisfy the committal order, so you should make any arrangements you need to, such as childcare, before you go.

It is very important to realise that at the committal stage, even for non-criminal debts such as Council Tax, you have the right for a lawyer to speak for you even if you cannot afford to pay for one. The magistrate should give you time to speak to a duty solicitor at the court before they hear your case. This is important because, before any order is made, the court has the right to forgive or write-off all or part of your debt (called 'remitting') to make it easier for you to pay. Your solicitor may be able to give them reasons for doing this, as well as preventing you from ending up with a committal order.

Fraud
If your debt is due to criminal activity such as fraud, then a prosecution for this could lead to prison.  Examples of this are fraudently applying for state benefit, or taking credit when you have no intention of repaying it. If you are accused of fraud you should see a criminal law solicitor. An unfair accusation of fraud or a threat of prosecution from a creditor may well amount to harassment.

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