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Find your Port In The Storm
If you’ve come to this page, then we assume you’re experiencing a life storm and would like some support. Whether you’re dealing with things like employment issues, probate matters, or just need to raise a complaint about something, we’re here for you. So, you’re in the right place and we look forward to hearing about your situation.
If you’re not currently experiencing a life storm and are just here out of intrigue, then why not head to our Get Onboard page where you can sign up to keep updated with PITS life or find ways to support what we’re doing.
At the end of this page you’ll find a contact form to set up an initial chat with us but we’d like to give you some important information first so you know what to expect. To start, there are two key things you need to know about PITS:
1. We are not solicitors. If you’re looking for legal help, there are plenty of great legal teams around but we aren’t one of them.
What we are is a new level of support designed to fill a chasmic support gap in social justice. PITS has been created to come alongside people who are not entitled to free support e.g. legal aid and/or who do not have the ability to pay for expensive experts in the relevant field. In short, we get alongside you in your time of need when one of life’s storms hits and when you have limited or no places to turn. We are your Port In The Storm!
2. We don’t rescue you and we can’t fix it for you but we will care about your situation and we will empower you and equip you to tackle it. If you’re not a fan of the nautical references, then think of us as your very own racing PITStop team. You’ll always be the driver and the one in control but we can support and guide throughout the race and occasionally we’ll invite you to take a Pit Stop with us so we can make sure you have everything you need. At PITS we believe having a good team around you in the face of something challenging is a necessity.
So what is PITS then?
There are a wide range of life storms that can affect anyone but your circumstances are unique to you – you are the expert. But even experts need teams. As we’ve said above, PITS can be your team, your sense check, your place of safety in the midst of a life storm or a taxing race. Let’s be honest here, when something challenging is happening to you, it’s really hard to turn off the emotions and remain objective, which is often what is needed to work through these things. Maybe you’re facing something traumatic, like the death of a loved one, when often complex processes need to be followed in the midst of intense emotion. We can walk you through what needs to be done. Or maybe some injustice has happened that you’re fighting and you just need someone to validate that what you’re doing is fair and makes sense. We can be that impartial sense check. We’ve experienced, first hand, the thoughts and feelings that come when someone or something is fighting against you and you start to wonder if you’ve made it all up because common sense and decency appears to have disappeared. We’re here to stand with you in the fight.
Here are just a few examples of some of the life storms that we can help you navigate:
LIFE PRACTICALITIES
When somebody dies or gets sick or experiences any kind of trauma, life can be turned upside down in a second. For some people, the support rushes in and they’re able to navigate these circumstances well. For others, these kinds of events can be overwhelming and lonely.
Sometimes just deciding what to do next can be unnavigable and crippling. This is when we want to support you.
We can offer practical advice and next steps, being mindful of the bigger picture and ripples of actions. We can also signpost you to other organisations that may be able to give more specialised support in parallel.
Case study 1: The unexpected death of a young man, living in rented accommodation, required urgent action in order to not incur unnecessary costs in rent payments and bills. So, in the depths of their grief, the family needed to pack up a home and decide what to do with all of his possessions in a matter of days. Whilst this was in part simple, with no will and a complex probate situation, decisions made in these early days impacted later processes. Our ability to understand the bigger picture and offer simple advice and steps in these challenging moments led to a smoother legal process, with a positive financial outcome, that would not have happened if solicitors had been engaged.
LEGAL MATTERS
When life’s storms become more threatening and legal advice is needed, the best solution is always to have a high quality trained professional on your side. We know full well, though, that for many this isn’t an option when it comes to affording the costs and that we don’t all want to take risks in jeopardising our financial security through releasing equity or your children’s savings, for example.
Case study 2: A challenging work situation that quickly escalated into a tangled mess, could have cost thousands in solicitor’s fees if they’d been involved from the start. We were able to work through each stage independently, with research and a carefully considered approach, utilising free legal resources and paid ones, where necessary.
For this client, legal aid was refused (despite bank balances of zero) purely because he and his wife had a mortgage and the expectation was that they should use the equity in their house to fund legal fees. We don’t believe you should have to risk everything you’ve worked hard for to get some help, with no guarantee of success
COMPLAINTS
Sometimes life’s storms can be smaller but still exhausting. We are passionate about encouraging and supporting people to get what was promised and paid for, whatever that may be. From unfair parking charges to landlord issues, we can help you navigate your complaint, to gain a fair resolution.
Case study 3: When a couple purchased a furniture suite from a big retailer, they expected perfection, as after all, that’s what had been promised. Disappointment came when the sofa arrived damaged and missing fire labels. The first exchange was fairly easy but the second sofa arrived with marks, wonky seams and still no fire labels. Being told by the retailer that these small defects were unavoidable, the couple refused to accept this and wanted what they they had paid for. Twelve months and three replacement sofas later, they were able to negotiate a 50% refund and the couple continue to enjoy their quirky sofas, with the fourth version being just about right!
How does it all work?
In short, PITS starts with Personal Interest and then offers Tailored Support. This approach ensures that you can have full confidence in the help provided to you and empowers you to make the next steps in you journey, whatever that may look like. We follow a simple four-step process at PITS, with you as the expert in your circumstances, always at the heart of everything we do:
1. PERSONAL
Being Seen & Heard
The first step is always your story.
There’s great power in being able to tell your story and being heard without judgement or assumptions.
We know, first hand, just how empowering and cathartic that can be in its own right.
2. INTEREST
Looking At The Options
Your story then becomes our interest as we go away to research your options.
We’ll then come back to you with the available next steps.
This enables you to make a genuinely informed decision, not one that might best suit the person advising you.
3. TAILORED
Formulating The Plan
The choices on how to proceed will always be yours.
Once the best option for your circumstances has been decided on, we will help you put a plan of action in place to help you move your situation forward. Any plan will be tailored to your unique life storm.
4. SUPPORT
Supporting You Through Your journey
Once you’ve got a plan, we’ll help to get your support network in place and can also signpost you to other organisations, where appropriate.
We’ll be here if you need to check in at any point though or if things change, at which point we’ll go back through the PITS cycle.
Sounds great, how much does it cost?
This is a bit of a how long is a piece of string question as our pricing will uniquely match your unique situation. We never charge for the initial short phone call, during which we’ll confirm the upfront fee for working with us. As a guide, our base rate is £75 per hour but the first paid hour, when we meet with you, includes some free follow up research time that we need to do to begin to understand your storm. Once we understand your situation, we’ll talk to you about any further fees moving forward, which will only be impacted by how much you would like us to do and how much time we’ll allocate to supporting you. For some then, £75 may be all you pay, for others it will be more but you’ll always agree to any costs before we’ve incurred them.
A few final questions you might have:
WHO DOES PITS SUPPORT?
Anyone! The support PITS offers is not limited to any type of person or geographical area. Depending on where you live, we may only be able to offer support via online meetings or phone calls rather than face to face but we’ll figure out what will work best for you when we first chat.
IF I HAVE PITS SUPPORT, WILL I GET THE OUTCOME I WANT?
We absolutely can’t guarantee that. Life doesn’t often go to plan and even with honesty and the best planning on your side, justice doesn’t always prevail and the result you want isn’t always the one you get. We’ve experienced that for ourselves and the disappointment that goes with it. So no, we can’t guarantee any outcome but we want to help give you the best chance.
WHAT IF I CAN’T AFFORD PITS SUPPORT?
The joy of our pro bono department is that we have the option to provide some subsidised support where we feel it’s necessary. There are other organisations, like Citizens Advice, who provide support free of charge but that means the service and time they offer has to be limited. By charging our customers for the service we provide, this means we are not limited by financial constraints and can give you as much or as little support as you choose.
BUT we do recognise that life storms can come hand in hand with financial hardship and so we will always consider this when we first meet you.
Ready to start working together?
By filling out the contact form below with an outline of your challenges, this will enable us to contact you and begin our support process. We just need a few details and then we’ll be in touch. We’ll always assess your situation first, with a quick free call.