Is this genuine hardship or a tactic?

The scenario

A customer claims hardship, but something niggles. The story shifts between calls, the lifestyle does not quite match the plea, or the claim arrived only after firmer contact. You want to be fair to the many people in genuine difficulty without being played by the few who are not.

This is one of the trickiest judgements in credit control. Lean too far toward suspicion and you wound the honest; lean too far toward credulity and you reward the manipulative.

What's really going on

Genuine hardship and a tactical claim can use the same words. The difference usually shows in the detail and the consistency: real hardship tends to come with specifics that hang together over time, a willingness to engage, and acceptance of genuine help. A tactical claim is often vague, shifts under questioning, and resists the very pathways — like financial counselling or a verified affordable plan — that a struggling person welcomes.

Crucially, the cost of wrongly doubting a genuine case is far higher, both ethically and reputationally, than the cost of occasionally extending grace to someone who did not strictly need it. Your default should be compassion, with your judgement working quietly in the background.

Your options

• Ask open, specific questions. Detail and consistency reveal far more than a yes/no challenge ever will.
• Offer a real pathway. Suggest financial counselling or an affordable plan; genuine cases tend to take it up.
• Set proportionate terms. A modest, structured arrangement suits real hardship and gently tests a tactical one.
• Refer when unsure. The National Debt Helpline (1800 007 007) both helps the customer and independently frames the situation.

Recommended approach

Stay warm and even-handed: "Let's go through your situation so we can set something that genuinely works." Ask for the practical shape of their finances and notice whether the answers hold together across the conversation. Offer the pathways a struggling person values — counselling, a verified affordable plan — and watch the response rather than the rhetoric.

Record what was said and agreed so any decision is fair and defensible. The broader framework for handling stalls and excuses without losing humanity is covered in the Academy library.

What to avoid

Do not accuse a customer of faking hardship — even when you suspect it, an accusation alienates the genuine and rarely moves the tactical. Do not, on the other hand, wave through every claim without any conversation, or you will train customers to reach for the word. And never let a private hunch harden into a decision you cannot explain; keep your reasoning grounded in what was actually said.