Philip Jenner, a retired 70-year-old from Quedgeley, Gloucestershire, was facing repossession of his three-bed family home, due to the rates increase, and had a 51-year-old wife and 11-year-old daughter to protect.

Philip had taken out a mortgage with Barclays in 2010 and was struggling to make the repayments since January 2023, with an outstanding balance of £60,000.

He had spent all his savings on acquiring the house and had no other financial support. At an interest rate of 6.77pc, his repayments were due to jump from £533 to £1,666 a month. This included a repayment plan to Taylor Wimpey, the developer, who he had fallen short on repayments for.

Philip was keen to extend the term on the mortgage with Barclays to reduce the tripling payments, but Barclays informed him that he would have to buy out Taylor Wimpey first to do this.

To make matters worse he was turned down by the main equity release brokers. However, he was then put in touch with 55Plus adviser, Ian Akeroyd, who completed the equity release plan in July this year.

A total of £65,000 was released, paying off the remaining interest with Barclays, allowing Mr Jenner to be free of mortgage payments and remain in the family home.

Like all plans that meet the Equity Release Council’s standards, Philip’s allows him to make penalty free repayments so he can keep on top of the interest and even pay down the original loan.

Philip said: “I feel the banks are not pulling their weight to help with the mortgage rate crisis. I know they’re not charities, but some support would have been appreciated. I was in tears on many occasion and could not see a way forward.”

“There are many like me, who have found themselves in a difficult position, with many brokers turning us down due to being in complicated situations. I was very lucky to have found Mr Akeroyd at 55Plus, who spent considerable time working out what was best suited in my circumstances,” he added.

This case study was supplied by 55Plus