Many British homeowners facing repossession are failing to get proper legal advice as the number of cases coming to court soars, a charity warned today.
Transact, which promotes the needs of the "financially excluded", said agencies offering free legal representation were over-run with requests for help.
Some are having to turn away homeowners who need assistance but are not entitled to legal aid.
London-based debt advice partnership Capitalise has seen a 90 per cent increase in possession hearings in the first three months of this year.
It represented 146 clients at possession hearings between January and March, compared to only 77 during the same period in 2007.
The situation is similarly bleak in Sheffield, where the number of repossession cases coming to court has doubled in the last six months, according to Sheffield Law Centre.
Anthea Puran, of legal advice centre Law for All in Acton, west London, said homeowners without proper legal advice were more vulnerable to agreeing bad deals with lenders.
She added: "Lenders' agents can be quite bullying, and sometimes their legal representatives approach defendants on the day of the hearing and try to persuade them to agree to a repayment schedule with high monthly repayments they won't be able to afford.
"The court then grants the lender a suspended possession order which means a possession warrant is granted if the defendant is unable to keep up the repayments."
Faith Reynolds, of Transact, said: "Many of the homeowners facing difficulties are on relatively low incomes but not entitled to legal aid.
"The experience of Transact members shows that these people desperately need more help to protect their homes in court and they need it now."
Transact's 1,250 member organisations include credit unions, housing associations, banks and financial service providers.
PA