Nandita's story - helping Nandita navigate legal problems which were intimately connected with her health

Waiving debt for Nandita after an horrific accident.

Nandita lives with an acquired brain injury (ABI) – a disability resulting from a 40 meter fall whilst rock-climbing. After her accident Nandita rushed her recovery so she could return to work but it quickly became clear that her decisionmaking abilities had been affected by her fall.

Nandita was regularly visiting the Royal Melbourne Hospital for treatment for her ABI. It was a social worker there that suggested she might have legal needs as well as health needs, referring her to our onsite legal clinic.

Unable to work, Nandita was experiencing significant financial stress. When we saw her at the hospital she had been evicted from the property where she was living.

Nandita disclosed that she had a number of debts for large personal loans that she had incurred to support herself when her employment ceased. She also explained that her ABI was like “a life-long concussion,” which made it very difficult to manage her finances.

IMCL sent debt waiver requests along with a letter of support from Nandita’s social worker to various debt collectors, asking them to take her circumstances into account. The result was a waiving of nearly $50,000 of Nandita’s outstanding debts.

This turned Nandita's life around. She told us: “Now I am actually able to breathe, I can fully focus on my therapy… I can plan for my future.”