Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
High inflation and rising interest rates will keep retail sales depressed in the first half of the year and weigh on retailers’ margins, as headwinds multiply across the UK retail sector in the New Year. Squeezed margins could trigger a fresh wave of insolvencies by the spring, as retailers absorb upward pressure on the cost…
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Business confidence in the UK has dropped to its lowest point on record since the global financial crisis more than a decade ago according to a sentiment survey tracked by ICAEW’s latest Business Confidence Monitor (BCM). The survey put confidence at -23.4 on the index, the weakest since 2009, the survey found. A weakening economy,…
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Motor and home insurance customers are more likely to get the same or better prices at renewal highlighting the strong performance of insurers in delivering good outcomes, a new report from leading insurance market insight business Consumer Intelligence shows. The research of more than 25,000 home insurance and 25,000 motor insurance customers for the report…
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Homeowners borrowed £6.2 billion against the value of their properties through equity release in 2022, with this marking a 29% increase on 2021’s total latest Equity Release Council figures have indicated. The figures show that the total has more than doubled in size since 2017, when £3.06 billon was released. The number of owners who…
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Analysis from Freedom Finance has found that Credit Unions are lending record sums to borrowers in the UK as the cost of borrowing continues to rise. The latest Freedom Finance Credit Monitor revealed that average household quoted rates on credit cards hit 22.46%, their highest levels since 1998, while personal loans posted their highest quarterly…
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TransUnion, a global insights and information company, has announced a strategic investment in Bud Financial a specialist in Open Banking and data intelligence. TransUnion says that this dynamic partnership will help drive innovation and growth in the personal finance market and support better outcomes for consumers, with greater financial inclusion. Headquartered in the UK, Bud…
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The Institute of Directors’ (IoD) Economic Confidence Index, which measures business leader optimism in prospects for the UK economy, rose to -28 in January 2023, from a near-record low of -58 in December. This is the most positive level recorded since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine pushed the index down to -33 in March last year.…
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The Money Advice Trust has announced major enhancements to its National Debtline and Business Debtline services, as the charity’s new contracts with the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) go live. National Debtline and Business Debtline – which offer free, independent and confidential debt advice by phone, webchat and online – will help 440,000 people in…
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Following years of unbridled growth, average UK house prices are finally falling but this is doing little to offset soaring interest rates being faced by homeowners. The UK housing market has been on a continuous, steep upward curve for a number of years, but as 2022 came to an end, average prices were unusually seen…
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The 2023 Credit & Collections Technology Awards have opened for entries. Launched in 2017, the seventh annual awards seek to recognise excellence in credit and collections technology. The Credit & Collection Technology Awards powered by Credit Connect are judged by independently selected judges from across the industry, who have the enviable task of identifying the best and greatest…
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Latest Bank of England (BoE) data has shown that consumers borrowed an additional £500 million in consumer credit in December, with this a steep drop on the £1.5 billion borrowed in November and below the previous six-month average of £1.2 billion. Net credit card repayments came in at £0.5 billion, while £1 billion of borrowing…
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