Bailiffs are still not being held to account and will continue to inflict stress, anxiety and further financial hardship until the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) introduces independent regulation according to research by debt charities. The 11 debt and mental health organisations that make up the ‘Taking Control’ campaign on bailiff reform are calling on the…
Early findings from major new research by StepChange Debt Charity, released as part of the charity’s Debt Awareness Week, show what variations in progress typically arise among different groups of clients as they embark on resolving their difficulties after taking debt advice. Some of these confound expectations. The new research tracks groups of clients three…
The Credit Service Association (CSA) has responded to last week’s Financial Ombudsman’s figures on debt collection. In a statement the CSA said “Recent media reports using figures from the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) fail to mention that the total number of complaints relating to debt collection activities has in fact fallen year-on-year, is significantly lower…
Workplace pressure is a major contributing factor to mental health issues among business leaders, according to a new survey from the Institute of Directors, published on Time to Talk Day 2019. Among the 500 directors and managers polled, more than half said they had experienced poor mental health that was in part connected to factors…
The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has released its latest report which shows that it has dealt with around 3,300 inquiries about debt collection and took on over 1,000 new complaints for investigation in 2018. The complaints cover credit and consumer loans, such as mortgages, credit cards and personal or business loans. They don’t include household debts…
Water regulator Ofwat has today given its initial assessment of water companies’ business plans for 2020-25. Three water companies – Severn Trent, South West Water and United Utilities – delivered such high-quality plans that they have already been given the green light by Ofwat. The plans from those three companies set out how they will…
Latest figures from the Insolvency Service for Northern Ireland show that there were 73 company insolvencies between October and December. 34 were compulsory liquidations while 26 were creditors’ voluntary liquidations. There were also eight administrations and five company voluntary arrangements. That total of 73 was 19.8 percent lower than the same quarter in 2017 and…
A total of 316,095 low-income Scottish households have accessed emergency funding to help with the costs of essentials such as food and heating since 2013. Over £181 million has now been paid out from the Scottish Welfare Fund, which helps people during times of crisis to buy everyday essential items like food, nappies or toiletries and…
The Insolvency Service has published the latest personal insolvency statistics for England and Wales for Quarter 4 2018 (October to December 2018) which show that that the percentage of IVAs failing within the first year has increased for the fourth consecutive year. The figures also show that 9% of IVAs registered in 2011 and 3%…
Debt charities, StepChange and the Money Advice Trust have responded to the HM Treasury’s consultation on debt “breathing space” and a new defined statutory debt repayment plan (SDRP). The scheme will enable, people who enter into arrangements to pay back their debts in full whilst getting a level of statutory protection that has previously only been…