Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
The knock-on impact of soaring energy prices is being felt strongly by the UK construction sector as businesses face delays to new work while continuing to operate with disrupted global supply chains. According to the latest PMI data by IHS Markit and CIPS, the headline construction PMI fell to 48.9, down from 52.6 in June, showing…
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HMRC is to revise late payment interest rates after the Bank of England increased its base rate to 1.75%. The Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee voted on 4th August 2022 to increase the Bank of England base rate to 1.75% from 1.25% HMRC interest rates are linked to the Bank of England base rate. As…
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Small business owners are concerned about the possibility of a recession, according to iwoca’s latest quarterly SME Expert Index. With both the cost of living and of doing business climbing, over three quarters of brokers surveyed (77%) say their small business clients are worried about the possibility of a recession. By contrast, fewer than 7%…
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Taxpayers have been left to foot a £421 million bill to cover Covid debts, after one in 12 businesses defaulted on state-backed emergency loans according to latest data from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. The data show that around 8% of 1.6m borrowers – roughly 130,000 – failed to repay their debts…
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Analysis by Xero Small Business Insights and Accenture has found that the average UK small business faces a cashflow crunch when monthly revenues are not enough to cover outgoings. The report also found cash flow challenges are undermining the growth and operations of at least 9 in 10 small businesses in the UK. The report…
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Almost 200,000 small businesses have fallen into arrears on their bounce-back loan repayments. Data from the British Business Bank (request by Purbeck Personal Guarantee Insurance) found that the company administering the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS), shows that 193,000 firms had failed to meet their repayment terms at the end of June. The figures represent…
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New data from HR, payroll and finance expert MHR reveals eight in ten (78%) employees believe the UK is heading for a recession, with nearly a quarter (23%) of poll respondents fearing their employer would not make it through one. Organisations across the UK and Ireland are tackling record inflation levels, up 7.9% in the 12 months to May…
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Sidetrade has revealed that agriculture companies in the UK increasingly paid supplier invoices late in Q2 2022, hinting at possible cash flow struggles within the sector. The Sidetrade Unpaid Invoice Tracker shows almost one-fifth (17.3%) of invoices issued to UK agriculture companies were deemed overdue* on average in Q2 2022, compared to 12.0% in Q1…
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has told banks to improve the treatment of struggling small business borrowers. As part of its work in response to the increased cost of living, the FCA has told banks they must treat small business customers fairly when collecting and recovering debts. A review of 11 bank’s collection practices identified…
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One in five businesses are struggling to be competitive as inflation hits 40 year high according to Time Finance. The company has revealed the extent of the cost of doing business crisis, with 91% of UK SMEs forced to hike their own prices in order to keep up with soaring operational costs. The alternative finance…
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Despite the plethora of innovative new software on the market, nearly half (49%) of financial professionals are still using Excel spreadsheets to log information and updates on customer payments into their business according to research by Visma | Onguard. The figure represents a slight increase on 2021 levels (46%), highlighting that the industry’s reliance on…
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Business outsourcing specialist Sigma Connected has been awarded a contract by business energy and water operator Yu Energy to provide contact centre support for outbound collections. The results Sigma Connected has delivered has already seen the team increase by 50% in order to handle more accounts. The contract is being operated by Sigma Connected from…
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Coface’s 2022 Asia Corporate Payment Survey has highlighted the credit risks in the Asia-Pacific region. The report found that improved economic conditions in 2021 contributed to a notable fall in the duration of payment delays across Asia-Pacific, dropping from 68 days on average in 2020 to 54 days in 2021, the lowest level in 5…
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