Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
The government has announced that it will become compulsory for High Court Enforcement Agents and certificated enforcement agents to wear body-worn cameras. The Government says that while the vast majority act professionally and within the rules, there are concerns that some bailiffs continue to employ intimidating tactics that put both themselves and often vulnerable consumers…
Read more
Latest figures released by Registry Trust show that the number of decrees against Scottish businesses dropped by 28 percent in the first six months of 2019 (compared to HY1 2018 figures) – totalling 1,140, the lowest of any first half-year on record. The total value of decrees against businesses in the first half of the…
Read more
The government has launched a call for evidence and is seeking views on the impact of the regulatory objectives introduced for the insolvency profession in 2015. Stakeholders are also being asked to assess whether there would be potential benefits in making changes to the current system, including establishing a single regulator for insolvency practitioners. Responses…
Read more
Eighteen companies including BT, British American Tobacco, and Centrica – have been suspended from the Prompt Payment Code for failing to pay suppliers on time, the Chartered Institute of Credit Management (CICM) has announced. Screwfix, Prudential, and various businesses of BAE Systems are also among those that have failed to honour their Code commitment to…
Read more
The number and total value of judgments registered against businesses in Ireland in the first six months of 2019 were the lowest on record for a first half-year, with 250 judgments registered according to the latest figures released by Registry Trust. The judgements were 10 percent fewer than in the first half of 2018. It…
Read more
The HMRC has collected £37 billion in revenue from brand-new taxes that it has introduced over the last decade according to new research by UHY Hacker Young. The new taxes cost £7.6 billion in 2018/19, up from £7.4 billion n the previous year. The newest tax, the Soft Drinks Levy, has cost over £300 million…
Read more
The Government has announced that it is pushing ahead with proposals to prioritise the repayment of some tax debts in insolvencies from April 2020. The extra money which will be repaid to HMRC under these proposals will come out of funds which would otherwise have been paid to creditors including pension schemes, trade creditors, lenders,…
Read more
Company boards will now be held accountable for payment practices to small businesses within their companies in a drive to increase transparency and accountability on late payments. Measures will force Audit Committees to report payment practices in company annual reports. The government will consult on strengthening the powers of the Small Business Commissioner to hold…
Read more
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published the final report on its investigation in to Royal Bank of Scotland’s (RBS) treatment of small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) customers transferred to its Global Restructuring Group (GRG). This follows the update provided in July 2018 on the investigation. In that update, the FCA said that given the…
Read moreIt has been announced that from 1st June, the process for complaining about enforcement agents (bailiffs) will be streamlined. The Civil Enforcement Association (CIVEA) will no longer review complaints on behalf of its members. With CIVEA no longer involved, all complaints about enforcement agents acting on behalf of local authorities will go straight to the…
Read more
Prime Minister Theresa May must use her final days in office to push through the late payments reforms package announced in this year’s Spring Statement. The urgent call comes from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) as businesses face up to extended political uncertainty surrounding the Brexit crisis coupled with the prospect of a new…
Read more
Outsourcing group G4S has been accused by the small business commissioner of “persistent late payment” towards one of its suppliers and its payment practices are being investigated. In a report, the Small Business Commissioner says a business approached them in December 2018 regarding late payment fees in relation to a project undertaken for G4S. The…
Read more
Fifteen of the seventeen businesses highlighted for poor payment practice in May have filed action plans or are preparing submissions to improve their treatment of smaller suppliers, demonstrating the effectiveness of the Prompt Payment Code. Philip King, Chief Executive of the Chartered Institute of Credit Management (CICM), says firms have responded positively to approaches by…
Read more