Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
Consumer spending fell 36.5% in April compared with the same month last year, according to Barclaycard data, as shops and pubs shut to limit the spread of COVID-19. The contraction came despite a strong performance of grocery shopping and online sales. Data from Barclaycard, which sees nearly half of the nation’s credit and debit card…
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The government’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme will remain open until the end of October, the Chancellor has announced. In a boost to millions of jobs and businesses, Rishi Sunak said the furlough scheme would be extended by a further four months with workers continuing to receive 80% of their current salary. Chancellor Rishi Sunak said…
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Families are coming to terms with the fact that their finances could be negatively affected by the coronavirus pandemic long after the lockdown lifts. According to the second week of comparethemarket.com’s Financial Confidence Tracker, over two thirds (67%) of households with children at home think the economic impact of the pandemic will have a long-term…
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Age UK has written an open letter to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to help older and vulnerable customers who are struggling to get cash as the lockdown continues, saying that “we are now approaching a critical time in the crisis…for older people.” The letter asks the FCA to consider introducing guidance to force banks…
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The Bank of England had published its latest banking statistics which have indicated that mortgage approvals for house purchase fell to 56,200, their lowest level since March 2013. House purchase decreased by 24 per cent from almost 74,000 in February, hitting their lowest level for seven years. The Bank of England data shows that while…
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New research from Citizens Advice has revealed that over 13 million people have already been unable to pay, or expect to be unable to pay, at least one bill because of the coronavirus outbreak. Of these, almost 11 million have missed or expect to miss a bill that would leave them vulnerable to severe consequences…
Read moreThe Insolvency Service has published the latest personal insolvency figure for England & Wales which indicates that the total numbers of insolvencies in Q1 2020 decreased when compared with the previous quarter and the same quarter in the previous year (Q1 2019). The figures largely pre-date the Government lockdown and wider impact of the Coronavirus…
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Barclays has issued a warning about the cost of the pandemic in its latest financial results, which saw that pre-tax profits fell to £913 million amid Covid-19 crisis. The company says it could be forced to take a £4.5 billion charge to cover bad debts in 2020 as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. The…
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New research has highlighted the precarious lives of those on chronic low incomes with predictions showing further hardship from the coronavirus pandemic. Debt charity Christians Against Poverty (CAP) new report ‘Is Anyone Listening?’ reflects on the statistics for 2019 showing that many walk a financial knife-edge with no safety net from income shocks or unexpected…
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UK Finance has announced that over 1.6 million mortgage payment holidays have been offered to homeowners impacted by Covid-19. This means that one in seven mortgages in the UK are now subject to a payment holiday. For the average mortgage holder, the payment holiday amounts to £755 per month of suspended payments. Lenders continue to…
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37% of people across the UK have seen their incomes had been affected by the Coronavirus impact according to new research by Kantar. Nearly four in 10 people who have been financially impacted by coronavirus have seen half their income or more wiped out. Some 14% of people whose income had been impacted said it…
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he Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) has highlighted the need for changes to the Consumer Credit Act (CCA) following 526,000 Covid-related requests for forbearance to its members by mid-April. Giving evidence yesterday to the Treasury Select Committee on the economic impact of Coronavirus, Stephen Haddrill, Director General of the Finance & Leasing Association, highlighted the…
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Results from the third British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) Coronavirus Business Impact Tracker have revealed that the majority of businesses responding to the survey have now furloughed a proportion of their workforce, and are awaiting funds from the government’s Job Retention Scheme to enable them to pay staff. 66% of survey respondents have furloughed staff in anticipation of scheme going live with more than half of firms (59%) have three…
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