Credit, collections & insolvency news
As the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meets to decide whether to impose a further rise in interest rates, the majority of Britons are already cutting back on their spending.W ith inflation at a 40-year high, the Bank of England’s efforts to cool it down by raising interest rates three times since December last year, has…
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Half (49%) of university students and graduates said that the prospect of student debt made them think twice about taking up their place at university, according to new research from credit reference agency Equifax. The large debt associated with attending university was enough to make graduates think twice, even though they go on to earn £10,000…
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Almost one-fifth of UK credit card users (19%) have missed a credit card repayment within the past six months due to the rising cost-of-living, according to new research by comparethemarket.com. The research is published as the Office for National Statistics revealed that prices across the economy are rising by 9.1% a year, squeezing household budgets.…
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Suspending deductions from Universal Credit for Government debt would help plug the gap caused by the shortfall between the Government’s support measures and wider price increases for over a million low-income households, according to new research revealed today by StepChange Debt Charity. The effect of deductions is especially pernicious due to the rising cost of living. The…
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Remortgage sales hit 92,558 in Q4 2021, marking the highest level of activity since before the pandemic according to analysis from digital lender Freedom Finance. The research shows that remortgage sales outnumbered all other types of home loans for the first time since the third quarter of 2020. Separately, sales of mortgages for first-time buyers…
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Here is an overview of The Money Charity’s latest statistics for June 2022 Personal debt in the UK People in the UK owed £1,786.6 billion at the end of April 2022. The average total debt per household, including mortgages, was £64,286 and per adult was £33,780, around 105.3% of average earnings Net mortgage lending rose by…
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Latest figures from the British Retail Consortium have shown that shop price annual inflation accelerated to 3.1% in June, up from 2.8% in May. The rise is above the 12- and 6-month average price increases of 1.0% and 2.3%, respectively. This marks the highest rate of inflation since September 2008. Food inflation strongly accelerated to…
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The government has published breathing spaces data which shows breathing spaces rates were highest for people aged 25-44 (one in 445 of those aged 25-34 and one in 440 of those aged 35-44), and lowest for those aged 65 and over. In the first year of the support, there were 63,864 breathing spaces registered. One…
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Debt collections specialist, Ophelos has announced it has raised £5 million in a funding seed round. The funding round was led by AlbionVC, which has previously invested in fintechs such as Credit Kudos. Contributions were also made by Vast Ventures, an early investor in Coinbase and Tala, regulatory and public policy experts Form Ventures, as…
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Seven million households are living through a ‘frightening year of financial fear’, going without food, heating, toiletries and even showering as they try to cope with the cost of living crisis new research by Joseph Rowntree Foundation has found. The research found that low-income families have fallen behind on payments by an average of £1,600.…
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An unfurling backlog of weddings and other milestone social occasions following the pandemic is adding pressure to people’s already stretched finances, as one in four people (24 per cent) can’t afford to accept all of their wedding invitations, according to new research launched today by Experian. Three in ten (31 per cent) said they have…
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The collections & recovery platform, Receeve, has announced a new partnership with Paylink Solutions to provide a simple, efficient way to carry out affordability assessments for its customers across Europe. Through Paylink’s technology, Receeve clients will benefit from a quicker and more accurate service, which will maximise agent output. On average, clients will see a 75% improvement…
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The UK’s biggest mobile and broadband companies have agreed on a plan to help customers struggling to pay bills amid the cost of living crisis. The Telecoms industry agreed to the new plan following a government summit led by Digital Secretary Nadine Dorries. The new measures such as allowing customers struggling with bills to move…
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