Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
Consumers are keen to use biometric verification in a wide range of circumstances from online shopping and banking to confirming their age at a pub and even voting in elections, according to new research from Equifax, the business and consumer insights expert. Almost three quarters (71%) would be happy to completely replace traditional security methods…
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A decade of low pay has driven working families deep into the red, and in nominal terms, household debt has risen 1.5 times faster than wages since 2010. according to new analysis published by the TUC. Real wages in the North East still haven’t recovered to their 2008 levels – the longest pay squeeze in centuries.…
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New figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show consumer finance new business grew by 8% in September, compared with the same month last year. In Q3 2019 as a whole, new business grew by 4% compared with the same quarter in 2018. In September, credit card and personal loan new business together…
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Premier League fans will shell out £1.3 billion this season to follow their teams – as increases in the price of home tickets, TV subscriptions and merchandise hit their wallets. The report has explored spending by match-going football fans over the past five Premier League seasons, incorporating car and rail travel, merchandise, tickets, in-stadium food…
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Consumer spending grew by just 1.5 percent in October, narrowly falling behind the current rate of inflation, as consumers remained cautious with their spending according to new data from Barclaycard, which sees nearly half of the nation’s credit and debit card transactions, shows that essential spending grew slightly by 0.2 percent, bolstered by a 1.5…
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Two in five (43%) consumers who currently rent or live at home expect that they will never buy their own property, according to a new report from Halifax. The research, conducted in partnership with YouGov, also found that of those currently renting, around three in 10 (29%) think it is now normal for people to…
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2.3 million households (8%) owe £267 million to energy suppliers before winter begins – averaging £115 each according to new research by Uswitch Averaging £115 per household, the debt level is £126 million less (32%) than last year, while the number of bill payers in arrears has also reduced by 610,000 (21%). Record switching rates,…
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A third of young adults use their credit card to pay bills according to new survey findings from 118 118 Money. The research shows that the credit cards are used to purchase holidays (53%), clothes (50.9%) and food (47%). A number even admitted to paying their monthly mortgage or rent payment with a credit card (4%).…
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Remortgages as a share of total searches have risen 5.3% in the last year, new analysis from Experian has revealed. Over a quarter (28.7%) of September’s mortgages searches via Experian’s comparison service were for remortgages compared to 23.4% in September last year. Correspondingly, the proportion of first-time buyer mortgage searches fell by 5.3% to 55.3%…
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The Insolvency Service has published its latest England & Wales insolvency statistics for Q3 2019 (July-September) indicating that personal insolvencies (seasonally adjusted) increased by 0.6% from Q3 2019 compared to Q2 2019, and rose by 22.7% compared to Q3 2018. The figures showed that personal insolvencies are on the increase with 30,879 individual insolvencies in…
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Unexpected payments cost consumers £17 billion every year according to Lowell, which commissioned the research. The research also showed that one in five were left in debt after an unexpected bill, with a tenth having to move back in with their parents because they couldn’t afford to pay for their home. John Pears, UK Managing…
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AccountScore and Equifax have announced the release of a new credit risk index for the consumer lending sector which allows financial institutions to more effectively understand consumers applying for credit products. The index is based upon the transactional information found within a consumer’s bank account and takes advantages of the opportunities provided by Open Banking…
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A new report by the Consumer Council for Water (CCWater) shows that almost 700,000 low-income customers received bill reductions through a range of assistance schemes in 2018/19 – up 28 per cent on the previous year. However, the consumer group’s own research shows that three million customers in England and Wales still say their bills are unaffordable,…
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