Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
New polling from StepChange Debt Charity has indicated that millions of people expect to fall into problem debt this year due to the rise in the cost of living, energy price caps and National Insurance contributions . The representative survey, conducted by YouGov, shows that one in five people (21%) thinks that external financial pressures…
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New research published by Citizens Advice has predicted that £145-a-month hikes to energy costs in October could mean one in four adults, equivalent to 14.5 million people, will be unable to afford their bills. The figure is up from around five million saying they already can’t afford April’s price increase of £60-a-month. The charity included…
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People suffering financial hardship should receive better support from phone and broadband providers under proposals published by Ofcom. Ofcom’s recent research, around 1.1 million households (5%) are struggling to afford their broadband. That rises to around one in ten among the lowest-income households. With affordability problems only likely to worsen this year because of the…
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Nine in ten (95%) of adults are concerned about the rising cost of living, with households across the earnings spectrum worried with as much concern among those with six-figure incomes as lower-earners according to new research by mutual insurer, Royal London. Women are the most worried, with a third (33%) mentioning they are extremely worried…
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Ecospend has announced a partnership with Anglian Water where it will begin processing customer payments using open banking technology. Pay-by-bank technology will enable Anglian Water to receive instant account to account payments, which will reduce the utility provider’s processing costs. The partnership will also enable a range of new payment functionalities for Anglian Water customers…
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UK households spent 2% more on essentials in the last three months (December, January and February), according to the latest Lloyds Bank Spending Power Report. Fuel spend has seen the sharpest immediate increase, up 16% in the three months, as a result of both people returning to offices and rising prices. For similar reasons, commuter…
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Two in five people receiving Universal Credit were forced into debt this winter as payments failed to cover soaring cost of living according to new research by the Trussell Trust. Trussell Trust says new research has revealed the true and devastating consequences of the current cost of living crisis, with hundreds of thousands of families…
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The poorest households could see their cost of living jump by as much as 10% by this autumn, the Resolution Foundation think-tank has warned. Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures show that the unemployment rate fell 0.2 percentage points between November and January to 3.9%. Meanwhile, the number of UK workers on payrolls rose by…
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NatWest Group, Citizens Advice and Citizens Advice Scotland are working together on a pilot project to provide debt support and advice to customers Since 2020 members of staff from Citizens Advice have supported teams from across NatWest by providing a referral service for customers who contact NatWest with issues including with debt, benefits, relationships and…
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Latest figures from the Insolvency Service have indicated that personal insolvencies in England & Wales increased by 15.8% to 9,825 in February 2022 compared to 8,486 in January, and were 43.7% higher than February 2021’s figure of 6,839. They were also 14.4% higher than in February 2020 (8,590). There were 2,242 DROs and 588 bankruptcies. The…
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Over 1.8 million adults in Scotland have seen their finances get worse during the Covid pandemic, according to new analysis from Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS). Polling for the charity by YouGov found 41 per cent of Scottish adults found their financial position got worse during the pandemic, with 15 per cent saying their position has…
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One in twelve people turned to Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) to cover basic costs such as food and toiletries in the last six months research by Citizens Advice has found. The charity discovered young people, those in debt and those claiming Universal Credit, are at least twice as likely to have used BNPL for…
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Housing tenants face having to find an extra £1,000 this year to cover higher rent and essential bills to fund cost of living rises according to research by Hamptons. The company’s Monthly Lettings Index found that tenants will end up paying more than ever on rent and bills, with an average of 54% of household…
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