Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
New figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) indicated that second charge mortgage new business volumes grew by 36% in December and by 44% in 2021. Commenting on the latest new business figures for the second charge mortgage market, Fiona Hoyle, Director of Consumer & Mortgage Finance and Inclusion at the Finance &…
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The Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) has announced significant changes to its plans for the commissioning of debt advice services, with funding allocated to vital face to face services being increased by 50% (to £30 million). In December 2021, it announced changes in the timeline for awarding the contracts for the National Services, Business Debt…
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New research has revealed that six out of ten credit card users don’t know how much interest they are charged, according to Yougov research commissioned by Klarna. In contrast, the research showed that consumers understand the headline terms and conditions of Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) products better than they do credit cards. Having reviewed…
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Credit Connect’s hosted its fourth Online Collections Technology Think Tank 3.1 last week which saw collections strategies and the impact of the pandemic discussed by fifteen collections professionals from a variety of industry sectors. The themes of collections risk, customer engagement, affordability, vulnerable customers and the future collections were discussed by panellists and Chair Vanessa…
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A quarterly survey of by property website Zoopla reveals that the cost of renting a property is rising at its fastest pace in 13 years with the average UK tenant facing a bill of nearly £1,000 a month. The UK’s average rental growth has reached a 13 year high, up 8.3% in Q4 2021, meaning…
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The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Financial Resilience, has found a quarter (24%) of working-age adults (18-64 years old) didn’t save any money during the pandemic sparking major concerns about financial insecurity. The revelations have led to Co-Chairs of the APPG, Shaun Bailey MP and Tonia Antoniazzi MP, to issue a call for evidence to…
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The Insolvency Service punished 32 individuals who went bankrupt as a result of excessive gambling or unnecessarily extravagant spending last year according to new analysis by Mazars. The Insolvency Service secured Bankruptcy Restrictions Orders (BROs) against these 32 individuals to prevent them from resuming the gambling, rash speculation or extravagant spending that contributed to their…
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StepChange Debt Charity and OVO Energy have announced a new partnership that will provide a package of support to the charity worth up to £2 million over the course of 2022 to support people facing financial difficulty. To help provide the immediate resource StepChange needs, OVO will be funding additional frontline services in 2022, worth…
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The TUC has warned that millions of low-income workers face a “perfect storm” this April with universal credit (UC) falling behind the cost of living as energy bills and taxes rise. The warning comes as new TUC analysis reveals that the number of workers on UC has increased by 1.3 million since the eve of…
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Water UK has announced that water bills are set to rise from April, adding to the cost of living crisis due to hit households across the country. As water companies issue customers’ water bills for next year, showing an average increase of 1.7%, or about £7, Ofwat has called on water companies to make providing…
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The Bank of England (BoE) has increased interest rates to 0.5% from 0.25% as it looks to restrain a surge in the cost of living. With inflation soaring, the Bank opted to increase rates at successive policy meetings for the first time since 2004. Forecasts suggest inflation, as measured by the consumer prices index, is…
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Research by KIS Finance has revealed that as a direct result of the rising cost of living, 57% of people are either already struggling financially, or expect to do so in the very near future. With inflation jumping to 5.4%, its highest level in almost 30 years, increasing numbers are finding it challenging to make…
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Rents rose to hit a three month high in January, as the lack of stock and high tenant demand continue to fuel demand for properties across England according to new research by Goodlord. The average cost of rent across England rose during January, with averages hitting £993 per property. This is up from an average…
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