Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
Here is an overview of The Money Charity’s latest statistics for April 2017: Personal debt in the UK People in the UK owed £1.524 trillion at the end of February 2017. This is up from £1.476 trillion at the end of February 2016 – an extra£964.450 per UK adult. Based on February 2017 trends, the…
Read moreSomeone taking out a personal loan pays on average twice the advertised APR according to the analysis of loan interest rates by The Centre for Economic and Business Research (CEBR) on behalf of Saga Money. The average loan APR available on the High Street is 3.5%, but Bank of England data shows that effective interest…
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Charles Counsell is to be the new Chief Executive of the Money Advice Service. The appointment was made by the Financial Conduct Authority and approved by HM Treasury. Counsell is currently Executive Director and Board Member at The Pensions Regulator where he has played a key role in the successful introduction of automatic enrolment into…
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People on the cheapest basic broadband deals are hit with an average price rise of £113 a year once their deal ends – with many unaware they face an increase in cost, finds Citizens Advice. A new report from the national charity reveals that more than a third (35%) of broadband customers don’t realise they…
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Latest figures from Visa suggest that spending growth slowed in March. Rounding off weakest quarter for spending growth since Q4 2013 Kevin Jenkins, UK & Ireland Managing Director at Visa said “Our data suggests that consumer spending is beginning to slow from the strong levels seen in late 2016, as rising prices increasingly squeeze household purchasing power.…
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Research by IPPR, the progressive policy think tank, finds that Income Crisis is widespread in the UK. 946,656 households are unable to cover the cost of two or more of their essential bills, representing three per cent of all households in the UK. An Income Crisis is when a household is unable to pay two…
Read moreAnalysis from The Insolvency Exchange, part of TDX Group, reveals that volumes of personal insolvency in the UK are likely to see a significant spike in 2017. The company’s latest Insolvency Market Trends data highlights that new Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) and Trust Deed (TD) applications continue to rise and volumes could increase by as much…
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In response to the FCA credit card market study consultation paper issued by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) Richard Koch, Head of Policy at The UK Cards Association, said: “We welcome the FCA’s considered proposals and support their view that the overall package is robust, and that the combined effect will address the concerns it…
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Four-fifths of the gains from tax and benefit changes coming into effect later this week (6 April) will go to the richest half of households, with the poorest third of households set to be £70 worse off on average, according to a new briefing note published by the Resolution Foundation. The analysis looks at the…
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New proposals by Ofgem to put a 12-month time limit on energy back bills will help protect consumers, says Citizens Advice. The national charity has been calling on Ofgem to make this a mandatory requirement in suppliers’ licences after the evidence showed suppliers weren’t always acting under the voluntary guidelines. Citizens Advice provided evidence from…
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OnePlusOne, the relationship research charity, is launching a Debt and Relationships project, funded by the Department for Work and Pensions, which highlights real-life stories in short animations to show the impact of debt on family relationships and the importance of sharing the burden with loved ones. The project aims to help people in relationships to start conversations…
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Suppliers will not be allowed to back-bill customers for energy used more than 12 months ago under new proposals from Ofgem. Back-bills mainly result from suppliers using estimated bills until they take an actual meter reading which may show that the customer’s consumption is higher than expected. Suppliers then send a ‘catch-up’ bill to recover the…
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More than three million people have been frozen out of credit in the past 12 months, despite mainstream lenders promising to increase access, according to new research. Almost one in five people who applied for credit in the last 12 months – either a credit card, personal loan or mortgage – had their applications refused,…
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