Enforcement

Brits to take on £6.4 billion in debt to fund Christmas

Millions of people will be relying on their credit cards to fund Christmas this year. Research conducted by comparethemarket.com found that Brits who celebrate Christmas expect to spend £640 on average over the festive season. Over a fifth (22%) anticipate that they will pay for the majority of their expenses by credit card, suggesting that those…

Update on the Pre-action Protocol for Debt Claims

The Credit Services Association (CSA) and the Civil Court Users Association (CCUA) issued a joint statement following the Civil Procedure Rule Committee (CPRC) meeting attended by Leigh Berkley and Rob Thompson as industry representatives, and by the Master of the Rolls. The outcome was as follows: • The Pre-Action Protocol (PAP) is likely to be…

Marston appoints Corporate Strategy Director

Marston Holdings (Marston) is pleased to announce that Daniela Quicksilver has joined the Group as Corporate Strategy Director. Quicksilver previously worked at Rothschild, where she worked for the private debt fund, Five Arrows Credit Solutions. She was closely involved with the fund’s investment in Marston, and therefore has nearly three years experience working with the Group.…

Marston appoints Group Client Services Director

Marston Holdings has announced that Alistair Townsend has joined the business as Group Client Services Director. Townsend was previously Head of Revenues and Benefits at Milton Keynes Council. He joins the Group with extensive knowledge of local taxation, revenue collection and local government. He has represented local government on a number of working groups for…

Northern Ireland debt judgements decrease

The total number and value of debt judgments in Northern Ireland during the third quarter of the year fell to its lowest level since before the financial crisis, according to figures released today by Registry Trust. The value of debt judgments before courts in the north was £4.5 million in the three months to September…

Call for fresh approach to debt satisfactions in Scotland

Only 4% of decrees and judgments relating to debt in Scotland were marked as satisfied in the third quarter of 2016, compared with 15% in England and Wales, according to figures from Registry Trust. Registry Trust is the non-profit organisation which collects judgment information from jurisdictions across the UK, including small claims and summary causes…

Council tax arrears is the biggest debt problem in Wales

A new report from Citizens Advice Wales “Fairness for all – Improving council tax debt collection in Wales” highlights the findings of research undertaken to better understand the recent increase in council tax arrears seen over the last few years. Council tax arrears is now the largest debt issue representing 13%t  of all debt issues. Council…

Marston Holdings acquires Engage Services

Marston Holdings has announced that it has acquired field collections specialist Engage Services. Engage Services provide field collections services throughout the UK for utilities, financial services and public sector clients.  

FCA outlines plan to boost authorisation procedure

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has outlined plans to improve the authorisation process for consumer credit firms. Figures shared by the FCA indicate they have closed 87% of applications with 99.6% within the statutory deadline. The FCA have issued the following commitments to firms applying for authorisation: The FCA will tell you as soon as your application…

Staffordshire and Black Country councils owed tens of millions

Government figures reveal that tens of millions of pounds in unpaid council tax and business rates is owed to councils across the Black Country and Staffordshire. The figures owed are as follows: Walsall £20.3 million Sandwell £23.3 million Wolverhampton £14.7 million Dudley £8.7 million Cannock £6 million Stafford £4.4 million  

Rossendales confirms FCA authorisation

Marston Holdings (Marston) has confirmed that subsidiary Rossendales has been granted full authorisation by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Rossendales is the second Marston business to become fully authorised. Burlington Credit was authorised in 2014.  

Bailiffs, Government and Councils ranked most unfair in dealing with debt

A report by charity Stepchange has found that  bailiffs, government departments and bailiffs are among the most unfair when dealing with people in problem debt. The report titled Creditor and debt collector conduct: What’s making debt problems worse? also found that some creditors are failing to take vulnerabilities such as depression and other ongoing mental health conditions into…

Court Enforcement Services acquires Elliott Davies