Personal insolvencies fell by 9% in 2020

1st February 2021 Consumer Collections |

Latest statistics from the Insolvency Service have indicated that there were 111,424 personal insolvencies in 2020, a fall of 9% on 2019’s figure of 121,882. The decrease was driven by a 25% reduction of both bankruptcies and DROs. The fall in DROs and debtor bankruptcies in the last three quarters of 2020 corresponds with a…

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Consumers looking to cut interest rates on debt

1st February 2021 Consumer Collections |

A growing proportion of consumers are taking control of their finances by seeking financial products for debt consolidation, according to the latest findings from Experian’s Credit Barometer. Searches for balance transfer cards via Experian’s comparison services have risen in January, from 31% of the total credit card searches in December 2020 to 37% in January…

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Mounting financial impact of pandemic emerging

29th January 2021 Consumer Collections |

As 2020 came to a close, the fuller picture of Covid-19’s effect on UK household finances continued to emerge, demonstrating the significant mounting financial impact of the pandemic, according to the January 2021 Money Statistics, produced by The Money Charity. Moving into the final month of 2020, the uneven and heavy financial burden being shouldered…

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Money Statistics: January 2021

29th January 2021 Consumer Collections |

Here is an overview of The Money Charity’s latest statistics for January 2021 Personal debt in the UK People in the UK owed £1,692.5 billion at the end of November 2020. The average total debt per household, including mortgages, was £60,720 and per adult was £31,940, around 108.0% of average earnings. Net mortgage lending rose by…

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Two energy companies enter administration

28th January 2021 Consumer Collections |

Energy regulator, Ofgem has announced that two energy companies, Green Network Energy and Simplicity Energy have entered administration. The companies have over 410,000 domestic customers as well as business accounts. Green Network Energy, a medium-sized gas and electricity supplier with about 360,000 customers, has stopped trading, as has smaller firm Simplicity Energy, which has about…

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FCA updates guidance on mortgage and consumer credit repossessions

27th January 2021 Consumer Collections |

The Financial Conduct Authority has confirmed that it has extended its current guidance so firms should not enforce mortgage repossessions before 1st April as a result of the pandemic, except in exceptional circumstances. The guidance on consumer credit will permit firms to repossess goods and vehicles from 31st January 2021. In November 2020, banks and…

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Nearly 3.8m are excluded from government’s income replacement schemes

27th January 2021 Consumer Collections |

Nearly 3.8 million consumers are excluded from the government’s income replacement schemes according to new analysis by Standard Life Foundation. The figures indicate that 7 per cent of consumers have lost earnings as a direct result of the pandemic and have not been either furloughed or able to get help from the Self-Employment Income Support…

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ASA bans misleading debt advice adverts

27th January 2021 Consumer Collections |

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has published two rulings that have banned misleading adverts by two commercial debt advice firms. The rulings involve commercial debt advice companies, National Direct Service and Fidelitas Group who the ASA says made various misleading claims, in paid-for search ads and on their websites, about their services. An investigation was…

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Consumer CCJs fall by 28%

26th January 2021 Consumer Collections |

The number of County Court Judgments (CCJs) issued against consumers in the fourth quarter of 2020 fell 28 percent, from 268,858 to 194,102, compared to the same quarter in 2019, according to figures released by Registry Trust. The total value of CCJs registered fell by 25 percent to £342 million in Q4 2020, down from…

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Scottish consumer decrees and debts fall

25th January 2021 Consumer Collections |

The number of decrees and total amount of debt registered against Scottish consumers fell sharply in the fourth quarter of 2020 compared to the same period last year, according to figures released by Registry Trust. The number of decrees fell by 27 percent from 4,984 to 3,654. The total value fell from £12.9 million to…

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Northern Irish consumer debt judgments fall 60%

25th January 2021 Consumer Collections |

The number of debt judgments registered against Northern Ireland consumers in the fourth quarter of 2020 was just 699, a huge fall of nearly 60 percent compared to the 1,732 registered in the same quarter last year, according to figures released by Registry Trust. The total value of judgment debt owed in Q4 2020 fell…

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Irish debt judgments see huge fall in Q4

25th January 2021 Consumer Collections |

The number and total value of judgments registered against Irish consumers saw a huge fall in the fourth quarter of 2020 compared to the same quarter last year, figures released by registrar Irish Judgments show. The number of judgments against consumers fell by 72 percent, from 618 to just 172. The total value fell by…

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Repossessions set to surge ten-fold by 2022

25th January 2021 Consumer Collections |

UK Finance has warned that home repossessions may surge tenfold in 2022 as coronavirus support measures come to an end, saying that while 2,900 properties were repossessed by lenders in 2020, this could rise to 22,300 in 2022. Around 81,300 households were in home loan arrears last year, but figures suggest this could climb to…

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