Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
Consumer confidence has fallen to a record low, according to research from data provider GfK. The consumer confidence index for August decreased by three points to minus 44, the lowest level since records began. All five measures – which include confidence in personal finances, general economic outlook, and savings – were down in comparison to…
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New analysis by consultants LCP of detailed data on household spending patterns suggests that many elderly widows and those on pension credit were already at high risk of living in fuel poverty even before the surge in energy bills in recent years. Even if the government comes up with additional help to cover increased bills,…
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New analysis from Citizens Advice has indicated that one in four (24%) people won’t be able to afford to pay their energy bills in October based on current forecasts. This is double the number already in the red ahead of the price cap rise. The figure could jump to one in three(34%) people in January…
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Latest monthly figures from the Insolvency Service for England & Wales have indicated that personal insolvencies decreased by 12.7% to 9,190 in July 2022 compared to 10,527 in June, and were 1.1% higher than July 2021’s figure of 9,090. There were 531 bankruptcies registered, which was 16% lower than in July 2021 and 64% lower than…
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Latest quarterly statistics from the Insolvency Service have indicated that Northern Irish personal insolvencies increased. The figures showed that in July 2022 showed that there were 160 individual insolvencies in Northern Ireland, 13% higher than in July 2021, but 19% lower than July 2019. The personal insolvencies consisted of 142 IVAs, 12 DROs and six bankruptcies. Business insolvency…
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Real average weekly earnings fell by 3 per cent in the three months to June, the biggest fall since 1977 according to the Resolution Foundation in response to the latest ONS labour market statistics. The latest data is dominated by near double-digit inflation, which according to the Foundation’s analysis of longer-term ONS and Bank of…
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Millions of students face a rise in living costs far in excess of the slight increase in support from maintenance loans when the new academic year begins according to new research by interactive Investor. This follows a 9% annual increase in the prices of popular student basics over the year to June 2022. For students…
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New data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose to 10.1% in the twelve months to July, up from 9.4% in June. With the October energy price cap rise fast approaching and real wages failing to keep pace with inflation. With the real value of wages falling…
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Broadband bills could be cut for millions of low-income households under Government plans to encourage ‘social tariffs’. A new service, which will go live next week and be run by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), will allow internet service providers to verify, with customers’ permission, whether they are in receipt of a relevant…
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The Government would need to find £12 billion simply to achieve what it was aiming to do with the £24 billion package announced in May according to new analysis by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), funded by the Nuffield Foundation as part of the forthcoming IFS Green Budget. The analysis says that the figures…
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People who say they ‘live for today’ are less likely to have enough cash left over at the end of the month (42%) according to research from Hargreaves Lansdown Savings & Resilience Barometer, produced with Oxford Economics in July 2022. The research has found that they will be hit harder by the cost-of-living crisis too,…
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Trustfolio has announced that it has partnered with Equifax to launch a new feature powered by Open Banking. The new Debt Adviser Support Portal feature will allow advisers to gain instant access to bank transaction data in an income & expenditure-friendly format, mapped to the Standard Financial Statement. Alongside the client credit reports from multiple…
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Equity release is helping to fund one in every £90 spent by retired people within the UK currently, according to a new report by Legal & General. The report, found that people are increasingly making the most of property wealth. It also forecasted that the equity release market will surpass £12 billion in 2030, with…
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