Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
UK wage growth failed to keep pace with the rising cost of living between October and December, Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures show. While wages increased, when taking inflation into account pay was down 0.8% compared to a year earlier. Employees’ regular pay, excluding bonuses, grew by 3.7% between October and December from a…
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Enforcement market integrator, Just has announced that it has appointed Alan Wood, as a Strategic Account Director to the public sector. Wood has been in enforcement for over 21 years working on a variety of debt types. Wood is one of 15 fellows of the British Parking Association as well as the Vice-Chair of both…
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Manchester-based financial services provider MoneyPlus Advice has appointed J3 Debt Solutions to its growing network of Appointed Representatives amid rapid increases in the cost of living for consumers. The MoneyPlus Advice Appointed Representative (AR) Network works with smaller debt advice firms to support consumers out of financial difficulties that may have been exacerbated throughout the…
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Millions of people renting homes have no insurance safety net in place, prompting fears that many would be unable to pay their bills if they were to fall critically ill, lose their job or the person they live with was to pass away according to new research by Scottish Widows. The research found that only 5%…
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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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Qualco has announced that it has received authorisation from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Commenting on the development, Managing Director Christian Jacob said “We are pleased to have gained our authorisation from the Financial Conduct Authority. The UK is recognised globally as having some of the most stringent financial regulations and it is great we…
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Around 1.1 million households (5%) are struggling to afford their home broadband service according to new research by Ofcom. The number of households struggling rises to around one in ten among the lowest-income household with affordability problems likely to worsen in 2022 due to retail price increases and the wider squeeze on household finances, putting…
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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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The Credit Services Association (CSA), the trade body for the debt collection and purchase industry, and an approved Register of Apprenticeship Training Provider (RoATP) has launched a new Online Learning Platform to add to its extensive suite of training solutions. The new platform ensures credit and collections staff are trained and up to date with…
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Latest figures from UK Finance have indicated that mortgage arrears figures fell in the fourth quarter of 2021. The figures showed that overall, there were 79,620 homeowner mortgages in arrears of 2.5 per cent or more of the outstanding balance at the end of December 2021, a reduction of 750 homeowner mortgages compared with the…
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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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