Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
Debt purchaser Arrow Global has announced its results for the three months ended 31st March 2019 which indicate Arrow’s income grew to £86.6m in the first quarter, up from £77.1m in the corresponding period in 2018. Whilst Core collections increased by 22.7% to £105.5 million (Q1 2018: £86.0 million) Commenting on the results, Lee Rochford,…
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Challenger bank Monzo has announced that it has launched a new feature that lets customers switch energy supplier in minutes, from the Monzo app. Monzo says the new app feature will give customers a quick, convenient way to get a good deal on their energy, and avoid paying more than they need to. People can…
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An Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) investigation into HMRC’s Voice ID service was prompted by a complaint from Big Brother Watch about the department’s conduct. The investigation focused on the use of voice authentication for customer verification on some of HMRC’s helplines since January 2017. The ICO found that HMRC failed to give customers sufficient information…
Read moreNew research analysis by The Registry Trust has found that lenders accounted for 37 percent of judgments, ahead of the government sector on 27 percent and housing bodies on six percent of debt judgment information in Northern Ireland during 2018. Uncategorised claimants (which include insurance brokers, debt collectors and personal claimants) made up a further…
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The Fairness Group has issued a joint public statement as it sets out how the government will work with the advice sector to support vulnerable people and those in financial hardship. The Fairness principles are aligned to Financial Conduct Authorities (FCA) guidelines on Treating Customers Fairly. These Principles are embedded in the Cross Government Debt…
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published proposals for changes to its mortgage sales requirements which will help to give consumers more choice in how they buy a mortgage. The proposals are one part of a package of remedies from the Mortgages Market Study, published earlier this year, which aims to encourage innovation and make…
Read moreOfgem has announced its strategic review of the microbusiness energy market to better understand and address the issues faced by microbusinesses. Ofgem’s analysis shows that market information is often inaccessible, resulting in customers paying high prices and struggling to make informed decisions. Microbusinesses play a central role in the UK economy. According to government data,…
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Webchat, SMS and social media messaging are popular ways for customers to contact brands – but new research by Ultracomms reveals how consumers feel about contact centres and confirms they still want to pick up the phone when they have a problem. The contact centre specialist surveyed 1,000 consumers on their experience of interacting with…
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Debt collection is undergoing fundamental changes. In the last six months alone, there has been a ream of calls for a new, “ethical” approach to debt collection, led by the Treasury Select Committee, local authorities and organisations including Citizens Advice and the Money Advice Service. Utilising innovative communication technologies has become integral to not only…
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Dept Purchaser, Lantern Debt Recovery Services has announced that it has raised £15 million in a committed senior revolving credit facility from a syndicate of lenders. The lenders consisted of Shawbrook Bank and Paragon Bank. The funding will be used to support the purchase of further non-performing consumer debt portfolios. The facility also has a…
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Subprime lender Provident Financial has revealed it has spent between £17million and £22million, to date in the hostile takeover bid by its rival Non-Standard Finance (NSF). In a trading update this morning, Provident revealed the figures in a trading update for the period January 1 to March 31. the firm also published exceptional items for…
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Test Valley Borough Council has been forced to write off more than a quarter of a million pounds in uncollectable debts — the majority of which is down to companies becoming insolvent. Test Valley Borough Council’s cabinet has approved wiping out £310,975 in unpaid business rates debts, accrued by businesses. Much of the uncollectable sum…
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Fintech firm Evergreen Finance London has announced that it has purchased a new service from data analytics provider FICO to speed up its decision process around customers’ credit. Evergreen Finance, which trades as Moneyboat and offers short term FCA-regulated loans, will use the bespoke FICO Decision Modeler to assess risk and the affordability of its…
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