Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
New research by the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute has revealed the links between financial difficulty and mental health problems in England – and which mental health conditions can increase your chances of being in problem debt. The charity is calling on the government to use its upcoming Consumer White Paper to ensure people with…
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Mortgage customers who have previously been unable to switch mortgages despite being up-to-date with their payments (commonly known as mortgage prisoners), could soon be able to find a cheaper deal after the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) proposed changes to how lenders assess whether or not a customer can afford the loan. In the final report…
Read moreIn line with its statutory duty, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has reviewed the retained provisions of the Consumer Credit Act (CCA) 1974, and set out its findings in a new report. The new report says that the government has an opportunity to change the rules on intimidating creditors’ letters, which are contributing to people…
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Cardiff-based start-up SamePage and the Green Deal Finance Company (GDFC) have announced that they have agreed on a home improvement partnership. The Green Deal Finance Company (GDFC), was originally a Government scheme and now a privately-owned green fintech lender supporting homeowners to invest in renewable energy and products, to create a new online loans applications…
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The Scottish government risks missing its child poverty targets by some distance as poverty levels are set to rise rather than fall over the next five years, according to new analysis published by the Resolution Foundation. The analysis shows that, following large falls in the 2000s, relative child poverty has been rising since 2011-12. The…
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Provident Financial has announced the appointment of Neil Chandler as Managing Director of Vanquis Bank. Chandler will join the Vanquis Bank board and will start as Managing Director on the 15th April 2019, subject to regulatory approvals. Chandler was until recently the Chief Executive Officer, Shop Direct Financial Services and a member of the Shop Direct…
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Shell has today rebranded First Utility as Shell Energy* and confirmed that it has switched all of its British residential customers to 100% renewable electricity. The brand change comes a year after Shell acquired First Utility, one of the largest challenger energy suppliers in Great Britain. An Ipsos Mori survey of UK household electricity bill…
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The second phase of a new access model for non-bank payment service providers (PSPs) has recently gone live. The new model allows non-bank PSPs to utilise client funds to support payments made via the Faster Payments system. Bacs is due to go live with this model later this year. The first phase previously went live…
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A survey by Comparethemarket.com has revealed consumers attitudes towards credit and how debt is impacting their lives. The price comparison site wanted to discover the main reasons why people get into debt and how it affects their lives, in particular, their relationships and mental health. The survey found that 45% of consumers are in debt,…
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Research carried out by financial advice website Moneycomms.co.uk and supported by credit experts TotallyMoney has revealed that credit card cash withdrawals cost UK consumers £219 million in fees and interest last year. In the 12-month period, there were more than 36 million credit card cash transactions. The average amount withdrawn or spent was £125. Every time a…
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has reaffirmed the regulator’s focus on affordability, business models and culture in the consumer credit sector. Speaking in London this week, Jonathan Davidson, executive director of supervision – retail and authorisations at the FCA, noted that growth in the sector has slowed, increasing 6.5% over the last 12 months, according…
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For the second year in a row, Intrum has announced that it has arranged a hackathon to promote innovations for financial well-being among European consumers. The hackathon will take place in Madrid on April 3-4, 2019. The two day-event will have participants from universities, institutions, start-ups and SMEs. The objective is to identify innovation gaps…
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New research by UK Finance has found that a total of £1.66 billion of unauthorised fraud was prevented by the banking and finance industry in 2018, effectively stopping £2 in every £3 of attempted unauthorised fraud, During the same period, a total of £1.20 billion was stolen by criminals committing both authorised and unauthorised fraud.…
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