Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
A new report suggests that a failure to address financial difficulty in the main NHS talking therapies programme is holding back the recovery of tens of thousands of people with depression and anxiety. A quarter of people with ‘common’ mental health conditions like depression or anxiety are also in problem debt, which is likely to be holding…
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Motormile Finance UK Limited, a debt purchase and collections firm, has entered into an agreement with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to provide redress to more than 500,000 customers for historic failures in its due diligence and collections process. The firm had inadequate systems and controls over due diligence. In particular, it failed to conduct sufficient…
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Ulster Bank has been fined 3.3 million (£3 million) by Ireland’s financial watchdog over breaches of money laundering and terrorist financing rules. The Central Bank said its inquiries uncovered significant failings in Ulster Bank’s procedures practices over six years from July 2010. It said its inquiries uncovered significant failings in Ulster Bank’s procedures but no money…
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Scottish Councils could be handed more powers to limit the number of controversial pay day loan shops opening on Scotland’s high streets. The Scottish Government has faced calls to introduce legislation even though there is now a cap of 0.8 per cent APR on the amount pay day loan firms can charge, campaigners have expressed concern…
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Over 6.5 million households are in debt, or face the prospect of falling into debt within a month, should they lose their jobs, according to new research from The Equality Trust. Over 40 per cent of non-retired households have too little saved to pay even a month’s worth of household bills, the research finds. A non-retired household in…
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The Insolvency has published the latest Insolvency statistics between July & September. The key finding from the statistics was that total individual insolvencies increased for the fifth consecutive quarter, driven primarily by an increase in individual voluntary arrangements. Bankruptcies increased this quarter. It is likely that changes to the bankruptcy application process have affected the…
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The growing prevalence of online billing is putting businesses and service providers at risk of losing touch with customers according to new research, which reveals that almost one in three consumers have become distant from their bills as a result. The research of a nationally representative sample of 1,000 UK adults by Echo Managed Services, revealed…
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Co-operative Energy has agreed to pay £1.8 million to energy consumers, because it let customers down in its complaints resolution, call handling and billing processes. £1.6 million of this money has already been paid with the remainder to be paid shortly to those customers not yet compensated. The money that Co-op is unable to return…
Read moreThe number of people going insolvent across England and Wales is expected to increase. Experts have suggested the days of falling personal insolvency levels may be coming to an end as consumers grapple with underlying debt problems. Official figures for the third quarter of this year, which will be released by the Insolvency Service, show the…
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has today launched a consultation on its Mission, which is designed to provide a guiding set of principles around the strategic choices the FCA makes. It will inform the FCA’s strategy and day-to-day work over the coming years. The intention of the Mission is to provide clarity over the objectives, the…
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A new CfRC report calls for an expansion of debt advice and financial support services for low paid workers and private tenants. The research (‘Improving the Financial Health of Low Income Groups’), which was supported by the JPMorgan Chase Foundation, reviewed how low income households are currently being supported to manage their money, save for the…
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Ofgem has put in place a new safety net to protect consumers in the unlikely event their supplier goes out of business. The existing “supplier of last resort” regime already guarantees that people will continue to receive their energy supply. Following the consultation which began in June, Ofgem has now taken action to protect customers’ credit…
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Struggling businesses could face earlier intervention after the amount of business rates lost by Aberdeen City Council soared sixfold in the space of two years. Finance convenor Willie Young promised a “more proactive” pursuit of debtors after the local authority was forced to write off almost £183,000 last year. Since 2010, the council has written…
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