Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
StepChange debt charity has published the key measures that it wants the next Government to prioritise to address the harm of problem debt and to help households build greater financial resilience for the future. The StepChange election manifesto calls on each of the political parties to commit to these measures during the General Election campaign.…
Read more
A decade of low pay has driven working families deep into the red, and in nominal terms, household debt has risen 1.5 times faster than wages since 2010. according to new analysis published by the TUC. Real wages in the North East still haven’t recovered to their 2008 levels – the longest pay squeeze in centuries.…
Read more
New figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that the second charge mortgage market has reported that volumes are up by 20% in September Commenting on the latest new business figures for the second charge mortgage market, Fiona Hoyle, Interim Director General of the FLA, said “The second charge mortgage market reported…
Read more
A third of young adults use their credit card to pay bills according to new survey findings from 118 118 Money. The research shows that the credit cards are used to purchase holidays (53%), clothes (50.9%) and food (47%). A number even admitted to paying their monthly mortgage or rent payment with a credit card (4%).…
Read more
The Insolvency Service has published its latest England & Wales insolvency statistics for Q3 2019 (July-September) indicating that personal insolvencies (seasonally adjusted) increased by 0.6% from Q3 2019 compared to Q2 2019, and rose by 22.7% compared to Q3 2018. The figures showed that personal insolvencies are on the increase with 30,879 individual insolvencies in…
Read more
Unexpected payments cost consumers £17 billion every year according to Lowell, which commissioned the research. The research also showed that one in five were left in debt after an unexpected bill, with a tenth having to move back in with their parents because they couldn’t afford to pay for their home. John Pears, UK Managing…
Read more
A new report by the Consumer Council for Water (CCWater) shows that almost 700,000 low-income customers received bill reductions through a range of assistance schemes in 2018/19 – up 28 per cent on the previous year. However, the consumer group’s own research shows that three million customers in England and Wales still say their bills are unaffordable,…
Read more
Here is an overview of The Money Charity’s latest statistics for October 2019: Personal debt in the UK People in the UK owed £1,650 billion at the end of August 2019. This is up from £1,604 billion at the end of August 2018, an extra £876 per UK adult over the year. The average total…
Read more
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has confirmed that it has removed barriers that stop some mortgage customers from finding a cheaper mortgage deal. The rule change means that around 30,000 homeowners now have the freedom to move elsewhere. In some cases, so-called “mortgage prisoners” have previously been told that they cannot afford a new mortgage…
Read more
Google has announced new steps to restrict debt services advertising only to firms meeting new accreditation standards. These will be subject to an application and approval process, and will take effect from mid-November. Debt charity, StepChange has said that it welcomes this intervention and now urges other digital advertising platforms to adopt a similar approach.…
Read more
Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB) has released official statistics reporting personal insolvencies in Scotland for the second quarter (July to September 2019) of 2019-20. The number of personal insolvencies (bankruptcies and protected trust deeds) in Scotland fell by 1.7% in July-September 2019 compared with the previous quarter (April-June 2019), but rose by 12.6% compared with the…
Read more
Without support, people in their 70s and 80s are vulnerable to making decisions that lead to financial deprivation according to a new report by the Pensions Policy Institute. The Pensions Policy Institute (PPI) has published ‘Supporting later life’ report which suggests that preparing for later life requires people to make complex plans for the unpredictable…
Read more
Almost one in three consumers (29%) expect their finances to get worse in the next year, while only 14% believe their financial situation will improve according to a new YouGov poll for StepChange Debt Charity. Of those expecting to be worse off, 38% cited uncertainty in the wider economy as the cause, something that should…
Read more