Treasury committee responds to Household Finances report

12th October 2018 Consumer Collections |

The Treasury Committee has published its response to the Household Finances Report from July. Commenting on the response, Rt Hon. Nicky Morgan MP, Chair of the Treasury Committee, said “In its report, the Committee expressed concern about the over-zealous debt collection practices of public authorities. The Government’s rehashing of existing policies in its response adds…

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Majority of consumers struggle to settle outstanding credit card debts

12th October 2018 Consumer Collections |

People over the age of 45 who have failed to make debt repayments are three times more likely than under 25s to have a credit card balance not settled in full every month, according to the latest Arrow Global consumer research. Delving further into the findings on those who have failed to make debt repayments,…

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Number of identity fraud victims among under-21s reaches new peak

11th October 2018 Consumer Collections |

Fraud prevention service, Cifas, has released startling new figures showing a marked increase in the number young people falling victim to identity fraud. The new figures reveal that Cifas members identified a 24% increase in cases of under-21-year-olds falling victim to impersonation fraud in the first nine months of this year, a significant rise from…

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Quarter of customers happy to share personal debt data

9th October 2018 Consumer Collections |

More than a quarter of UK consumers would be happy for service providers to share their personal data with other suppliers or third parties, according to new research. The findings were reported in a study completed by outsourced customer contact specialist Echo Managed Services. The company surveyed 1,000 UK residents on their knowledge and attitudes to debt and asked…

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DAS amendment regulations approved by scottish parliament

8th October 2018 Consumer Collections |

The legislation for the introduction of The Debt Arrangement Scheme (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2018 has been approved by Scottish parliament and signed by Jamie Hepburn MSP Minister for Business Fair Work and Skills. The regulations will come into force on 29th October 2018. and will allow for a more sustainable and flexible scheme, making it…

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StepChange statistics highlight debt problems

4th October 2018 Consumer Collections |

New statistics published by StepChange Debt Charity have laid bare the alarming scale and changing nature of problem debt in the UK. They show that 326,897 people contacted the charity for help with their debts in just the first six months of 2018. Of the 180,644 who received full debt advice and a recommended debt…

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One in four Scottish children in poverty

3rd October 2018 Consumer Collections |

In its state of the nation report, Poverty in Scotland 2018, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) has warned that one in four (230,000) children in Scotland live in poverty. The report comes as Challenge Poverty? Aye we can! gets underway, a campaign by the Poverty Alliance which shows how poverty in Scotland can be solved and allow everyone to take part…

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Director of debt management company found guilty of acting negligently and dishonestly

3rd October 2018 Consumer Collections |

A specialist financial services advisory team has advised on a landmark legal case in which the director and insolvency practitioner of a major insolvency practitioner business was found to have acted negligently in his capacity as director, and dishonestly in his capacity as office holder appointed in respect of IVAs administered by the business. Following…

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Third of consumers believe they’ll never pay off their debt

2nd October 2018 Consumer Collections |

New online research from Equifax has revealed nearly one third (31%) of people believe they won’t be able to pay off debt within their lifetime, and over one in 10 (12%) say they won’t even be able to reduce their debt levels. The survey, conducted with Gorkana, indicates those aged 18-24 are the most pessimistic about…

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Over 1.5m UK renters at risk of losing deposits

2nd October 2018 Consumer Collections |

Over 1.5 million renters across the UK could be at risk of losing their deposits after new research from comparethemarket.comreveals that one third (33%) of renters know that their landlord has not placed their money into a Government-backed deposit protection scheme (DPS). Despite the legal obligation which requires landlords to put deposits into schemes such…

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Stepchange reveals strategy to double the number of people helped by 2022

27th September 2018 Consumer Collections |

Stepchange has published its new four-year strategy that sets out its ambition to double the number of people it can help by 2022 and also plans to launch early intervention services. Independent analysis suggests that the number of people requiring debt advice will soar to two million by 2022. Stepchange says this stands in stark contrast…

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Credit card spending rises by 7.6%

27th September 2018 Consumer Collections |

UK Finance has released its latest Household Finance update for August 2018. The findings showed that credit card spending was 7.6 per cent higher than a year earlier, with outstanding levels on card borrowing growing by 5.8 per cent over the year. Gross mortgage lending for the total market in August was £24.1bn, some 1.2…

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Money Statistics: September 2018

20th September 2018 Consumer Collections |

Here is an overview of The Money Charity’s latest statistics for September 2018: Personal debt in the UK People in the UK owed £1.592 trillion at the end of June 2018. This is up from £1.545 trillion at the end of June 2017– an extra £900.74 per UK adult. People in the UK owed £1.5955 trillion at the end of July…

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