Consumer Credit grows by 6.4% in April

25th May 2017 Consumer Collections |

The British Bankers Association (BBA) latest high street banking data shows that consumer credit growth was 6.4% in April, compared with 6.1% in the previous month. Gross mortgage borrowing totalled £13.4 billion in April.* Net mortgage borrowing was 2.4% higher than a year ago. Eric Leenders, BBA Managing Director for Retail Banking said “As the…

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Household debt will reach record high in first year of new government

25th May 2017 Consumer Collections |

The TUC has published a new analysis of household debt, which finds that unsecured debt per household will reach a record high of £13,900 this year. Unsecured debt per household was £13,200 in 2016 – the highest figure since the financial crisis, and only marginally below the peak of £13,300 in 2007. The TUC analysis…

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IMA Chair calls for advanced debt advice qualification

24th May 2017 Consumer Collections |

The new chair of the Institute of Money Advisers (IMA) is calling for the introduction of an advanced qualification to enhance the free-debt advice sector Jane Clack, a money adviser at PayPlan, was elected with a majority of 56% and takes the role for a three-year term. Clack has been a member of the IMA…

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Mortgage debt exceeds the average life insurance pay out

17th May 2017 Consumer Collections |

Aegon has released protection claims statistics that reveal people are likely to be under-protected for the amount of mortgage debt they have. According to figures from The Money Charity, the estimated average outstanding mortgage for the 11.1 million households with mortgage debt in the UK was £119,937 in January 2017. Stephen Crosbie, Protection Director at…

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1.4 million households struggling to pay their mortgage

17th May 2017 Consumer Collections |

Research by L&C Mortgages has revealed that 1.4 million UK households are struggling to pay their mortgage and 2.6 million people think their monthly mortgage payments are too high. Over half (58%) have never remortgaged for a better deal, as highlighted in L&C’s ongoing campaign to get homeowners to save as much as they possibly…

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Households are being squeezed by inflation rise

17th May 2017 Consumer Collections |

The annual rate of consumer price index (CPI) inflation rose from 2.3% in March to 2.7% in April – higher than consensus estimates of 2.6%. Meanwhile, the retail price index (RPI) measure of inflation jumped from 3.1% to 3.5% over the same period, also slightly higher than consensus expectations. This is more bad news for…

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Over 300,000 Interest-only risk loans not fully repaid since 2011 – Report

16th May 2017 Consumer Collections |

The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has released its latest member data and shows that the number of outstanding residential interest-only loans has been falling by between 10 and 13 per cent a year since 2012. In the CML survey covers well over 90% of all residential mortgages outstanding, reflecting the industry’s ongoing commitment to…

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CCJ numbers rise to the highest level in over a decade

15th May 2017 Consumer Collections |

The number of county court judgments (CCJs) against consumers in England and Wales rose to the highest level in over a decade during the first quarter of the year, according to figures released today by Registry Trust. In Quarter 1 (Q1) 2017, there were 298,901 debt judgments registered against consumers in England and Wales. Rising…

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Consumer finance growth continues

15th May 2017 Consumer Collections |

New figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show growth of 10% in consumer finance new business in March, compared with the same month last year, and 6% growth in Q1 2017 as a whole. Credit card and personal loan new business together grew in March by 7%, compared with the same month…

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Money troubles leaves the nation facing mental health crisis

12th May 2017 Consumer Collections |

PayPlan is urging for more to be done to end the stigma surrounding financial difficulties. The call comes as part of Mental Health Awareness Week which is taking place between the 8th and 14th of May. According to a national survey of 9,000 of its customers, PayPlan found that a staggering 91 per cent experience stress as…

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Second-charge mortgage repossessions falls by 50%

11th May 2017 Consumer Collections |

New figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that the number of second-charge mortgage repossessions in Quarter 1 2017 was 17 – down by 50% compared with the same quarter in 2016. Commenting on the figures, Fiona Hoyle, Head of Consumer and Mortgage Finance at the FLA, said: “The number of second-charge…

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Mortgage arrears falls in first quarter

11th May 2017 Consumer Collections |

The number of mortgages in arrears fell slightly in the first quarter of 2017, and is down on both the previous quarter and a year ago, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML). There were 92,600 mortgages in arrears, representing 0.84% of all mortgages, the lowest quarterly rate on record.   Within the total…

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Rise in the number of young people seeking personal help

10th May 2017 Consumer Collections |

The latest UK Personal Debt Index (PDI) has found that the number of young people seeking help with personal debt rose by +7.8 per cent in the first quarter of 2017. Individuals aged between 20 and 25 accounted for over one in ten of those undertaking support for their personal finances in the first three…

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