More than a third of water households customer struggle to pay bills fairly frequently

More than a third of customers (34%) struggle to pay bills fairly frequently, yet only 4% of billcpayers reported receiving financial help from their water company over the past year according to research by Ofwat and CCW. The research also highlighted that engagement with water companies was found to be fairly low, with 44% of…

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Supporting families costs newly retired £3,700 a year

7th April 2022 Consumer Collections |

Retiring during a pandemic is unlikely to be easy but 2021’s retirees are still financially supporting their family to the tune of £3,700 a year, new research from Key Later Life Finance – the UK’s leading advice firm in this sector – shows. Despite the increasing strain on finances, more than a third of the…

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FCA announces launch of three-year strategy to improve outcomes

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has launched a new strategy to improve outcomes for consumers and in markets throughout the UK. The FCA says as its remit is broad and growing, the three-year strategy prioritises resources to prevent serious harm, set higher standards and promote competition. The regulator will also, for the first time, hold itself…

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Times were already hard for many before the latest cost of living crisis

StepChange Debt Charity’s 2021 Statistics Yearbook, has shown that even before the latest rise in general inflation and the rise in the energy price cap, households in the UK experiencing problem debt were already facing a cost of living crisis. In 2021, StepChange was contacted by almost half a million (483,247) new clients seeking debt…

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Citizens Advice sees crisis support records broken again as cost of living impact takes hold

Citizens Advice has announced that, for the third month in a row, it has broken record for providing crisis support as the cost of living impact takes hold. In March 2022, the charity referred 24,752 people to food banks or to other charitable support, up by 44% compared to the same time last year. Research…

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Soaring cost of living cited by half million as key debt driver

The soaring cost of living is cited by over a half a million people as a key driver for personal debt, new analysis from Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) has revealed. Analysis by the charity of polling undertaken by YouGov found that 52 per cent of Scottish adults in debt or at risk of debt since…

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Affordability an issue as cost of living continues to climb

Latest ONS figures have highlighted the impact of increased cost of living with adults not being able to afford an unexpected expenses. The figures showed that over 8 in 10 (83%) adults reported an increase in their cost of living in March 2022 compared with around 6 in 10 (62%) adults in November 2021. Early…

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Call to support people in secondary mental health care through the cost of living crisis 

The Money and Money Health Policy Institute is calling on the Government to step up efforts to prevent financial harm for people receiving secondary mental health care. A new report shows that the annual average income of people with severe mental health problems is £6,500 lower than the wider population, due to factors such as…

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Rise in cost of living pressure impacting debt

StepChange Debt Charity’s latest client data report for February has shown a rise in the proportion of people seeking advice who say that cost of living pressure is a reason for their debt. The cost of living was the fourth most common reason last month, cited by around one in nine clients. The Bank of…

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Poorest hardest hit by inflation

A report from EY Item Club has revealed that the fifth of households on the lowest incomes will be hit the hardest by rising inflation – suffering a 9.6% rise in living costs compared with an average of 8.6% for the richest fifth of households. EY Item Club economists say inflation will peak next month…

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Money Statistics: March 2022

Here is an overview of The Money Charity’s latest statistics for March 2022 Personal debt in the UK People in the UK owed £1,767.1 billion at the end of January 2022. The average total debt per household, including mortgages, was £63,582 and per adult was £33,410, around 107.5% of average earnings. Net mortgage lending rose by…

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Up to 1.4m people experiencing gambling harms

29th March 2022 Consumer Collections | #gambling

As new data shows gambling participation is back to pre-pandemic levels, the charity GambleAware has warned that an estimated 1.4 million people are experiencing harms from their gambling. The figures come as GambleAware launches a campaign to raise awareness of treatment and support available through the National Gambling Treatment Service (NGTS). Working in partnership with…

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Household debt crisis grows as 3 million expect to be pushed into debt

29th March 2022 Arrears and Recoveries | #debt

New polling commissioned by the anti-poverty group Jubilee Debt Campaign has revealed that three million people fear they will be pushed into debt over the next six months.  This week’s rises in National Insurance contributions as well as the increase in the energy price cap and council tax are set to push even more people…

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