Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
Energy regulator Ofgem has opened a compliance case into ScottishPower’s complaints procedures, which includes concerns about the supplier’s handling and resolving of critical issues, diagnosing root problems and the impact this has on poor outcomes experienced by customers. Ofgem says that ut has have been increasingly concerned about the volume of ScottishPower’s referrals to consumer…
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Non-financial behaviours such as social media use and transactional behaviour may be used in future credit risk assessment with implications for access to consumer finance, according to a report released by Registry Trust. The ‘Futures of Credit Risk Assessment in the UK’ report written by Senior Lecturer Joe Deville of Lancaster University and published by…
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Five energy suppliers have been issued final orders by Ofgem after failing to sign up to the smart meter network operator. The regulator previously consulted on issuing orders to nine suppliers but three have since complied and one has requested its supply licence be revoked after selling on all its customers Ofgem has issued final…
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Almost half of consumers are in some kind of financial debt, with 15% of those turning to illegal money lenders, according to new research from VoucherCodes.co.uk. The research found that 48% of respondents say they are in at least one type of debt (excluding mortgages), with credit card spending (78%) and overdraft repayments (44%) being…
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has announced that Cash on Go, trading as Peachy.co.uk and Uploan.co.uk, has been placed into administration. Cash on Go is a high-cost short term lender, otherwise known as a payday lender, which lends small sums to customers until the next payday or up to 12 months. Adam Stephens, Gilbert Lemon…
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The Central Bank of Ireland has reprimanded and fined Ulster Bank (Ireland) DAC €4.6 million for governance failings relating to regulatory returns that were required under the Mortgage Arrears Resolution Targets (MART) Framework. The firm has admitted to these breaches, which took place from 2013 until 2015. The Central Bank determined that the appropriate fine…
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New research from comparethemarket.com reveals that nearly one-third of consumers (30%) have to dip into their overdraft because they have run out of money before the end of the month. Many people are not able to save for a rainy day. The research found two-fifths (40%) use their overdraft for emergency funding and nearly one…
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Citizens Advice is urging the government to protect millions of workers who may be pushed into financial hardship by government advice to self-isolate during the coronavirus. .This includes more than 5 million self-employed workers and at least 1.5 million low-income jobs that fall below the earnings limit to qualify for statutory sick pay. Plans published…
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Finance specialists TotallyMoney have revealed figures that show many are being handed a credit card offer very different to the one they applied for. Although it’s not unusual for lenders to assess a borrower’s creditworthiness when they apply for credit, the latest research from TotallyMoney and MoneyComms reveals that many customers end up with a very different product to…
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New research from Citizens Advice has found that some energy autoswitching services are comparing fewer than 15 out of around 70 possible energy suppliers, despite claiming to cover most of the market, Citizens Advice’s ‘Stuck in the Middle’ report found that some autoswitchers were also providing inaccurate or unclear information, making it difficult for consumers…
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Council tax debt is growing in Scotland, with Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) finding that its clients are almost £7 million in arrears. Figures from the charity’s network also suggest that the average debt (£3,102.46) is now almost three times that of the average bill (£1,147). Following up on the findings, CAS is now launching a…
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The UK’s largest insolvency regulator, the Insolvency Practitioners Association (IPA), has announced that it will introduce new unprecedented measures to regulate new and dynamic areas of the insolvency market. The Association has produced its first benchmark report on its new Scheme, which was implemented in January 2019, to regulate Insolvency Practitioners who operate large volumes…
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The interim funding arrangement to pay compensation to victims of authorised push payment (APP) scams in situations where both the customer and their bank have met the standards expected of them under the APP scams voluntary Code is being extended to 31st December 2020. The payment service providers (PSPs) who have provided the interim funding…
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