Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
United Utilities Group has announced that Louise Beardmore will take over as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) which will follow the retirement of Steve Mogford early next year. Mogford, who has been in charge of the water company for 12 years, will be supported by Beardmore, who is currently the Group’s Customer Service and People Director until…
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The amount of money that households collectively owe to their energy suppliers has doubled in the past year to reach £1 billion, with a quarter (23%) of consumers now in energy debt, according to new research from Uswitch.com, the comparison and switching service. The number of households in debt to their supplier has risen by…
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Ofwat has announced the appointment of David Black as its permanent Chief Executive Officer (CEO), following an open recruitment process. Black joined Ofwat in 2012 and was previously Chief Regulation Officer and Board member responsible for leading the PR19 price review. Throughout his time at Ofwat he has been instrumental in shaping and leading the…
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Household saving is expected to fall by 71% year-on-year to an average of £26 a week in the second quarter of 2022, as inflationary pressures drastically reduce families’ ability to save. A new study by Scottish Friendly and the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr) estimates households would need to earn an extra £80…
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The new level of state pension payments which has come into effect today will see the full new state pension rise to £185.15 from £179.60 a week. The basic state pension full amount has risen from £137.60 to £141.85 – a rise of 3.1%, compared with a current inflation rate of 6.2%. That’s an extra…
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Customer service standards in the energy sector plummeted in the final quarter of 2021, with even the best-performing suppliers scoring less than four out of five stars. Citizens Advice’s latest star ratings table, which covers Q4 2021indicates that customer service in the energy sector is the worst it has been on average since 2017. The…
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The Government has launched a wide-ranging £375 million package of support for innovative energy technologies that will power British homes and businesses for decades to come and further strengthen the nation’s energy security. The strategy includes £240 million to support the production of hydrogen as a clean, low-cost energy technology, £2.5 million of funding to…
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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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The number of English households in ‘fuel stress’ will double from 2.5 to 5 million as a result of the price cap rising from today (Friday), with another 2.5 million households at risk in October if the price cap rises again to £2,500, according to new Resolution Foundation research. The research shows that low-income households…
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Energy providers could receive up to £2.4 billion for taking on the customers of firms that have collapsed since 2021 according to written evidence given to the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee by industry regulator Ofgem. The Committee published the figures as part of its inquiry into energy pricing and the future of the…
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New research published by Citizens Advice has predicted that £145-a-month hikes to energy costs in October could mean one in four adults, equivalent to 14.5 million people, will be unable to afford their bills. The figure is up from around five million saying they already can’t afford April’s price increase of £60-a-month. The charity included…
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Ecospend has announced a partnership with Anglian Water where it will begin processing customer payments using open banking technology. Pay-by-bank technology will enable Anglian Water to receive instant account to account payments, which will reduce the utility provider’s processing costs. The partnership will also enable a range of new payment functionalities for Anglian Water customers…
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Charity, Age UK has joined the call for the Chancellor to do more to help older people through the energy price crisis. The charity says that nearly a quarter (24 per cent) of older households in England will be in fuel stress when energy prices go up from 1st April, this is up from just…
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