Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
Households will have suffered a £2,400 financial hit, on average, from the Iran war by the end of 2027 according to new analysis by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) calculating that there has been jump in inflation since the conflict began, and weaker wage growth, will knock £1,100 off the real income…
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Rents are expected to more than double over the next 20 years, taking the total cost of renting in retirement to around £419,000, according to new analysis from Standard Life. This is set to place significant pressure on retirement incomes, with renters facing materially higher financial requirements than those who own their homes outright. The analysis…
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New research from StepChange Debt Charity has revealed growing concern about household finances, with millions of people worried about how they will cope as energy costs are expected to rise ahead of winter. The data shows that two in five (41%) British adults, equivalent to around 22 million people, expect their finances to worsen over…
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Energy regulator Ofgem has announced a 4% increase in the energy price cap for the period covering 1st October to 31st December 2026. The energy price cap protects around 22 million households on default tariffs by limiting the maximum rates and standing charges that energy suppliers can charge. It is updated every three months to…
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Latest figures from Energy UK show that domestic customer energy debt is likely to have hit a record £6 billion in the first half of this year and – with the price cap for October expected to be at a three year high which see energy debt reach £7 billion by the end of 2026. Energy UK had already warned about the growing debt problem earlier this year in a report, which revealed that the…
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Energy bills are forecast to rise by 4% from October, according to Cornwall Insight’s final forecast for the Default Tariff Cap (price cap). On a unit-for-unit basis, this would see bills rise to their highest level since July 2023. Under Ofgem’s new definition of a typical consumer introduced in July 2026, the annual cap is…
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Millions of working households could see their finances unravel far sooner than they realise, according to new analysis from Royal London, which warns that the UK’s financial resilience remains worryingly weak despite signs of recovery from the cost-of-living crisis. The report found that the average UK adult scores just 33% on its Financial Resilience Barometer,…
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Latest data from UK Finance has found that residential and buy-to-let mortgage arrears and possessions fell in Q2 2026. A total of 1,150 homeowner mortgaged properties were taken into possession, an 8% fall from the previous quarter and a 14% decrease compared with the same period a year earlier. There were 630 buy-to-let mortgaged properties…
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Prime Minister Andy Burnham has outlined a series of measures to tackle the cost-of-living challenges. The plan includes a ban on fake discounts and making it easier for people to opt out of unwanted subscriptions. Responding to the plans, Dame Clare Moriarty, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice, said “For too long consumers have been tricked…
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Middle income earners are increasingly falling into financial precarity, according to a report by lender Plend and investment specialist Triple Point, with 40% of those unable to cover a sudden £300 bill, the Financial Conduct Authority’s own benchmark for financial resilience, now earning above the national median salary. A third of UK adults (35%) are…
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New polling from StepChange Debt Charity reveals that almost one in six (15%) of adults, equivalent to more than 8 million people, find keeping up with their credit card repayments a very or fairly large burden each month, highlighting the growing challenge of credit card debt across the UK. The research, conducted by YouGov on…
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Holiday childcare costs across Great Britain have risen by 5% in the last year, leaving working parents facing an average bill of £191 per child per week – or £1,145 for the six-week summer holiday according to Coram Family and Childcare research. The survey finds that holiday childcare continues to cost almost three times as much as after-school childcare during…
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Thousands of people in financial crisis will get faster access to the help they need, thanks to a £900,000 technology boost to speed up debt relief order (DRO) applications. The new technology will allow debt advisers to send DRO cases directly to the Insolvency Service portal. The move will make the DRO application process more…
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