Third of landlords intend to sell this year

16th May 2023 Consumer Collections | #rents

Figures from the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) have indicated that about 35% of landlords are planning to sell a property this year, with many forced out of the market by rising mortgage costs, higher taxes and increased regulation. There are about 2.75m landlords in the UK, down 3.5% in the past year, research shows.…

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Council tax, energy, rent and other priority debts up 54% since 2018

New research from National Debtline, the free debt advice service run by the Money Advice Trust, has revealed that the average level of priority debt – including council tax, energy and rent arrears – held by callers has risen 54 percent since 2018, from £2,642 to £4,080.  The findings, based on a survey of National…

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Two-fifths of key workers have taken on a side hustle or overtime to make ends meet

3rd May 2023 Arrears and Recoveries |

Two-fifths (43%) of key workers in the UK have been forced to take on additional part-time work on top of their full time role, or work extra overtime shifts to make ends meet, new research from responsible lender, Creditspring, shows. The data shows significantly higher levels of financial vulnerability among key workers, with nearly half…

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Renters lose confidence in covering housing costs

Research from HSBC and housing charity Shelter has found that one in five people feel less confident than they did six months ago about being able to pay their rent or mortgage on time for the rest of the year. The survey of more than 2,100 adults across the UK shows that those in the…

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Consumers battle to manage credit card finances

Latest data from FICO on UK credit card trends has illustrated the financial balancing act many consumers are facing. Average card spend has increased month-on-month and year-on-year. Higher prices for day-to-day purchases will be reflected in this increase. UK consumers are also paying off less of their outstanding balance, indicating the squeeze on personal budgets.…

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Food bank charity reports record take-up of hardship support

New figures released by the Trussell Trust have revealed that almost 3 million (2,986,203) emergency food parcels were provided to people facing hardship between April 2022 and March 2023, with more than a million of these parcels provided for children. This is the most parcels food banks in the charity’s UK-wide network have ever distributed…

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Prepayment energy meter customers urged to claim £160m bill support

26th April 2023 Consumer Collections |

Households on traditional prepayment meters are being urged by the Government to redeem their energy bill support vouchers, with £160 million remaining to be claimed. Prepayment meter customers have so far claimed £620 million under the government’s Energy Bills Support Scheme (EBSS). New figures show that more than £780 million in EBSS vouchers have been…

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One in five people with a mental health problem are also in debt

Money and mental health are strongly linked, with a report from the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute showing one in five people (18%) living with a mental health problem are also in problem debt and are also 1.5 times as likely to struggle with bills and credit commitments. A report titled ‘Mental Health and…

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Cost of living crisis continues as a fifth go without heating

Latest ONS data has found that the cost of living crisis has seen as a fifth of households go without heating. The research found that around one in twenty adults (5%) reported that they had run out of food and couldn’t afford to buy more in the previous two weeks amd that almost half (49%)…

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Almost one in four consumers are financially vulnerable

New research from Tink has found that almost one in four (23%) consumers are ‘financially vulnerable’, with the majority (56%) expecting their situation to get worse over the next 12 months. The research also found that 56% say the situation will worsen as they expect their discretionary income to fall over the next 12 months.…

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Third of homeowners struggling with mortgage cost increases

Nearly a third of homeowners (30%) are struggling to cover the increased cost of borrowing having seen the monthly cost of their mortgage increase by hundreds of pounds a month following interest rate rises, according to new research by Barrows and Forrester. The survey of 2,304 current homeowners with a mortgage found that 57% have…

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Government announces new council to drive forward savings for household bills

18th April 2023 Arrears and Recoveries |

A new Smart Data Council has been set up to help lower bills for consumers and small firms by making it easier to switch utility providers, the Department for Business and Trade has announced. The loyalty penalty, the difference between what loyal and new consumers pay for the same service, currently sits at £1,114 a…

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Ofgem reveals new oversight measures for energy companies

Energy regulator Ofgem has revealed that British domestic energy suppliers have signed up to an updated Code of Practice and tougher Ofgem oversight of prepayment meters (PPMs) that are enforced under warrant installations or remotely switched without consent (all involuntary installations). The Code of Practice sets out clear procedures that suppliers must follow, strengthening protections…

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