Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
New research from Citizens Advice has highlighted the potential impact of a cut to Universal Credit this October. The research of over 2,000 people on Universal Credit shows more than a third (38%) would be in debt after paying just their essential bills if their benefits drop by £20 a week. This is equivalent to…
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The Government Debt Management Function has launched a Vulnerability Toolkit which ensures ‘vulnerable’ citizens who are in debt to the public sector are handled with compassion and support by frontline staff. The new guidance will be accessible to government departments and public bodies, enabling them to identify and assist people whose physical or mental health…
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South East Water has announced that it has launched a data-sharing partnership with a Kent council to identify low-income customers and automatically transfer them to its social tariff. The project involves Maidstone Borough Council (MBC) sharing data with South East Water to identify householders on low income who are eligible for a social tariff. This…
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Latest monthly figures from the Insolvency Service have indicated that personal insolvency numbers across England & Wales fell by 7.8% to 9,079 in July 2021 compared to June’s figure of 9,848, and were 23.8% higher than July 2020’s figure of 7,335. There 620 bankruptcies were registered, which was 34% lower than July 2020 and 58%…
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The Government is been warned about the impact of benefit cuts and their knock-on impact on renters. Bodies such as Nationwide, the Mortgage Works, Crisis, the Big Issue, the NRLA and StepChange, have urged the Government to reverse the decision to freeze local housing allowance and cut the temporary £20-a-week rise to universal credit. The…
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The TUC is calling on the government to establish a permanent short-time working scheme as ‘a post-pandemic legacy’ to help protect working people through periods of future economic change. The trad reunion says the furlough scheme, while far from perfect, is one of the major successes of government policy during the pandemic, protecting millions of…
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Over two in five vulnerable customers feel that they have been unfairly treated by organisations in the last 12 months according to new research Vulnerability Registration Service (VRS), The findings in the research suggest that 17.7 million consumers consider themselves vulnerable with 34% of the UK population, with 13.1 million (25%) people saying they have…
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Energy regulator Ofgem has announced that the energy price cap will increase from 1st October for the 15 million customers it protects. Those on default tariffs paying by direct debit will see an increase of £139 from £1,138 to £1277. Prepayment customers will see an increase of £153 from £1,156 to £1309. The regulator says…
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Over a quarter (27%) of household bill-payers say an increase of more than £10 a month in their energy bills could force them into debt. The research by USwitch.com is just days ahead of an expected hike in the price cap which will be announced by the energy regulator, Ofgem, which is due to announce…
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The number of debt judgments registered against Northern Ireland consumers in the first half of 2021 (H1 2021) was 1,678, a fall of nearly 12 per cent from the 1,900 in the same period last year, according to figures released by Registry Trust. But, the total value of judgment debt owed by consumers rose by…
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Here is an overview of The Money Charity’s latest statistics for July 2021 Personal debt in the UK People in the UK owed £1,721.3 billion at the end of May 2021. The average total debt per household, including mortgages, was £61,933 and per adult was £32,544, around 108.7% of average earnings. Net mortgage lending rose by…
Read moreNearly one in three people are retiring in debt this year with an average £20,650 to pay off, new research by equity release adviser Key, has indicated. People expecting to retire this year are facing debts around a fifth higher than those who finished work last year the study shows – although the number of…
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A new report from the Centre for Social Justice has unveiled a partnership between bailiff firms and debt advice charities to help people in ‘severe’ debt, which is a third higher than before the pandemic began, The bold plans to strengthen protections for households facing a post-pandemic tidal wave of debt have been brokered by…
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