Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
The latest Property Tracker report from the Building Societies Association (BSA) shows a significant reduction in the number of homeowners concerned about paying their mortgage along with a decrease in those that see mortgage affordability as a barrier to home buying. The BSA says that the data is a welcome change, most likely reflecting the reduction in…
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A third of adults have less than £500 saved for emergencies, leaving them heavily exposed to income shocks, according to a nationally representative survey of 8,000 UK adults from Lowell. Nearly half (46%) of UK adults saw their financial situation worsen in 2023 and nearly 70% do not expect their financial situation to improve in…
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New figures released today by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that consumer finance new business grew in January 2024 by 2% compared with the same month in 2023. In the twelve months to January 2024, new business was 2% lower than in the same period in 2023. The credit card and personal loans…
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New figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that consumer car finance new business volumes fell in January 2024 by 3% compared with the same month in 2023. The corresponding value of new business also fell by 3% over the same period. In the twelve months to January 2024, new business by…
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Women who have been rejected for a credit or loan application are significantly more likely than men to assume that “no means never” and struggle on without financial support, according to research by Fair4All Finance, the not-for-profit financial inclusion organisation. Polling of 3,101 adults across the UK showed more than one in three women (36%)…
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The average quoted price of home insurance rose by 40.6% in the 12 months to January, the highest annual increase since Consumer Intelligence began tracking prices in 2014. The rise in quoted premiums beats the previous all-time high increases of 36.1% and 25.7% set in the previous two quarters. Premiums have most commonly been quoted…
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Almost one in five first-time buyers (FTB) are now stretching their mortgage repayments over 35 years, according to new figures from UK Finance. The figures are up from 17% a year ago and 9% before the Bank of England started raising interest rates. Banks have raised concerns about the growing risks posed by longer mortgages,…
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As consumers continue to navigate cost-of-living pressures, new research shows that younger age groups face significant barriers when it comes to accessing credit according to a survey of 1,000 UK borrowers by Tink. The research found that over three quarters (78%) of 18-34 year olds have had a loan application rejected. When asked why they’d…
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Latest data from the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has found that credit card complaints reached a record high in Quarter 4 2023, with consumers lodging 5,660 complaints. 3,086 of credit card complaints were due to unaffordable or irresponsible lending. The figures marks the highest level of complaints in a three-month period since 2014/15. Other products…
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Latest data from the Bank of England has shown that consumer credit rose more than expected to £1.9 billion in January, up 8.9% from £1.3 billion on the previous month, adding to signs of a revival in spending. The data also shows a rise in mortgage approvals, rising to their highest level for 15 months…
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Consumer confidence in the UK has fallen for the first time since October, as recession concerns and economic uncertainty took their toll. The GfK survey revealed a drop in confidence to minus 21 points in February, from minus 19 points in the previous month, reflecting a deterioration in confidence about the health of the economy…
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Latest figures from UK Finance has found that the number of retired people with mortgages has decreased by 30.56% in the past year. The data showed that there were 29,060 new mortgages taken out by older borrowers (over 55) in the last three months of 2023 – down 37.1% in a year. The value of…
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New figures by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that consumer finance new business in December 2023 fell by 2% compared with the same month in 2022. In 2023 as a whole, new business was also 2% lower than in 2022. The credit card and personal loans sectors together reported new business up by…
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