Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
Three men from London have been sentenced at Inner London Crown Court to a combined six years and nine months for using a SIM farm to send out masses of fraudulent texts and calls, conning victims out of an overall sum of £223,183.53. The sentencing follows an investigation and arrest by specialist banking industry sponsored…
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has announced that it has extended the time firms have to respond to complaints about motor finance agreements not involving a discretionary commission arrangement (DCA). Firms now have until after 4 December 2025 to provide a final response to non-DCA complaints, in line with the extension already provided for complaints involving DCAs.…
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The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has published its latest Consumer Prices Index, which shows the rate of inflation rose to 2.6 per cent in the 12 months to November. The announcement means that the inflation rate has increased for the second month in a row, rising at the fastest rate since March. Fuel and…
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Generous grandparents are planning to spend an average of £97 on each of their grandchildren this Christmas, according to the latest research from over 50s SunLife. The research found that one in seven said they planned to spend up to £30, and half up to £60, while 40% said they would spend more than £100…
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UK Finance has predicted that mortgage lending is set to rise by 11% in 2025 UK Finance says that with rate and cost pressures continuing to ease, the outlook for 2025 is for a gradual improvement in mortgage affordability, feeding into market growth. As interest rates tick down, we expect arrears to continue to fall,…
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The Government has voiced concern that local communities are at risk of losing access to banking services without specialised hubs. Speaking as she inaugurated the UK’s 100th banking hub in Lancashire, the Chancellor Rachel Reeves said “Without these banking hubs, towns are going to be banking deserts.” The Government plans to establish 350 hubs by…
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A third of the consumers expect the cost of borrowing (around 33%) of consumers say interest rates to climb over the next 12 months, according to the latest Bank of England inflation attitudes survey, this up from 29% in August the last time the poll was taken. The data also found that 45% of the…
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The Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) has published its final report of its market review into cross border interchange fees. The report finds that the high level of fees is harming businesses. The report found that throughout 2021 and 2022, Mastercard and Visa raised their cross-border interchange fees fivefold from 0.2% to 1.15% for debit cards…
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Consumer confidence is recovering from a dip caused by pre-budget anxieties, with the GfK index rising to -17 in December, following a three-point increase in November. Despite concerns over inflation due to rising prices from businesses, the data indicates a growing optimism among consumers regarding their finances and a willingness to spend. Neil Bellamy, Consumer…
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Car finance lenders have been granted permission by the Supreme Court to appeal a landmark ruling on motor finance commission payments that has left firms fearing a potential £30 billion compensation bill. The Court of Appeal ruled in October that paying ‘secret’ commission to car dealers – without disclosing the sum and terms of that…
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Hargreaves Lansdown has predicted that inflation is likely to rise slightly when figures are released next week. Inflation is also expected to remain above target for a while yet with investors putting the chances of a rate cut at just 12% next week. Susannah Streeter, Head of Money and Markets at Hargreaves Lansdown said “Inflation…
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New research by Citizens Advice has revealed that 2.6 million people don’t drive because they’re unable to afford the accelerating cost of car insurance. This includes almost 900,000 people who have had to cancel their cover in the last 12 months, in addition to 1.7m people who have already been priced out of the market…
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Identity fraud continues to grow and now costs the UK an estimated £1.8 billion each year. It is one of the most common case types filed to the Cifa sNational Fraud Database by its 750-plus industry members – accounting for 64% of all filings in 2023 with more than 237,000 identity fraud cases recorded. Industry…
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