Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
New figures released today by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that consumer finance new business grew by 19% in March 2022 compared with the same month in 2021. In Q1 2022 overall, new business was 34% higher than in the same quarter in 2021. The credit card and personal loan sectors together reported…
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New figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that the consumer car finance market reported new business volumes up in March 2022 by 2% compared with the same month in 2021. The corresponding value of new business grew by 8% over the same period. In Q1 2022 as a whole, new business…
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The Financial Policy Committee (FPC) has announced a proposal to withdraw its mortgage affordability recommendation. The current requirement requires mortgage lenders to assess affordability by applying an interest rate stress test to determine whether borrowers could still afford their mortgage payments if their mortgage rate were to increase by three per cent. In a statement,…
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Data covering quoted household interest rates on consumer credit products released by the Bank of England has revealed the rising cost of borrowing for UK households according to analysis by Freedom Finance. With the Bank hiking interest rates by 0.25% last Thursday and inflation expected to show a climb yet again for April, the data…
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New research by Hargreaves Lansdown says that one in ten use Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) to pay for essentials whilst a further one in four would consider using it. The research also found that one in three people have either used Buy Now Pay Later to buy things like furniture, technology and white goods,…
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Analysis of Bank of England data by Mazars shows UK households are currently paying £18.3 billion annually in interest payments on floating rate debt that are likely to be immediately impacted by an interest rate rise. Thi includes floating-rate mortgages, credit card debt and other unsecured personal lending. Consumers will be hit by further rises…
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is warning lenders and brokers to stop using misleading terms in their advertising or face regulatory action. The FCA says that the increased cost of living means that more people may take out loans. Marketing that does not give clear information and warnings about the potential consequences of borrowing puts…
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The Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee has raised rates to 1%, the highest in 13 years. The Bank also warned that the cost of living crisis could push the economy into recession this year. The Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted to raise the base rate from 0.75% to 1%. Three of the nine-strong…
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Latest figures from the Bank of England (BOE) have revealed that consumers borrowed an additional £1.3 billion in consumer credit in March, of which £800 million was new lending on credit cards, taking total credit card borrowing in the first three months of this year to £2 billion. The figures show credit card borrowing was…
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Buy now, pay later (BNPL) specialist, Klarna has announced that it will start reporting UK customer debts to credit agencies for the first time next month, in a move that could affect shoppers’ credit ratings from 2023. The move is understood to be the result of two years of talks with the credit reference companies…
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New research by TotallyMoney has found that 2 million mortgage borrowers could face an average payment increase of over £1,000 per year. The research found that a 1% Bank of England (BoE) interest rate rise would increase mortgage payments by £99 per month or £1,188 per year for a 75% LTV mortgage on the average…
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The UK is set to borrow an additional £9bn on credit cards over the next six months to survive the cost of living crisis, according to a new report by subscription lender Creditspring. According to the most recent Bank of England figures, UK individuals are currently borrowing £1.5bn every month on credit cards. This borrowing…
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Just over one in three UK adults may struggle to access credit from mainstream lenders, according to fresh data from PwC and TotallyMoney, an increase of 50% in just six years. The research also found that nearly nine million more at risk of falling into this category – meaning half of the population in total,…
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