Electricity distribution network operator pays £14.9m after failing vulnerable customers

4th May 2022 News |

Western Power Distribution (WPD), the largest electricity distribution network operator in the UK, has agreed to make a voluntary redress payment of £14.9 million after accepting it failed to meet its obligations to provide information to some of its most vulnerable customers. Network companies are required to provide additional services to households in vulnerable circumstances who are…

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FCA announces senior appointments

4th May 2022 Appointments |

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has announced that it has recruited three experienced individuals to its senior leadership team. Mel Gunewardena will take up a Senior Advisor role at the FCA. Gunewardena is currently Chief Market Intelligence Officer at the Commodities and Futures Trading Commission based in Washington DC and a former Managing Director at…

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Moore Kingston Smith appoints Insolvency Partner

4th May 2022 Appointments |

Moore Kingston Smith has announced the appointment of Neil Mather as a Partner in the firm’s business recovery and insolvency team. Mather is a licensed insolvency practitioner with over 25 years’ experience in taking both local and cross-border appointments. He advises lenders, directors, creditors and shareholders across many industries. With particular experience in the insurance…

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One in three brokers say business lending market has returned to pre-pandemic levels

Nearly one in three (30%) brokers believe the UK SME lending market has returned to levels seen before the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic according to research by Iwoca. Whilst nearly another third (31%) believe the market will return within 6 months, based on the number of loan requests they had each month before the…

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Paylink Solutions makes two senior appointments

4th May 2022 Appointments | #appointments

Fintech, Paylink Solutions has expanded its senior team with a new Head of Operations and Head of Information Security appointments. Joe Clarke has been appointed Head of Operations and will be responsible for overseeing Paylink’s operations and IT services, managing key projects and delivering the performance management framework and new graduate scheme. Susan Rann, Paylink’s…

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Concerns raised over targets set for free debt advice sector

The Credit Services Association (CSA), the UK trade body for debt collection and debt purchase, has released a new report exploring the provision of debt advice for those facing financial difficulties and in need of support. The report entitled ‘Wide of the Mark? Assessing the Delivery & Value of Free-To-Client Debt Advice’ argues that consistent…

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Record number of company profit warnings

The number of profit warnings issued by UK-listed companies in the first quarter of 2022 increased 44% year-on-year with a record number of warnings citing rising costs as increased commodity and energy prices fuel inflation, according to the latest EY-Parthenon Profit Warnings report.  The report reveals that UK-listed companies issued 72 warnings in Q1 2022,…

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Poorer households suffering as competition markets wane

3rd May 2022 Arrears and Recoveries |

The cost of living crisis is being made worse for poorer households by waning competition in British markets according to new a report by Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) The CMA states that effective competition helps make sure shoppers and households get a fair deal when buying goods and services. This is especially important at…

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Credit card debt set to increase by £9bn as people borrow to survive the cost of living crisis

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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Personal insolvencies hit three year high

Latest statistics quarterly figures from the Insolvency Service for England & Wales have indicated that personal insolvencies numbers have reached their highest total number in over three years, since Q4 2018. The figures reveal that there were 32,305 (an increase of 16.8%) individuals entering either bankruptcy (1,679) a debt relief order or DRO (6,629) or…

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Insolvency and restructuring trade body appoints new President

3rd May 2022 Appointments | #appointments

Christina Fitzgerald from Edwin Coe LLP has been appointed the new President of insolvency and restructuring trade body R3. As President, Fitzgerald will work with the R3 senior management team to help shape R3’s direction, as well as supporting its day-to-day operations. Her main areas of focus for her year in office will be supporting…

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Northern Irish business and personal insolvencies figures increase

Latest quarterly statistics from the Insolvency Service have shown that Northern Irish business insolvencies increased by 273% whilst personal insolvency figures also rose slightly. The figures indicated that there were 56 company insolvencies in Northern Ireland in Quarter 1 2022 (Q1), nearly four times higher (an increase of 273%) than in the same quarter of…

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Money Statistics: April 2022

3rd May 2022 Arrears and Recoveries |

Here is an overview of The Money Charity’s latest statistics for Apri, 2022 Personal debt in the UK People in the UK owed £1,773.2 billion at the end of February 2022. The average total debt per household, including mortgages, was £63,803 and per adult was £33,526, around 107.9% of average earnings. Net mortgage lending rose by…

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