Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
February saw a spike in remortgaging activity as borrowers sought to beat interest rate rises, according to new research from Legal & General Mortgage Club’s SmartrCriteria tool. Searches for homeowners wanting to remortgage after just 6 months climbed by 30%, suggesting that rises in the Bank of England’s base rate to curb inflation could be…
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The Government has launched a wide-ranging £375 million package of support for innovative energy technologies that will power British homes and businesses for decades to come and further strengthen the nation’s energy security. The strategy includes £240 million to support the production of hydrogen as a clean, low-cost energy technology, £2.5 million of funding to…
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More than a third of customers (34%) struggle to pay bills fairly frequently, yet only 4% of billcpayers reported receiving financial help from their water company over the past year according to research by Ofwat and CCW. The research also highlighted that engagement with water companies was found to be fairly low, with 44% of…
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Retiring during a pandemic is unlikely to be easy but 2021’s retirees are still financially supporting their family to the tune of £3,700 a year, new research from Key Later Life Finance – the UK’s leading advice firm in this sector – shows. Despite the increasing strain on finances, more than a third of the…
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has launched a new strategy to improve outcomes for consumers and in markets throughout the UK. The FCA says as its remit is broad and growing, the three-year strategy prioritises resources to prevent serious harm, set higher standards and promote competition. The regulator will also, for the first time, hold itself…
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New research from Novuna Business Finance suggests a mixed picture of optimism and caution amongst small business’ plans for the next three months. A poll of over 1,000 small business owners and senior decision-makers showed that two thirds (67%) of businesses could point to specific plans to try and achieve business growth in the next…
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StepChange Debt Charity’s 2021 Statistics Yearbook, has shown that even before the latest rise in general inflation and the rise in the energy price cap, households in the UK experiencing problem debt were already facing a cost of living crisis. In 2021, StepChange was contacted by almost half a million (483,247) new clients seeking debt…
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Credit Connect’s hosted its third Online Lending Technology Think Tank last week which saw lending strategies and the future of the sector discussed by ten leading professionals from a variety of lending sectors. The event was attended by over a hundred lending professionals from banks, credit card providers building societies, loan providers, credit unions and…
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Mainstream lenders are surrendering people into the hands of illegal loan sharks as many victims try to access credit from legal, regulated sources with the vast majority see their applications rejected leaving them nowhere to turn except predatory illegal lenders according to research by Freedom Finance. Freedom Finance analysis of the CSJ’s dataset of 1,200…
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Equifax has announced that it is expanding its partnership with Canopy, the rental platform focused on fixing pain points for renters and supporting them to improve their financial health, to make it even easier for consumers to boost and track their credit score. The developments will mean tenants using the Canopy RentTracking platform to report…
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More than half a million people are working at small companies which are at heightened risk of insolvency, according to analysis by Quantuma using Clarity’s proprietary insolvency propensity model. Companies faced with late payments, rising prices, higher taxes, the fallout from Brexit and pandemic-related staff shortages, around 6,500 SMEs are at higher than average risk…
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Small businesses are under increasing pressure, with delays in payments and staff shortages on the rise, according to research by accountancy software firm Xero. The data reveals that late payment times continue to surge. In February, small businesses had to wait an average of 30.5 days to be paid by their customers from when an…
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With social security payments now lagging far behind inflation, researchers at IPPR warn that the cost of living crisis will push many vulnerable benefit claimants into hardship and destitution, without a serious boost to benefit payments and an end to inappropriate conditions and excessively punitive sanctions that limit payments. After a pandemic induced drop-off, new…
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