On 29 November 2021, Amigo published its results for the six months ended 30 September 2021. Amigo's first Scheme of Arrangement was rejected by the Court in May. Since then, Amigo has been trying to come up with a new Scheme that is fairer to the customers given unaffordable loans. Amigo says: "the proposed contribution to the new Scheme will be significantly increased from that of the … [Read more...]
Debt news – 28 November 2021
My pick of last week's news is Council tax collection inquiry. Debt advice Our appeal to Caroline Siarkiewizc, Chief Executive of the Money and Pensions Service We Are Debt Advisers: We are writing to alert you to the hugely damaging impact of the current procurement exercise on debt advice provision and to ask that you now extend the current grant contracts in order to avoid a complete … [Read more...]
Can I get a mortgage with recent defaults?
A reader, Mr D, asked: My partner and I have a combined income of £56,000, We have a deposit of £28,000 (inheritance) and are looking to become first time buyers at a price of £230,000. We have defaulted debts that are being paid off, and previous history of payday loans from over 2 years ago from a time when our financial situation was much more difficult. The defaults are about 18 months … [Read more...]
Debt news – 21 November 2021
In a very busy week for news, my top picks are the FCA's bold proposed ban on debt packager referral fees to protect consumers and the interesting analysis in Visa hits back at Amazon over claims its fees are too high (unfortunately behind a paywall). And for an article on future ambitions: UK Klarna boss: Our crosshairs are set on the real British banks. Debt advice System Error? The … [Read more...]
QuickQuid administration – may pay 30p-50p in the £ in March 22
UPDATES The November administrators report says they may pay out between 30p and 50p in the £ for upheld claims. The average claim value is c £1,700. In rough numbers, someone with a claim value at the average is likely to receive a payout of between £500 and £850. The exact payouts will not be known until March 2022. The payouts themselves maybe a few weeks after the amounts are … [Read more...]
ClearScore adopts the new Equifax credit scoring out of 1000
In mid November 2021, ClearScore has finally adopted the new 1000 Equifax credit scores. Equifax credit scoring changed in April 2021, when it switched to calculating scores out of 1000 - they used to be calculated out of 700. It also changed the bands used to describe your credit rating. Equifax didn't make an announcement about these changes. The Equifax Credit Report & Score was … [Read more...]
Plum – an app that makes it simple and painless to save
Should you have money left each month but it just seems to vanish? If you are paying off debts, you may still want to put a bit aside so it's easier to cope with unexpected problems. This article looks at Plum Basic, an app that take the hard work out of saving. It moves small amounts that you won't miss from your bank account into a savings account several times a month. Originally this … [Read more...]
Debt news – 14 November 2021
My two picks of last week's news are the Money and Mental health Policy Institute's new short report Lifting the tax burden: Supporting people with mental health problems with council tax and the Rights Net article Government publishes ‘final guidance’ on the Household Support Fund for councils in England. Tweet of the week I'm really sorry, but you can't say that £82000 is too little to … [Read more...]
Buddy Loans administration – no money for cash refunds
Advancis Ltd, trading as Buddy Loans, went into administration on 7 September 2021. Buddy Loans was a small guarantor lender. Its loans were typical of the UK guarantor market - between £1,000 and £10,000 lent on a 1-5 year term at a 49.9% APR. The FCA describes these loans as "high cost". Buddy's slogan was: If you've got a good BUDDY, you can get a loan!" Advancis's last available … [Read more...]
Debt News – 7 November 2021
My pick of last week's news is Spending on debt repayments jumps amid concerns over rising living costs. Debt news Lots of rumours in the debt advice sector this week about redundancies, mainly in face to face advice, because of the MaPS recommissioning process. If you are a debt adviser and you want to keep in touch, sign up to the We Are Debt Advisers mailing list. If you are on Twitter, … [Read more...]
Maxed out credit cards & only able to pay the minimum
"I have three credit cards, all maxed out. I am only paying the minimum amounts each month as I can't afford more. What are my options as this will take forever and cost a lot in interest?" A lot of people may be in a similar situation. If your credit cards are all at their limit but you have no spare money to reduce this, your options depend on how good the rest of your finances are. This … [Read more...]
Debt news – 31 October 2021
What would your pick be this week? Duke’s daughter cites ‘cashflow issues’ to get speeding fine halved to £50 or Food banks see demand soar in wake of ‘nightmare’ universal credit cut ? My choice is the good news story: Ofcom asks phone networks to block foreign scam calls. Tweet of the week 2 debt advice referrals, both in IVAs, both struggling financially, both social housing … [Read more...]
Gambling – get refunds from loans, credit cards & overdrafts
Many people with a gambling problem have been given unaffordable credit. This fueled their gambling and they got deeper into debt. Credit is affordable if you can repay it and still pay your other debts, bills and expenses. If it is unaffordable, then you can ask for a refund of interest and charges and take a complaint the lender declines to the Financial Ombudsman (FOS). But gambling … [Read more...]
What happens to your possessions in bankruptcy?
The bankruptcy application says "It is very unlikely that items you need for your daily life (eg washing machine, sofa, refrigerator) will be sold". Here are a selection of questions here that people have asked about what may happen to the things they own if in bankrupty. I may not have mentioned your exact situation, but the answers here try explain how the Official Receiver makes … [Read more...]
Debt news – 24 October 2021
My pick of last week's news is the BNPL news - Klarna's new Pay now option and the Treasury at lasts consults on regulation. Debt news Debt Advice: Fears over the future of free debt advice BBC: There is growing concern that free, face-to-face advice which helps hundreds of thousands out of debt each year could be cut. Response to MaPS call for evidence on access to debt advice … [Read more...]
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