Balance transfer deals are less good than they used to be. 18 months ago you could have got a 43 month deal. Since then the trend has been down all the way - shorter 0% periods and often higher transfer fees as well. Now, in early December 2018, there are only 2 deals longer than 30 months - one 33 month deal and one 32 month deal. There is just one Why are the 0% offers now … [Read more...]
The best way to clear credit card debt is …
Here is a very common situation: I have £12,000 of debt on a couple of credit cards and a catalogue. Is a loan the best way to sort this out as soon as possible? It's not possible to answer that without a lot more details... but let's explore the options and see what makes some ways better for some people. Why do you want to do this? There are three main reasons: you are fed up with the … [Read more...]
Debt news – November 4
My pick of last week's news is the Treasury's consultation on Breathing Space and a Statutory Debt Repayment plan. Tweet of the week It is with great sadness I have resigned from one of the best jobs in Government. Thank you so much for all the very kind messages of support I have received throughout the day. Politicians come and go but principles stay with us forever. … [Read more...]
Cash Genie – administrators say not enough money to pay full refunds
On 2 November 2018, RSM wrote to creditors of Ariste Holdings, best known for its Cash Genie payday lender brand, saying that it was no longer solvent. As a result, customers expected a refund or compensation will no longer receive the full amount they are due. Background - Cash Genie was solvent when it stopped trading in 2016 In 2015 the FCA, which regulates payday lenders, ordered Cash Genie … [Read more...]
How the Wonga administrators will handle complaints & refunds- the Proposals
The Wonga Administrators sent a letter in late October to some of Wonga's creditors with their proposals to handle the administration. These include: background on the events before administration; how to decide the payday loan affordability complaints that have already been sent to Wonga; and how to encourage other customers to submit a complaint. These Proposals were agreed by a … [Read more...]
News snippets about high cost credit
This page brings together news items about various types of high-cost lending in Britain, including payday loans, guarantor loans, doorstep lending, logbook loans, rent to own and other forms of high-cost credit. The latest FCA High Cost Credit Review reports in June 2018 covered many of the different types of lending covered on this page (with the regrettable exceptions of guarantor loans and … [Read more...]
Wonga – Latest News on refunds (kept updated)
On 30 August, Wonga stopped lending and went into administration. At that date: there were over 200,000 people with current loans from Wonga - many of them may have a good case for the interest to be removed from their balance so they only repay what they borrowed; there were 24,000 affordability complaints awaiting a decision by Wonga and 9,500 complaints against Wonga with the Financial … [Read more...]
Letter from Wonga administrators – do you need to do anything?
The Wonga administrators sent a letter, with voting forms, last week to Wonga creditors. These creditors include some people who have made payday loan affordability complaints as they are owed money by Wonga. Customers who have commented on my Wonga Refunds - Latest news page have said things like It's very confusing or I can't make head or tail of it. And above all Do we need to do … [Read more...]
Debt news – October 28
My picks of last week's news - the Independent's Budget 2018 article and the BBC's Northern Rock article. Tweet of the week Watch single mum Thuto explain how she had to refuse her £32k/year "dream job" because "work didn't pay for us" under #UniversalCredit with just £2 a day left for food, bills after childcare costs that must be found up front 📺https://t.co/maVGLnWNPX @savechildrenuk … [Read more...]
How does a payment arrangement work & is one right for you?
A typical payment arrangement is an agreement to repay a credit card, catalogue or loan in affordable monthly amounts. This is also called an arrangement to pay. The key points are: an arrangement is needed if you can't afford the normal debt repayments; do not offer more than you can afford; ask the lender (or the debt collector) to freeze interest and not add any charges; it … [Read more...]
What to do if a creditor won’t freeze interest
If interest is frozen on your debts, you will be able to pay them off much more quickly. But what if a creditor refuses to do this? Or has been adding interest and charges for years, even though you are in a DMP or they know you are in financial difficulty? This article has template letters you can use to ask the creditor to change their mind and stop adding interest and charges. And to ask … [Read more...]
Debt news – October 21
My pick of last week's news is NatWest, is it right to evict a woman on housing benefit? Tweet of the week The @ONS announced today that UK inflation is 2.4%. There’s a freeze on most working-age benefits, so rising prices will effectively cut the benefits of around 10.4 million households by an average of £150 per year in 2019–20. This saves the Exchequer £1.6 billion. … [Read more...]
QuickQuid – misleading customers about loans over 6 years old
Mr X has received a reply from QuickQuid saying why it will not consider an affordability refund on payday loans that are more than six years old. This part of QuickQuid's reply isn't related to the details of Mr X's case. It looks like a standard response QuickQuid is sending everyone whose complaints include these older loans. I often see pretty poor replies from payday lenders to people … [Read more...]
Dear Payday Lender CEO – should you start a redress program?
On October 15, the FCA sent a Dear CEO letter entitled Affordability of High Cost Short Term (HCST) loans to payday lenders. This letter tells the lenders to review their affordability assessments. There are some very clear points about what the FCA expects a payday lender to do if it is not making good affordability assessments now or hasn't done in the past. "Chains of loans" over an … [Read more...]
Debt News – October 14
Lots of Universal credit and benefit related articles this week as campaigners hope to force improvements in the autumn budget. My two top picks: Universal credit: who gains, who loses, and how does transitional protection really work? and Universal Credit and patterns of earning. Tweet of the week The Chancellor has one last chance to end the benefit freeze in his Autumn Budget, says … [Read more...]
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