This is my annual review, looking at the major events of 2022 for the debt advice sector and with some thoughts about 2023. It concentrates on the bits I was most interested in. As it's aimed at debt advisors and people interested in debt policy, I haven't explained terms and acronyms they will all know. A year of interlinked crises Inflation One of the first articles I wrote in 2022 year … [Read more...]
General debt news & policy
Here are my articles on news and policy except for high cost credit and Insolvency, which are separate as there as so many of them.
The FCA consults on supporting mortgage borrowers
On 7 December 2022, the FCA issued a consultation on Guidance for firms supporting their existing mortgage borrowers impacted by the rising cost of living. FCA consultations are normally lengthy, but here the FCA said: To ensure we can act quickly to enable firms to help consumers, we are consulting on this guidance over the next 10 working days. This is the sort of short deadline the FCA … [Read more...]
BNPL is now often on credit records, but it’s ignored in credit scores
Klarna details will start to be added to TransUnion and Experian records from June 2022. TransUnion says: Incorporating this data into credit reports will support consumers that are using this type of point-of-sale finance, whilst also ensuring lenders have a comprehensive picture of a borrower’s financial position. But this year TransUnion will not be using the BNPL information when it … [Read more...]
Scarcity – why people in debt need a breathing space
Scarcity: Why having too little means so much by Sendhil Mullainathan and Eldar Shafir is a very interesting read for anyone interested in personal debt advice and policy in Britain. Scarcity doesn't just mean lack of money Having less than you need - scarcity - warps your decision making in similar ways whatever you are short of, whether that is money, or time, or if you are on a strict diet or … [Read more...]
2021 – the Debt Camel review of the year
This is my review of the major events of 2021 in the debt sector. It doesn't go into detail about what happened, it mainly looks at how well the year went in practice and why bits of it didn't go better... Inevitably it concentrates on the areas that most interested me! And my ratings are just a bit of fun. I'll divide them into groups: FCA-related; Insolvency Service-related; external … [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...]
Will the new Enforcement Conduct Authority bring bailiff reform?
In 2020, the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) brought together the debt advice sector and the bailiff industry to form the Enforcement Oversight Working Group. This group has co-authored a report called Taking Control for Good - introducing the Enforcement Conduct Authority, published on 25 July by the CSJ. In place of the current system of bailiff self-regulation, the report recommends the … [Read more...]
Chief Ombudsman Caroline Wayman resigns
Caroline Wayman, the Chief Ombudsman and CEO at the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has resigned, announcing on 10 March 2021 on LinkedIn that: After 22 years at the service and nearly 7 years as chief executive and chief ombudsman I am stepping down from the role. Her resignation comes the day after a highly critical article in the Daily Mail which pointed out: Fraud victims and cheated … [Read more...]
3 month car finance payment breaks because of Coronavirus
In April 2020, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA ) set out new rules for car finance lenders on how they should respond to customers who are affected by coronavirus. It followed the general "three-month payment breaks" approach used for other credit from mortgages to credit cards. In July, the FCA these rules were extended to allow for a first or second payment break to be taken up until … [Read more...]
FCA to look into unregulated credit such as Klarna & Wagestream
On 16 September, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) announced a review into unsecured credit market regulation. This will be chaired by Christopher Woolard, the outgoing interim Chief Executive, which suggests how seriously the FCA sees this subject. The FCA says: The Review will concentrate on how regulation can better support a healthy unsecured lending market. It will take into … [Read more...]