Royal Sun Alliance has announced that it plans to cut 1,200 jobs, in the UK, by next summer. Royal Sun Alliance is Britain’s largest insurance company, employing nearly 9,000 people in Manchester, Liverpool, Halifax, Sunderland and Horsham. News of the proposed job cuts has come as a surprise since RSA declared a pre-tax profit of [...]
February, 2009
Data Theft USA
We are constantly reminded of the seriousness of Data Protection in the field of debt management and IVA advice and of the dire consequences that could occur through ‘misplaced’ data and identity fraud so, as you can imagine, I was somewhat shocked to hear that a study of 945 adults who were fired, laid off [...]
Train Companies Denied
The government has turned down a request, for increasing fares, from UK train companies. At the moment, fare increases are linked to a formula that was introduced by the conservatives some time ago, that allows fare increases of 1% above inflation. The train companies are worried that, should deflation occur, they would actually have to [...]
Jack Straw’s castle breached
As if to demonstrate the effects of identity theft, UK Justice Secretary unknowingly had his computer hacked into by Nigerian fraudsters who sent messages to his friends asking for money. The computer’s security was breached by Nigerian hackers, who managed to send out hundreds of emails in Mr Straw’s name requesting cash to help him [...]
Pawnbroker’s profits up as consumers stave off debts
With the credit crunch tightening its grip on available loans, more consumers are having to find alternative ways of raising cash after being rejected by their banks and building societies. As a result, pawnbrokers and high street stores like Cash Converters are seeing higher numbers of customers entering their shops, in a desperate attempt to [...]
Debt advisers urge mortgage charges review
Debt advice organisations have criticised mortgage lenders for the administration fees charged to home owners who fall behind with their repayments. Many customers receive charges of between £20 and £50 each month that they are in arrears, which lenders say reflect the additional work involved and costs they incur as a result. Experts have warned [...]
Business Bargain Basement
One effect of the recession does appear to be the offloading of poor performing businesses that are heavily in debt for a very low nominal price. Here are a few examples of what is, or was, available in the Business Bargain Basement sponsored by The Credit Crunch. The Mallorca based airline, SpanAir, was reputedly sold [...]
Recession creates “lost generation”
The current recession may have long-lasting effects for the young according to some local authority leaders, who claim a “lost generation” of young people may not escape the long-term unemployment trap. A Local Government Association (LGA) investigation found that around a quarter (38,000 people) of the total of redundancies made between October and December were [...]
Government deals debt claims companies a blow
The Government has started an official crackdown on misleading adverts by claims management companies offering to wipe out unpaid loans and credit card debts. These companies wrongly entice consumers to try and wriggle-out of loans and credit card debt agreements through a “loophole” that they claim to be able to expose. The Ministry of Justice [...]
Lack of Judgement?
According to a report by BBC News in Madrid the judges in Spain are staging a one day strike because they are not happy with their working conditions. This has led to hundreds of trials shuddering to a grinding halt throughout Spain although ‘important trials’ are apparently not affected. (When I wonder what constitutes an [...]
