Finance News

• Subscribe to feed 
•  

• Bank of England keep interest rates on hold…again!
  
  

  In an increasingly familiar tale, The Bank of England has kept interest rates on hold again for the 12th successive month. Economists anticipated the decision to keep the base rate of interest at the historic low level of 0.5%, as it was widely expected to maintain its record low to aid the struggling economic recovery. There were no [...]

  
  
  
• Ministry of Justice investigates “misleading” claims management company
  
  

  Another claims management company, Cartel Client Review, are being investigated by the Ministry of Justice, following reports that their advertised debt management claims are misleading. The company’s alleged misleading claims were highlighted following an investigation by the BBC’s Money Box programme, where it was reported that customers who had paid hundreds or thousands of pounds to [...]

  
  
  
• Repossessions and debt problems will loom for years
  
  

  Repossessions and debt problems could be around for many years to come, as more homeowners struggle to come to terms with their mounting debts and rising unemployment, according to a new report. A study by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), expects that repossessions will rise to around 53,000 in 2010 – up 15 per cent [...]

  
  
  
• Millions with credit card debts risk debt management problems as interest soars
  
  

  Millions of credit card holders risk developing serious debt problems as interest soars to the highest rate in decades, according to a latest study. Even though the Bank of England’s base rate of interest stands at a historic low of 0.5 per cent, people with credit card debts are being put at risk by average interest [...]

  
  
  
• Risk of debt problems rise as heating bills soar by 20%
  
  

  The coldest winter for 30 years has meant that many homeowners now face the increased risk of developing debt problems, as their heating bills have soared by around 20 per cent. Despite wholesale drops in the price of gas, many energy companies have not passed on these savings to customers and have instead raised prices to [...]

  
  
  
• Credit card debts up as consumer demand rises
  
  

  For the first time since June last year, the demand for credit cards, overdrafts and personal loans was more than the amount being repaid by UK consumers. Bank of England figures showed that in December, the demand for consumer credit was up by £52m, driven predominantly by borrowing on credit cards. Whilst the interest rates have been [...]

  
  
  
• 100,000 families face debt problems by loan sharks
  
  

  Over 100,000 of the poorest families in the UK borrowed from an illegal loan shark to fund Christmas and will now be saddled with debt management issues as they struggle to repay the extortionate interest rates levied. Think tank the Financial Inclusion Centre authored the report, which was commissioned by affordable housing provider Circle Anglia, after [...]

  
  
  
• Debt problem risk for million mortgages paid with credit card debt
  
  

  Around a million mortgage and rent payments have been made using credit card debt according to housing charity Shelter’s research. The study worryingly found that almost 6% of homes had strugged with their debt management and had needed to resort to using a credit card to pay for their rent or mortgage over the last year. Housing [...]

  
  
  
• Public sector cuts in 2010 with unemployment and debt problems rising
  
  

  Experts predict that public sector budgets will be cut and that the rate of unemployment will continue to rise throughout 2010, resulting in further debt problems for those affected.   According to a report by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), unemployment will carry on increasing for the first few months of the New Year, [...]

  
  
  
• Britain’s kindest Granny?
  
  

  Is 90-year-old Edith Abbey the kindest Grandmother in Britain? : She is reported to have spent over £800 to buy gifts for all 200 members of her family. If your Christmas shopping seems to have been an endless task this year, imagine how it was for her. The generous grandmother ignores her advancing years and prides herself on carefully selecting individual [...]