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Keeping informed about your personal debt options and rights is important. See below for the latest news and views from the SDS team

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Debtors to Get 60 Days of ‘Breathing Space’ from Creditors

19th June 2019

People with serious debt problems across the UK will soon be given protections from their creditors for a period of 60 days if they engage with professional debt advisers and seek out long-term solutions to their financial issues. Plans to that effect have been announced by the government, with relevant laws on the subject due […]

1 in 6 Workers in Low-paid and Insecure Jobs, Researchers Say

12th June 2019

Roughly in one in six people in employment around the UK are in low-paid and insecure work, according to a new piece of research carried out by the Living Wage Foundation.

Government to Assess Impact of Universal Credit on Recipients in Scotland

11th June 2019

The UK government is to asses the impact that welfare policies including Universal Credit have had on people living in Scotland. The Scottish Affairs Committee in Westminster will focus specifically on how welfare reforms have been undertaken north of the border in recent years and look at how inequality differs in Scotland as compared to […]

Regulator Promises Overhaul of ‘Dysfunctional’ Overdrafts Market

10th June 2019

The financial services sector’s regulator has promised to introduce a variety of rule changes that are designed to better protect consumers who find themselves in debt and facing fees in relation to their bank or building society overdrafts. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has said it is aiming to radically overhaul what it considers to […]

New Grant Launched to Help Low-income Families with School Costs

4th June 2019

A new grant has been launched by the Scottish government with the aim of providing some financial assistance to low-income families with school-age children. Applications are now officially being accepted for ‘School Age Payments’, which will soon start being sent to eligible parents and given out as grants of £250 per child. The new benefit […]

Energy Firms Told to Do More for Their Vulnerable Customers

31st May 2019

Energy suppliers have been told by the authors of an independent report that they should be doing more to support their most vulnerable customers. The Commission for Customers in Vulnerable Circumstances has published an in-depth report looking at what energy companies and the wider industry should be doing to help people who struggle to pay […]

Credit Card Debt Warnings ‘Going Largely Ignored’

Communications designed to encourage people in long-term credit card debt to start dealing with their issues are going widely ignored across the country. People who have only been paying back minimal amounts to their credit card lenders for several years or more are being urged to enter repayment plans but the latest evidence suggests they’re […]

Scots Urged to Claim Whatever Benefits They’re Entitled To

Citizens Advice Scotland is urging people across the country to make sure they claim whatever state benefits they might be entitled to without delay and without any sense of embarrassment at having to do so. The charity is running a campaign called ‘For Your Benefit’, which is focussed on making clear to people that state […]

Debts ‘Not Considered Serious’ Until They Top £6,000

The average UK consumer would not consider their debts to be a “serious concern” until they were worth in excess of £6,000. That’s according to research carried out recently, which also established that the average Brit would hardly consider themselves to be indebted at all until they were at least £3,882 in the red. Meanwhile, […]

Free Consumer Advice Service Launched to Help Scots Look After Their Money

A new advisory service has been launched with the aim of providing useful help and practical support to consumers across Scotland. The online and phone-based service is designed to give sound advice on issues including how to get a better deal on your mobile phone package or from your internet provider. A charity called Advice […]

Complaints About Payday Lenders Up 130%

Complaints made about payday loan companies increased by as much as 130 per cent over the course of the last year as compared with the previous 12 months. That’s according to official figures on the subject released by the Financial Ombudsman, which has said that complaints about financial service companies in general increased sharply and […]

“Staggering” Levels of Child Poverty Recorded in Parts of Scotland

Levels of child poverty are on the rise in parts of Scotland and have been described as “staggering” by the director of the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG). The latest figures on the subject suggest that there are eight local authorities in which child poverty levels are above 25 per cent and some in which […]

Scottish Unemployment at Lowest Levels on Record

Rates of unemployment are at historically low levels in Scotland and they are lower here than in the UK as a whole. Jobless rates north of the border are being recorded at 3.2 per cent, with the number of people in employment having risen by 0.6 per cent between the fist three months of 2018 […]

Charity Wants Every Adult in Scotland to Get £2,400 a Year

Giving every adult in Scotland a sum of £2,400 per year as a form of ‘basic income’ could have the effect of largely eradicating destitution across the country. That’s according to the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufacturers and Commerce (RSA), which has published a new report on the subject. The charity wants […]

Scotland’s Bankruptcy and Trust Deed Numbers Up 20%

The total number of bankruptcy cases or entries into Protected Trust Deeds (PTDs) recorded across Scotland increased by more than 20 per cent last year. According to official figures from the Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB), the total number of personal insolvencies, which covers bankruptcy and PTDs, increased from 5,958 in the year 2017/18 to 7,917 […]

Edinburgh Needs Strict Rent Controls, says Poverty Taskforce Chairman

Edinburgh should introduce strict rent controls as part of an effort to tackle poverty and serious financial difficulty across the city. That’s according to Dr Jim McCormick, chairman of an organisation called the Edinburgh Poverty Commission, which was set up towards the end of last year. Dr McCormick cites high housing costs as being a […]

Food Banks Handing Out Emergency Parcels

Food Banks Handing Out Record Numbers of Emergency Parcels

Food banks operated by the Trussell Trust handed out more than 1.5 million emergency food parcels in the 12 months up to the end of March. That figure represents an unprecedented demand for emergency parcels as more and more people across the UK find themselves struggling so much for money that they rely on charity […]

New Laws Could Give Women and Girls in Scotland Free Access to Sanitary Products

A bill has been put forward at the Scottish parliament that would help ensure that women and girls across the country can access free sanitary products when they need them. The idea behind what could soon become official legislation is to make Scotland a leading example when it comes to tackling the issue of ‘period […]

46 Million Brits Potentially in Line for MasterCard Payout

As many as 46 million British adults could be in line for a payout from the financial services giant MasterCard after a tribunal ruled that a class action lawsuit could potentially be brought against the company. MasterCard is accused of imposing excessive card transaction charges in ways that resulted in additional fees being passed along […]

Over 300,000 Scottish Children in Families in Financial Peril

More than 300,000 Scottish children are living in households that are close to the edge from a financial perspective. That’s the assessment of the Scottish Labour party, which has looked at official figures indicating that there are in the region of 330,000 children in Scotland whose families don’t have access to £500 to cover emergency […]

700,000 Scots in or at Risk of Falling into Problem Debt

As many as 700,000 people across Scotland are believed to be already in or at serious risk of falling into problem debt. That’s according to the latest assessments of personal debt situations in Scotland by the debt help charity StepChange. The charity describes the growth in problem debt among Scots as being largely attributable to […]

Pay rise for nearly 2 million workers as UK living wage rises by 5%

Nearly 1.8 million people in the UK will receive a pay rise from April 1st, following a 4.9 per cent increase in the National Living Wage. The ‘National Minimum Wage’ which was rebranded as the National Living Wage in 2016 faces the highest increase since it was first introduced. Adult workers will receive a pay […]

Third of Brits ‘Do Not Feel in Control of Their Debts’

Almost a third of UK consumers say they don’t really feel in control of their debts and aren’t sure how they’ll ever pay them off. That’s according to research into issues around debt management carried out recently by the price comparison website KnowYourMoney. The company’s investigations also established that roughly a quarter of British adults […]

Too Many Scottish Men ‘Struggling Alone Rather Than Asking for Help’

Too many men living in all parts of Scotland are struggling with issues alone rather than reaching out for help and support from people who might be well placed to provide it. That’s according to research carried out recently by the Samaritans, which has found that 36 per cent of Scottish men aged between 20 […]

Parents Racking Up Debt to Cover Childcare Costs

Parents of young children around the UK are increasingly feeling the financial squeeze associated with paying for their little ones to be looked after by nurseries, childminders or nannies. For a growing number of people the situation is leading to mounting debt problems that could take a considerable amount of time and effort to overcome. […]

Credit Card Firms told to Do More for Customers in Problem Debt

Credit card companies have been told by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) that they need to do more to protect and support customers who are clearly facing problems in dealing with their debts. The FCA has said that credit card lenders are often continuing to apply fees and issue charges against people who repeatedly miss […]

Gambling Habits Turning into Debt Problems for Thousands of Students

Thousands of students at universities across the UK are developing gambling habits that risk plunging them into significant amounts of debt. That’s according to a survey carried out by the National Union of Students (NUS), which found that a majority (59 per cent) of students had gambled at some point during the past year. Just […]

Millions to Face Energy Bill Price Hikes from April

Several million consumers across the UK are in line for energy bill increases in the coming months, with British Gas and Scottish Power both intending to hike their prices from April 1st. The companies are two of the largest gas and electricity suppliers in the country and are planning their price rises in response to […]

Dealing with Debt Problems ‘Often a Marathon Not a Sprint’

The process of making your debt problems a thing of the past is often a marathon rather than a sprint. That’s according to the debt help charity StepChange, which has conducted a new piece of research focussed on finding out how long it takes people with debt problems to overcome them after they’ve reached out […]

Homelessness Applications in Scotland on the Rise

Official statistics show that local authorities around Scotland saw an increase in the number of applications for homelessness support last year. The figures relate to the six months prior to September 30th last year and show that applications increased by 2 per cent compared with the same period in 2017. A total of 18,486 people […]

Poorest Households Spending a Third on Debt Repayments

Poorest Households Spending a Third of Monthly Incomes on Debt Repayments

Impoverished households across the UK typically spend just over a third of their monthly income on debt repayments. That’s according to analysis done by Sky News, which has been delving into the details of the latest personal finance data to get a better picture of how debt is impacting people’s lives in different parts of […]

Scottish Government to Offer Parents £250 Grants as Children Start School

The Scottish government is set to open up applications for grants worth £250 to parents whose children are about to start school. Applications to ‘Best Start Grants’ for families with school age children will start being accepted from June 3rd 2019 and could soon be a significant financial help for thousands of parents around the […]

Business Lobby Calls for Vacant Shops to be Turned into Flats

A prominent business lobby in Scotland has called for shop units that have been unoccupied for long periods of time to be turned into residential flats. The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) included the idea with a series of suggestions it has put forward as ways to potentially revitalise town centres across Scotland. The organisation […]

Scots struggling over rising housing costs

Shelter Reports Rising Number of Scots Struggling to Cover Housing Costs

The homelessness charity Shelter Scotland is reporting a sharp rise in the number of people who are struggling to cover their monthly housing costs. In fact, the organisation has said that the number of Scots finding it difficult to make their mortgage or rental payments has increased by almost a third over the course of […]

Universal Credit Delays ‘Trapping People in Debt’

Delays to payments of Universal Credit are effectively trapping people in debt and making it extremely difficult for many thousands of Brits to get by. The charity group Christians Against Poverty (CAP) has highlighted some of the problems being faced by benefit claimants around the country and said that debts are an increasingly common part […]

Government Could Ban Use of Credit Cards for Gambling

The government is considering taking steps to prevent people across the UK from using their credit cards to gamble. The possibility has arisen after it was found that up to 20 per cent of deposits placed with some gambling companies were attributed to credit card payments and therefore to borrowed money. Relevant parties, including banking […]

Banks to Give Customers Option to Block Certain Types of Payments to Restrict Spending

Several of the UK’s foremost banks are planning to give their customers the option to block certain types of payment in order to help them gain greater control of their spending habits. Lloyds, RBS and Santander will join Barclays and the digital banking service Monzo in giving their customers tools that could be helpful in […]

Unsecured Debt Levels ‘Have Never Been Higher’

The average scale of unsecured debt held by households across the UK is now higher than ever before, according to analysis by the Trades Union Congress (TUC). According to the organisation’s assessment of official data, the average British household had £15,385 in debt in the final three months of 2018. The figures incorporate information on […]

Over 200 Scots Expected to Enter Insolvency Each Week in 2019

Scots are expected to be declared insolvent at a rate of around 230 per week over the course of the coming year. That’s according to assessments of the latest figures on the subject which paint a worrying picture of the personal finance and debt situations of a great many Scottish consumers. The number of personal […]

Scots Paying £11m Extra for their Christmas Deliveries

Scottish consumers are believed to be paying millions of pounds in surcharges in relation to deliveries made to them in the run up to Christmas. Moray’s MSP Richard Lochhead is campaigning for these charges to be levelled out after asking the Scottish Parliament Information Centre to investigate how much extra people in Scotland pay for […]

Study Highlights Links between Problem Debts and Suicide

People with problem debts are three times more likely to have considered suicide than those without those issues. That’s according to a study carried out recently on behalf of the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute, which has said that financial difficulties are taking a “devastating mental toll” on many thousands of adults across Britain. […]

Green Deal’ Scam Leaves Scots with Huge Debts

A rogue company is believed to have scammed hundreds of people across Scotland out of significant sums of money in the context of a ‘green energy’ scheme that was backed by the British government. The company is called Home Energy and Lifestyle Management Systems (Helms) and Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) has received well over a […]

320,000 People are Homeless Across Britain, Says Shelter

At least 320,000 people are homeless across England, Scotland and Wales, according to the latest figures compiled by Shelter. The homelessness charity says that there has been a 4 per cent increase in the number of people who don’t have their own home over the course of the last year. Most of the hundreds of […]

Scottish Parents Adding to Debt Problems by ‘Caving in to Kids’ Demands’

Large numbers of parents across Scotland are using borrowed money to make purchases demanded of them by their children. That’s according to new research which suggests that around 36 per cent of parents in Scotland have added to their debts after succumbing to what’s being referred to as ‘pester power’. Around a third of parents […]

1 in 3 Brits Keeping Debt Secrets from Their Other Halves

Close to one in three adults living in Britain are keeping details about the scale of their personal debts secret from their other halves. That’s according to a new piece of research published by the Money Advice Service (MAS), which is encouraging people across the country to open up more about the financial difficulties they’re […]

2.3 Million Brits Limiting Work Hours Due to Mental Health Problems

As many as 2.3 million adults living across the UK are limiting the amount of paid work they do because they’re dealing with mental health issues. For a sizable proportion of those people, cutting back on working hours in response to mental health concerns leads to severe financial hardship and serious problems with debt. The […]

Growing Number of Scots Applying for Emergency Welfare Funds

The number of applications for emergency welfare funding across Scotland is on the rise, according to the government’s latest official figures. More than 300,000 people have now been supported financially in some way by the Scottish Welfare Fund since it was first created in 2013. A total of £173 million has been paid out during […]

Debt Charities Welcome Government Focus on ‘Breathing Space’ and Interest-Free Loan Initiatives

Indebted Brits could soon be legally protected from their creditors for several weeks at a time and given the chance to borrow money on an interest-free basis. At least that’s if the government continues to move forward with ideas and initiatives currently being discussed with the aim of providing more support to people who find […]

Living Outside Big Cities Could Save Scots a Fortune, Say Bank Researchers

Living outside and commuting in and out of Glasgow or Edinburgh could save Scots many thousands of pounds in house price costs over the course of their working lives. That’s according to research looking into the subject carried out by the Bank of Scotland, which says significant savings can be made through buying a place […]

Admin Errors to See Thousands of Disability Benefit Claimants Paid an Average of £5,000

It’s been revealed that the government will pay out an average of £5,000 to claimants of disability benefits who had previously gone underpaid as a result of administrative errors within the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). The total number of people understood to have been affected and in line for some sort of payout […]

Problem Debtors Given Six Weeks of Protection from Creditors

New Laws Could Soon Give Problem Debtors Six Weeks of Protection from Creditors

Incoming laws are set to give people with problem debts across the UK a six-week ‘breathing space’ period during which they cannot legally be pursued by their creditors. Debtors would be encouraged to engage with relevant advisors and statutory debt repayment programmes during their periods of legal protection. According to a recent report in the […]

Council Tax and Energy Bills Causing Major Strife for Indebted Brits

Council taxes and energy bill arrears are among the two leading causes of debt problems across the UK, according to a new set of statistics on the subject. The debt help charity StepChange has analysed its own figures for the first half of 2018 and found that around a third of its new clients during […]

8% of Scots Worry About Running Out of Food Due to Lack of Money

As many as 8 per cent of adults living in Scotland worry about the prospect of running out of food and not having enough money to replace it, a newly published report has found. An official 2017 Scottish Health Survey asked questions about food insecurity for the first time and found that one in 10 […]

Shelter Scotland Declares ‘National Housing Emergency’

The homelessness charity Shelter Scotland has described the current situation around the country as being nothing less than a “national housing emergency”. Shelter’s latest impact report suggests that a household in Scotland is made homeless at an average rate of one every 18 minutes. The charity has revealed that its teams helped more than 21,000 […]

Scottish Pensioners ‘More Likely to Live in Poverty than Those Elsewhere in the UK’

Pensioners in Scotland are more likely to be living in poverty than their counterparts across the rest of the UK, according to a new set of figures. An in depth report from an organisation called the Social Metrics Commission has said that there are now close to 14.2 million people living in poverty across the […]

Debt Charity Welcomes Government’s ‘Help to Save’ Scheme

A leading debt help charity has welcomed the launch of a government scheme designed to encourage people on low incomes to set money aside on a regular basis and protect themselves against serious financial difficulty. The scheme will see low earners in receipt of tax credits or Universal Credit benefits offered access to cash top […]

New Parents on Low Incomes in Scotland Set for Benefits Boost

New parents living on low incomes across Scotland can expect to see a boost to the scale of financial support they receive via state benefits in the coming years. The Scottish government is introducing what it calls a Best Start Grant (BSG) towards the end of this year and expects it to significantly increase the […]

Price Cap Could Help 11 Million Households Save on Energy Bills

Ofgem, the UK’s energy industry regulator, has revealed plans that it says should result in notable savings for as many as 11 million households around the country. The regulator has put forward proposals for a price cap that would limit the amounts of money allowed to be charged by energy suppliers to consumers on poor […]

Problem Debts Costing Taxpayers £900m a Year, Audit Office Warns

The scale of problem debts among consumers across Britain is indirectly costing taxpayers close to £900 million on an annual basis. That’s according to the National Audit Office (NAO), which has warned the government that its departments ought to be doing more to bring down the costs to the public purse of problem debts across […]

Debt Problems Becoming ‘Smaller in Scale But Trickier to Deal With’

Debt problems increasingly involve “smaller but trickier” financial headaches as far as a growing number of people across the UK are concerned. That’s according to research into these issues by the National Debtline, which provides advice to indebted consumers and is operated by a charity group called the Money Advice Trust. The latest figures suggest […]

North Ayrshire Takes On Period Poverty by Offering Free Sanitary Products in Public Buildings

North Ayrshire’s local authorities are taking a pioneering stance on period poverty by offering free sanitary products in public buildings across the district. Women and girls throughout North Ayrshire are to be given free access to sanitary towels and tampons via vending machines so that they no longer need to worry about the costs involved […]

Debtors Living in Fear of Enforcement Agents, Says Citizens Advice

Citizens Advice has called on lawmakers to do more to protect struggling debtors who find themselves living in fear of enforcement agents. The charity has said that its teams deal with people who have issues with bailiffs, or sheriff officers as they’re known in Scotland, at an average rate of once every three minutes. Estimates […]

Parents Urged to Take Advantage of Childcare Voucher Scheme While They Still Can

Parents are being urged to take advantage of the government’s childcare voucher scheme while they still can with the initiative scheduled to be closed to new entrants in early October. The availability of the scheme was extended by a period of six months as of April and will now close on October 4th 2018, unless […]

Household Incomes Being Squeezed Again as Wages Lag Behind Inflation

Household incomes are being squeezed again by prices rising faster than wages, according to the expectations of economic experts in the City of London. Based on the latest projections, it’s anticipated that the Office for National Statistics (ONS) is poised to reveal that real incomes are no longer keeping pace with inflation. That situation leaves […]

School Holidays Prompt Surge in Demand at Foodbanks

The school holidays prompted a surge in demand at foodbanks last year and the same trend is expected to be seen again this summer. According to the Trussell Trust, which operates more than 420 foodbanks across the UK, there were 3,500 more emergency supply packages handed out to children during July and August 2017, as […]

Innovators Enable Homeless People to Take Donations via Smartphones

A team of innovators has created a smartphone app that enables homeless people to accept charitable donations without the need for cash to change hands. The app is called Greater Change and the idea is that homeless people have an account on the platform that allows donators to identify them and switch them money directly […]

Bank of England Base Rate Hike Adds to Borrower Concerns

The Bank of England has voted to increase its base rate of interest from 0.5 per cent to 0.75 per cent in a move which could be bad news for indebted consumers across the UK. Costs of borrowing are currently at historically very low levels, as they have been since soon after the Financial Crisis […]

Almost 40 Children Made Homeless in Scotland Every Day, Says Shelter

Close to 40 children were made homeless in Scotland every day over the course of last year, according to a shocking new report on the subject. The figures have been compiled by the homelessness charity Shelter Scotland and they show that 14,075 children were classed as being homeless during the year 2017/18. As many as […]

Councils Criticised for ‘Uncompromising and Over-zealous’ Pursuit of Debtors

Members of parliament in Westminster have issued strong criticism of local councils for the ways in which they are going about pursuing debtors for monies they owe. The policies and means through which public authorities aim to recover their debts have been described as “worst in class” by members of a Treasury Committee at the […]

Household Outgoings Exceeded Incomes in 2017 for First Time in 30 Years

Outgoings exceeded incomings across the UK for the average household during 2017 for the first time in almost 30 years. Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that the average household spent or invested roughly £900 more than they took as income over the course of last year. Those figures suggest that Brits […]

Scotland’s Personal Insolvency Rate up by Almost 12%

The number of people becoming personally insolvent in Scotland increased by 11.8 per cent during the first quarter of 2018/19 as compared with the same period last year. The figures refer to the number of Scots entering either bankruptcy or a protected trust deed (PTD) as a means of dealing with their debt management problems. […]

Universal Credit Failures ‘Driving People into Debt Misery’

The Universal Credit (UC) system that’s currently being rolled out across the UK is forcing considerable numbers of people into debt cycles that can have highly negative effects on their mental health. That’s the assessment of the mental health charity Mind, which has called on the government to “address the serious problems with the system” […]

Incomes Falling Among Poorest Third of UK Households

An audit of living standards among households across the UK has found that income levels fell last year among the poorest third of people throughout the country. The average income among middle-earners increased by 0.9 per cent in the year 2017-18 but those on lower wages saw a slight fall of 0.3 per cent during […]

Local and National Government Bodies ‘Among the Most Aggressive Debt Collectors’

People acting on behalf of local and national government bodies are among the most aggressive and frightening debt collectors currently operating in the UK, according to the charity group Christians Against Poverty (CAP). Around 42 per cent of the people who’ve been in touch with CAP in search of help in dealing with debts feel […]

A man hiding a debt from under his sleeve

Over 8 Million Brits Hiding Debts from Their Partners, Study Finds

More than eight million people across the UK are hiding personal debts from their partners, according to a new set of figures on the subject. Polling of British adults suggests that there could be as much as £69 billion worth of collective debt being hidden away from partners at an average of £8,293 per person. […]

Homelessness on the Rise Across Scotland

The number of people making applications for homelessness assistance increased across Scotland by 1 per cent over the course of the 12 months up to the end of March 2018. Local authorities throughout the country received a total of 34,972 homelessness support applications during the period, according to official figures released recently by the Scottish […]

Study Highlights Link Between Health Issues and Problem Debts

As many as one in five people with problem debts are also struggling with some form of “additional vulnerability”, such as mental or physical illness. That’s according to the debt help charity StepChange, which has revealed that roughly 20 per cent of the people who reach out for its support with financial problems are struggling […]

Debts Higher Among People Living in Towns and Cities, Study Reveals

People in towns and cities across the UK have larger debts and are on average more likely to be using high-cost loans than their counterparts living in the countryside. That’s according to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which has carried out an extensive survey looking at the ways in which people throughout the country interact […]

Energy Suppliers ‘Too Quick to Insist on Prepay Meters’

Suppliers of electricity and gas are too frequently insisting on installing prepayment meters in the homes of indebted customers, according the industry regulator. Ofgem has revealed that 84,000 prepayment meters were installed across the UK last year on the basis of warrants and as a means to recovering debts from households nationwide. Fewer people are […]

Audit Office Slams Universal Credit Rollout

The National Audit Office (NAO) has published a report that’s highly critical of the government and its Universal Credit system that has been a central pillar of its welfare reforms of recent years. Among the potentially damaging contentions in the NAO’s publication is the claim that Universal Credit has not yet delivered value for money […]

Third of Renters Left with Less Than £100 to Spend Each Month

Close to a third of renters around the UK find themselves with less than £100 of disposable cash to spend each month once they’ve covered all their essential expenses. That’s according to research by the building society Nationwide, whose investigations suggest that the average amount paid out in rent each month across the country is […]

Number of Homeless Households in Hostels Across Scotland Up 43% Since 2010

The number of homeless households who’ve been placed in some form of hostel accommodation has increased by as much as 43 per cent across Scotland since 2010. That’s according to new research looking into the subject by a team from Heriot-Watt University, whose study was commissioned by the social enterprise organisation Social Bite on behalf […]

Millions Taking on Debt to Cover Essential Outgoings

As many as 9.3 million Brits resorted to some form of credit to cover essential expenses at some point over the course of last year. That’s according to figures gathered by the debt help charity StepChange, which has estimated that roughly three million UK consumers found themselves behind on essential payments during 2017. The charity […]

Borrowers ‘Being Ripped Off by Extortionate Overdraft Charges’

The consumer group Which? has called for banks to be prevented from charging their customers “extortionate” amounts of money for using overdrafts on an unauthorised basis. According to the group, going over overdraft limits can cost consumers thousands of pounds each year and the associated charges are said to be as much as seven times […]

Almost 3 in 4 Scots ‘Struggling to Cope with Stress’

As many as almost three in four adults in Scotland became so stressed at some point during the past year that they felt overwhelmed or unable to cope. That’s according to the Mental Health Foundation, whose latest research suggests that Scotland has become a severely stressed out nation. Around 80 per cent of women and […]

Shorter School Holidays Would Help Struggling Families, SMPs Told

Shortening school holidays over the summer months would help take some of the financial pressures off families throughout Scotland.

Give Everyone £10,000 when They Turn 25, Says Thinktank

Young people across the UK should each be given £10,000 as they reach the age of 25 in order help rebalance wealth and financial security levels across generations. That’s according to the Resolution Foundation, a prominent thinktank which commissioned a diverse panel of experts to look at issues relating to intergenerational economics and fairness. The […]

Minimum Prices Put on Alcohol Units Sold across Scotland

Scotland has become the first country in the world to introduce laws to ensure there are minimum prices charged per unit on all alcoholic products sold nationwide.

Campaign Wins ‘Breathing Space’ for Debtors in Mental Health Crisis

People dealing with mental health crises and debt problems will in future be given the opportunity to gain some respite from their creditors. The Money and Mental Health Policy Institute has successfully persuaded the government that its policy of giving people with problem debt ‘breathing space’ from their creditors if they seek debt advice should be extended to include anyone getting help from the NHS’ mental health crisis services.

Food Bank Use Up 13% to Record High

The scale of reliance on food banks across the UK reached record high levels over the course of the financial year 2017-18. That’s according to the Trussell Trust, which operates a nationwide network of food banks and says that its teams gave out a total of 1.3 million food parcels during its most recently assessed […]

Small Business Confidence in Scotland Lagging Behind UK Average

Confidence levels among small businesses in Scotland are lagging well behind those of their counterparts across the rest of the UK. That’s according to research carried out by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), whose figures suggest that there are considerably more Scottish firms feeling pessimistic about their prospects than is generally the case across […]

Payday Loans Rated Unhealthiest Form of Credit

Payday loans have been cited as the unhealthiest form of credit that consumers can currently gain access to by a leading health education charity. According to a report produced by the Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH), payday loans tend to have negative effects on the mental health of borrowers more often than any comparable […]

Problem Debt at ‘Epidemic Levels’, Says Archbishop of Canterbury

The issue of problem debt has reached epidemic levels in communities and households across the UK, according to the Archbishop of Canterbury. The Most Reverend Justin Welby, as he’s otherwise known, described the UK’s debt problems in these stark terms in the foreword to a new report on the issue compiled by the debt help […]

Actor Michael Sheen Launches Campaign Against High Cost Credit

The Welsh actor Michael Sheen has helped to launch a new campaign against high-cost credit and the companies that offer money to customers at very high levels of interest. Mr Sheen, who starred in the movies Frost/Nixon and The Damned United, has said he plans to scale back his acting work in order to focus […]

Rising Numbers of Young Adults and Single Parents Seeking Debt Help

Young adults and single parents are among the increasing numbers of people seeking debt help across all part of the UK, according to a new set of figures. The debt help charity StepChange has published figures on its activities during 2017 and revealed that more than half a million Brits sought out its assistance over […]

Regulator Takes Action to Ban Energy Firms from Backbilling Customers

The UK’s energy industry regulator Ofgem is taking action to ban suppliers of gas and electricity from hitting their customers with bills for energy they used more than 12 months earlier.

New Rules Will Force Credit Card Firms to Help Out Long-term Debtors

A new set of rules being introduced by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) will oblige credit card companies in the UK to help out customers who are persistently struggling to manage their debts.

Scotland Set for 50p Per Unit Minimum Price on Alcoholic Drinks

The Scottish government has backed plans to establish minimum prices per unit on all alcoholic beverages being sold throughout the country. After conducting an extensive public consultation on the associated issues, the government has said it now intends to stop alcoholic drinks being sold at anything less than 50 pence per unit. Hopes are that […]

Millions in the Dark on Car Loans

Millions of British consumers are unaware of how much money they owe in relation to car loans they’ve taken out in recent years. According to the online automotive marketplace CarGurus, close to half (47 per cent) of all the people with car loans around the country can’t say how much they owe their creditors in […]

Debt Servicing Costs Forecast to Increase 29% by 2023

Debts will become more expensive and more difficult to service for consumers and families across the UK over the next five years, according to official forecasts put together by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR). The OBR has estimated that the cost of servicing household debts will rise by 29 per cent between the first […]

Millions Being Ripped Off by Energy Bills, Says Committee of MPs

MPs in Westminster have said that millions of consumers throughout the UK are being ripped off by their energy suppliers and are paying higher prices for their gas and electricity than they should be. Members of the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Committee have described Britain’s energy markets as being “broken” and made clear […]

Number of Brits with ‘Severe Problem Debts’ Up to 3.3 Million

The number of UK consumers who can be described as having severe problem debts has reached an estimated 3.3 million. That’s according to the debt help charity StepChange, which is reporting that the number of people throughout the country with severe problem debt increased by roughly 405,000 during the final nine months of 2017. “Whilst […]

1 in 3 Workers are ‘Just About Managing’

As many as a third of the men and women currently in work around the UK consider themselves to be ‘just about managing’ from a financial perspective. That’s according to a research report by a thinktank called the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), which concludes that there are millions of people around the country who […]

More Scots Turning to Trust Deeds as Solution to Debt Problems

There was a notable increase in the number of people in Scotland entering into protected Trust Deeds during the final three months of last year as compared to the same period in 2016. According to the Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB), the number of Scots using Trust Deeds as a means of tackling their debt problems […]

Getting Help with Debt Problems ‘Boosts Wellbeing and Workplace Productivity’

The provision of debt advice has knock on effects for consumers throughout the UK in terms of their overall wellbeing and their productivity in the workplace. According to a new research report looking into the subject, the health benefits of debt advice and the associated support are worth in the region of £145 million to […]

Poorest Households Among Hardest Hit by Problem Debts

Many of the poorest households around the UK are struggling to cope with their debts and the burden of making repayments on credit cards and personal loans each month. According to a report from the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), while there are a great many Brits who can comfortably afford to service their debts, […]

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