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Decline in personal debt levels
Figures published by the Bank of England have shown that for the first time since recording began in 1993, the total amount of personal debt in the UK has fallen. The Bank’s figures show that personal borrowing fell by £600 million during July this year because many people chose to overpay their mortgages. Although this is the first time that there has been a net repayment, there is still a considerable amount of debt in the UK - the total amount owed by individuals now stands at £1.457 trillion.
For a wide range of facts and figures on debt and personal finance please see Credit Action's updated debt statistics for last month which are available here.
Here is a review of the other top money stories of the past week commencing 31 August 2009.
Tuesday 1st September
Repossession advice site launched - The Ministry of Justice has launched a series of online articles and videos to help people who are threatened with having their home repossessed. The advice and assistance will be available for people to access on the government Directgov website and gives information on how to restructure debts by talking to lenders, dealing with court appearances, and eviction notices amongst other bits of helpful advice. The website also has a series of videos which browsers can watch and contact numbers for those who want to get some free and independent advice. As a general rule, seeking advice early will greatly increase the amount of options available to you if you are worried about your finances or repossession.
Students to benefit from low interest rates – Millions of graduates and students will today experience cuts in their student loan repayments due to a reduction in interest rates. Students - now graduates - that took out student loans before 1998 repay their loans differently to those that borrowed post 1998. The 400,000 students that have pre-1998 loans will see their interest rate fall to -0.4%. Because these graduates have a fixed term mortgage-style repayment scheme, the interest rate they are charged is solely linked to the Retail Price Index (RPI) and so even if they make no repayments this year, they will see their balance reduced due to the negative interest rate. It is a slightly different situation for graduates and students who borrowed after 1998, who have 'income-contingent' student loans. They will pay 0% interest on their outstanding balance, so although their outstanding balances will not shrink, they will not get any bigger either.
For a wide range of facts and figures on debt and personal finance please see Credit Action's updated debt statistics for last month which are available here.
Here is a review of the other top money stories of the past week commencing 31 August 2009.
Tuesday 1st September
Repossession advice site launched - The Ministry of Justice has launched a series of online articles and videos to help people who are threatened with having their home repossessed. The advice and assistance will be available for people to access on the government Directgov website and gives information on how to restructure debts by talking to lenders, dealing with court appearances, and eviction notices amongst other bits of helpful advice. The website also has a series of videos which browsers can watch and contact numbers for those who want to get some free and independent advice. As a general rule, seeking advice early will greatly increase the amount of options available to you if you are worried about your finances or repossession.
Students to benefit from low interest rates – Millions of graduates and students will today experience cuts in their student loan repayments due to a reduction in interest rates. Students - now graduates - that took out student loans before 1998 repay their loans differently to those that borrowed post 1998. The 400,000 students that have pre-1998 loans will see their interest rate fall to -0.4%. Because these graduates have a fixed term mortgage-style repayment scheme, the interest rate they are charged is solely linked to the Retail Price Index (RPI) and so even if they make no repayments this year, they will see their balance reduced due to the negative interest rate. It is a slightly different situation for graduates and students who borrowed after 1998, who have 'income-contingent' student loans. They will pay 0% interest on their outstanding balance, so although their outstanding balances will not shrink, they will not get any bigger either.
Thursday 3rd September
Plans to tackle youth unemployment – It is widely thought that around one in five 16 to 24-year-olds are now thought to be unemployed, with 920,000 young people out of work. With this in mind the government has announced an extra 85,000 training jobs and job opportunities specifically for young people. 150 employers have signed up to the government's Backing Young Britain campaign and other employers have announced plans this week to offer further training for those under 25s they employ. If you are aged between 16 and 24 and are out of work, see this information from DirectGov.
More people complaining about bad service – The Financial Services Authority (FSA) have released figures which show that 9 million people complained about their bank, building society or insurance firm between 2006 and 2008. This shows that there are a large amount of people who feel unhappy with the service or behaviour of financial institutions. The total number of complaints rose from 2,727,000 in 2006 to peak at 3,411,000 in 2007 before dropping back to 2,903,000 in 2008. If you are unhappy with the service you have received from a financial institution, in the first instance it is best to complain directly to them to see if the situation can be resolved. If you feel that this course of action is not working you can take your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman. They have a helpline on 0845 080 1800 or see their website here.
Plans to tackle youth unemployment – It is widely thought that around one in five 16 to 24-year-olds are now thought to be unemployed, with 920,000 young people out of work. With this in mind the government has announced an extra 85,000 training jobs and job opportunities specifically for young people. 150 employers have signed up to the government's Backing Young Britain campaign and other employers have announced plans this week to offer further training for those under 25s they employ. If you are aged between 16 and 24 and are out of work, see this information from DirectGov.
More people complaining about bad service – The Financial Services Authority (FSA) have released figures which show that 9 million people complained about their bank, building society or insurance firm between 2006 and 2008. This shows that there are a large amount of people who feel unhappy with the service or behaviour of financial institutions. The total number of complaints rose from 2,727,000 in 2006 to peak at 3,411,000 in 2007 before dropping back to 2,903,000 in 2008. If you are unhappy with the service you have received from a financial institution, in the first instance it is best to complain directly to them to see if the situation can be resolved. If you feel that this course of action is not working you can take your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman. They have a helpline on 0845 080 1800 or see their website here.
Friday 4th September
Debt concerns fuel demand for advice and assistance – The number of people struggling to keep the personal finances in check and pay their debts is soaring according to the charity Citizen's Advice. The organisation, which helps people resolve their legal, money and other problems by providing free information and advice, said around 9,000 people per day are contacting them seeking advice with money management issues - 27% more than the same time last year. If you are experiencing money problems, there is free and independent advice available from a variety of community organisations, charities and government bodies around the UK that can help you deal with your problems and ultimately get back on top of your finances. The Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS) can be contacted on their freephone number 0800 138 1111 Monday to Friday 8am - 8pm. To find your local Citizen's Advice bureau, log on to their website by following this link.
Debt concerns fuel demand for advice and assistance – The number of people struggling to keep the personal finances in check and pay their debts is soaring according to the charity Citizen's Advice. The organisation, which helps people resolve their legal, money and other problems by providing free information and advice, said around 9,000 people per day are contacting them seeking advice with money management issues - 27% more than the same time last year. If you are experiencing money problems, there is free and independent advice available from a variety of community organisations, charities and government bodies around the UK that can help you deal with your problems and ultimately get back on top of your finances. The Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS) can be contacted on their freephone number 0800 138 1111 Monday to Friday 8am - 8pm. To find your local Citizen's Advice bureau, log on to their website by following this link.
