Abacus Daily Debt News

Petrol hikes of 15 per cent since last year, as published by the AA, may mean that those heading to town to buy their Christmas presents are more susceptible to falling into debt, with a total of £8 million to be spent on fuel and £70 million on parking over the yuletide period.

This is according to figures from uSwitch.com, which revealed that these soaring prices are pushing people towards the internet to make purchases, with 72 per cent doing so in 2009’s festive season.

Director of consumer policy at the company Ann Robinson remarked that "an ongoing battle" is being fought by Britons to stretch their finances and this year they have been forced to "take a hard look at their spending and adapt their lifestyles to cope".

uSwitch’s study comes after Which? recently announced that buying presents digitally can offer those in debt savings on items such as fragrances and electronics. The consumer watchdog saved £383 by shopping on the web.

By Sarah Adie

Those who have been adversely affected by the recent flooding across the country have been offered a lifeline by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), which has pledged to concentrate on aiding recovery from these events.

A special helpline has been launched where, between the hours of 08:00 and 20:00 GMT Monday to Friday and 08:00 and 16:00 GMT over the weekend, people can find "fast, practical help and advice".

This may be of particular use to those struggling with debt management issues as HMRC states it can help by revising payment schedules for those with financial difficulties exacerbated by the floods.

"A quick call to the HMRC helpline will give peace of mind, enabling customers to focus on restoring their homes and businesses," financial secretary to the Treasury Stephen Timms PM remarked.

This move by the HMRC follows a recent scheme from the Federation of Small Businesses, which involves offering interest-free loans of up to £5,000 to assist companies in continuing to trade, as well as repairing any damage sustained.

By Sarah Adie

Britons are being harassed by cold callers trying to convince them to take out credit cards and personal loans in the run-up to Christmas, it has been claimed.

The Call Prevention Registry has observed that, over the last month, nearly half of all telemarketing calls have been from organisations urging people to accrue more debt, the Daily Telegraph reports.

A study carried out by the body - which blocks nuisance calls made to the British public - also revealed that, in October, 28 per cent of unwanted telephone conversations were with loan companies and other similar businesses.

Spokesman for the registry Paul MacKenzie-Cummins remarked upon the shocking methods used to contact people.

He observed that there has been a move away from firms relying just on salespeople, instead turning to pre-recorded messages and more aggressive tactics as "the preferred means of cold-calling consumers".

And credit services company Equifax recently warned debtors to be wary of other telephone scams, such as calls from criminals who convince vulnerable people to part with account details and payments by offering lump sums in return.

By Sarah Adie

The majority of students have plans to work through the Christmas holidays in order to help fund their time at university and reduce the amount of debt they will be in at the end of the three or four years, new research has revealed.

Studies by Studentgems have indicated that 82 per cent of young people questioned will be employed over the Christmas break.

What’s more, 16 per cent will be at work for at least three hours on December 25th, as well as on Christmas Eve and Boxing Day, stating that the reason for this is higher wages.

Of those polled, 93 per cent admitted that the jobs they will be doing at this time are both unrewarding and irrelevant to their chosen careers but are necessary to fund them through the winter.

This comes after recent research from Endsleigh showed that university leavers believe that it will take them up to 20 years to pay off the debts accrued while at college.

By Sarah Adie

Britons have been advised to be prudent with their spending over the holiday period after new figures revealed a 25 per cent increase in those needing debt management help over the last 12 months.

The Citizens Advice Bureau in Newtownabbey - which provides assistance to over 670 people with debts totalling nearly £7.5 million - has taken on 93 new clients in a six-month period, which its district manager said has meant it has had to change its opening hours to cope with the workload, Newtownabbey Today reports.

"We are just trying to appeal to people to try not to get into debt, to manage what they have, because it’s going to be a nightmare after Christmas," Pat Hutchinson was quoted as saying, adding that people should track their expenditure and not go over budget.

Earlier this month, Peter Harrison of moneysupermarket.com warned Britons to ensure they clear their Christmas debts after statistics from the price comparison site indicated that 31 per cent have no plans to pay the balance on their credit cards within the next six months.

By Sarah Adie

The monitoring and regulation of the debt resolution industry has been highlighted as an essential practice for the coming year.

According to the Debt Resolution Forum’s (DRF’s) chairman and chief executive of debt resolution company ClearDebt, David Mond, it has been made clear by the Ministry of Justice, the Office of Fair Trading and the Insolvency Service that those in the sector must be prepared to "meet and exceed" the minimum standards of conduct.

Failure to do so, he added, could result in consequences damaging to firms and the country’s ability to help those in debt.

Speaking at the DRF’s annual conference, Mr Mond went on to note that accreditation visits from the Insolvency Practitioners Association are due to start in January 2010.

This comes after a recent statement from Deloitte suggested that personal insolvencies look set to exceed 30,000 once again by the end of 2009, as more people on low incomes declare themselves bankrupt.

By Sarah Adie

The seven deadly sins of debt have been laid out to help people avoid falling into arrears and recover financial stability.

According to Felicity King-Evans of moneysupermarket.com, the first is mistaking luxuries for necessities, with many used to living excessively.

She noted that consolidating debts, which can be done successfully, will fail if cutting up credit cards and closing overdrafts is not done.

And seeking short-term solutions, such as payday loans, was recognised as useful but not something that should be relied upon.

Drifting into debt through not tracking disposable income means that it is "impossible" to plan larger purchases and keep out of overdrafts, Ms King-Evans writes.

Furthermore, debt denial - which is a growing concern according to David Rodgers of the Debt Advice Foundation who observed that many are unwilling to share worries with their family - is "particularly dangerous", with people underestimating how much they owe.

The sixth sin relates to keeping up appearances. In 2008, 15 million adults in the UK had a total of £35 million worth of debt to demonstrate levels of wealth that may not have existed.

Lastly, spending money before it is in the bank was also highlighted as a sin.

The internet has been revealed as the place to go for those trying to limit their spending this Christmas so as to avoid incurring too much festive debt.

Consumer watchdog Which? saved £383 by purchasing a variety of presents on the web, with the best deals found on items such as electronics and fragrances.

Other bargains included a Samsung TV from Ajelectronics.co.uk, which was bought for £310 - £69 cheaper than on the high street.

However, supermarkets were also revealed to be a good location for finding discounted price tags, particularly on entertainment items, with CDs and DVDs going cheaper.

Deputy editor of Which? Online Melanie Dowding commented that, for those trying to be careful with money this year, "staying home and shopping online" is the better option.

This comes after concerns regarding Christmas debts were voiced by moneysupermarket.com’s Peter Harrison, who observed that many do not appear to be worried about paying off debts run up at this time of year.

Research from the price comparison site indicated that 31 per cent do not plan to pay their credit card balances within the next six months.

By Sarah Adie

Those looking to obtain credit over the Christmas season have been advised to move quickly by a financial comparison website.

According to spokesperson for the company Andrew Hagger, those applying for new cards should be doing so now to prevent the time delay between making the application and receiving the plastic becoming a problem.

Mr Hagger suggested that debtors should consider using existing credit cards and "transfer that balance across to a zero per cent balance transfer when the statement comes in", but that this needs to be done as soon as possible.

He also noted that, when opting for zero per cent purchases cards, this may take a few weeks so it will have to be conducted "pretty quickly".

His comments come in response to statistics from moneysupermarket.com, which revealed that almost half of Britons are concerned about funding Christmas.

Of those asked, 17 per cent admitted they planned to use credit cards to carry out yuletide purchases.

By Sarah Adie

The UK Insolvency Helpline has spoken out about the Council for Mortgage Lenders’ revised predictions for the total number of repossessions in the UK, stating that people are keeping up with repayments but not making headway with the actual debt.

Ian Boden-Smyth of the money advice organisation noted that the decrease in the number of repossessions currently being seen is due to the fact that people are "doing it on interest only", with debtors only being able to afford to pay the interest on their loans.

He voiced concerns that the UK will soon be a nation of borrowers who "do not own their properties at the end of their term".

Mr Boden-Smyth suggested that people wait until they have a large enough deposit in order to take advantage of the "base rate tracker mortgage available" but also stated that, if it is cheaper to rent and this can be done over the long-term, "don’t drive yourself mad".

The new forecast from the CML indicated that 2009’s repossession figures have dropped from 75,000 to 48,000.

By Sarah Adie