Under a planned new law, the length of time Irish bankrupts must wait before they can apply to be discharged is to be cut from 12 years to five years, according to the Irish Independent. Under current legislation, bankrupts in Ireland are placed under various restrictions for at least 12 years, at which...

The proportion of transactions made using credit cards fell sharply last year as consumers turned to cash and debit cards to help them better manage their finances, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC). In its latest payments survey, the BRC recorded a 12.9% fall in the proportion of transactions...

Today’s consumers are spending less in the shops and focusing on repaying their debts and improving their overall finances, figures from a few influential organisations indicate. First of all, there’s the retail sales index from the Confederation of British Industries (CBI), which has fallen to...

Payday loan companies provide short-term loans – often for people who’ve found it difficult to get credit in ‘traditional’ ways. Under the right circumstances, this kind of debt can work out exactly as people expect: they borrow the money and pay it back as arranged, along with the...

Research by Experian has found that the ‘industrial heritage’ group – including married couples living mostly in industrial communities – have suffered a sharper increase in personal insolvencies than any other social group, according to Insolvency News. The number of insolvencies...

Markit’s Household Finance Index for June shows the fastest deterioration in household finances since March 2009. The survey found that debt levels increased as consumers struggled to make ends meet, while savings fell. 36% of those questioned for the survey said their financial circumstances had...

Nearly a third of Brits (32%) need to make cutbacks to make ends meet, according to research by Gocompare.com. The company said that many people have put off home maintenance and renovation projects in order to make savings. More worryingly, 8% of people said they would consider not renewing their buildings...

More than 5 million people in the UK are putting their family at risk of financial problems – potentially including debt problems – by not updating their life cover, according to new research by Sainsbury’s Life Insurance. Well over half (60%) of those with life insurance surveyed said they...

The average amount of money paid into savings increased in the first quarter of 2011, compared with both the previous quarter and the same period a year earlier, according to the latest ‘Savings Brake’ report by unbiased.co.uk. But the rate of debt repayments fell during this time. In the first...

Up to 169,000 extra households in Scotland could be pushed into fuel poverty if all energy suppliers announce that they’ll increase their prices as Scottish Power has done. The Scottish Government’s website, www.scotland.gov.uk, provides some details, informing us that Finance Secretary John...