New set costs and mandatory certification to shake up bailiff industry
25th January 2013

The Justice Minister, Helen Grant, has promised that new laws that come into force in England and Wales next year will help clean up the bailiff industry.

New set costs are to be brought in so that bailiffs can no longer also fix their own fees and all bailiffs will have to undergo mandatory training that will lead to a certification scheme.

It will also become illegal for a bailiff to enter a property when only children are present - something that should not have been legal in the first place.

Bailiffs will also be banned from entering homes at night and new safeguards will be introduced to prevent them from using force against people who owe money.

"For too long bailiffs have gone unregulated, allowing a small minority to give the industry a bad name," said Helen Grant. "Too many people in debt have had the additional stress of dealing with aggressive bailiffs who often charge extortionate fees.

"These new laws will clean up the industry and ensure bailiffs play by the rules or face being prevented from practising. They will also make sure businesses and public bodies can collect their debts fairly."

Insolvency fees review and single complaints gateway announced
4th January 2013

A review that will ensure creditors achieve value for money from procedures carried out by insolvency practitioners has been announced by Business Minister, Jo Swinson.

Insolvency practitioners are entitled to be paid for the work they do, but the review will look at ways to ensure that creditors are being charged fairly.

“The issue of insolvency practitioner fees remains a key concern for creditors and debtors. Insolvency is a difficult process for all concerned, but especially so for those unfamiliar with how the system works. Creditors want to see a system that returns as much money to them as quickly as possible.”

The review, which will be led by Professor Elaine Kempson from the University of Bristol, will hear views from members of the insolvency profession as well as debtors and creditors. A report is expected in summer 2013.

The review will build on an earlier study conducted by the Office of Fair Trading which responded to concerns expressed by creditors that fees charged by insolvency practitioners do not represent value for money.

Cost of making yourself bankrupt to double in Scotland
14th May 2012

The cost of making yourself bankrupt in Scotland is to rise from £100 to £200 from the 1st of June, 2012, to more accurately reflect the rising unit cost of processing an application.

One positive step that has come out of this increase - there is now provision to pay this fee in smaller installments rather than in one lump sum as previously required.

What is also the case is that it is still much cheaper to declare bankruptcy in Scotland than it is in England and Wales and in Northern Ireland. In England and Wales the debtor fee and court fee payable amounts to £700, while in Northern Ireland the total is £640.

2011 saw welcome fall in the number of people made bankrupt in England and Wales
3rd February 2012

119,850 people were declared insolvent in England and Wales during 2011, according to the latest figures from the Insolvency Agency, a fall of 11.3% when compared to 2010.

For the first time, the number of people entering into an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) outnumbered the number of people being made bankrupt. An IVA is a formal agreement to pay part or all of your debts over an agreed period of time and it accounted for 49,056 insolvencies during 2011. The number of people made bankrupt totalled 41,845 - down 29%.

There was a also a big rise in the number of Debt Relief Orders (DRO) issued in 2011 - 28,949 in total. A DRO is an alternative to bankruptcy for those on low incomes with debts of less than £15,000 and with few assets.

Not such good news is the fact the number of businesses that went bankrupt in England and Wales during 2011 was up on the previous year. 16,871 businesses went into liquidation (up 5%) while a further 4,972 businesses entered into receivership, administration or a company voluntary arrangement.

There were 4,664 personal insolvencies in Scotland during October to December 2011, according to the latest statistics from AIB, bringing the total for the year to 11,112. This compares to 20,329 for 2010.

2011 saw welcome fall in the number of people made bankrupt in England and Wales
3rd February 2012

119,850 people were declared insolvent in England and Wales during 2011, according to the latest figures from the Insolvency Agency, a fall of 11.3% when compared to 2010.

For the first time, the number of people entering into an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) outnumbered the number of people being made bankrupt. An IVA is a formal agreement to pay part or all of your debts over an agreed period of time and it accounted for 49,056 insolvencies during 2011. The number of people made bankrupt totalled 41,845 - down 29%.

There was a also a big rise in the number of Debt Relief Orders (DRO) issued in 2011 - 28,949 in total. A DRO is an alternative to bankruptcy for those on low incomes with debts of less than £15,000 and with few assets.

Not such good news is the fact the number of businesses that went bankrupt in England and Wales during 2011 was up on the previous year. 16,871 businesses went into liquidation (up 5%) while a further 4,972 businesses entered into receivership, administration or a company voluntary arrangement.

There were 4,664 personal insolvencies in Scotland during October to December 2011, according to the latest statistics from AIB, bringing the total for the year to 11,112. This compares to 20,329 for 2010.

Someone in the UK is made bankrupt every minute of the working week
16th January 2012

Someone in the UK is made bankrupt 60 seconds during a typical working day, according to new figures from national money education charity, Credit Action.

Credit Action's snapshot of personal finance for January, 2012 reveals that every day in the UK:

* 331 people are declared insolvent or bankrupt

* 1,779 Consumer County Court Judgements (CCJs) are issued

* 193 mortgage possession claims are issued and 153 mortgage possession orders are made

“Our ‘day in the life’ statistics show the sheer scale of the financial problems faced in the UK and illustrate the numerous ways in which we are all vulnerable to the economic downturn," said Michelle Highman, CEO of Credit Action.

"However, there are ways to take control of your financial situation. If you do find yourself in a situation where your debts are already out of control, make sure you seek free debt advice from services such as the CAB or the Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS).”




400 Scots could go bankrupt every week in 2012 warns report

Bankrupt women reach record levels

Number of people declared bankrupt down in first quarter of 2011

Bankrupt Essex man jailed for hiding assets

Personal insolvency figures down in Scotland for last quarter of 2010

Insolvency Service has last laugh as comedian sent to jail for breaching bankruptcy rules

Changes to Debt Relief Orders will help more people struggling with debt

Insolvency Service cracks down on bankrupts who try to hide assets