Labour's landslide victory in the General Election raises questions about what the policy development will be for leaseholders' benefit in the United Kingdom. In this month’s Debt Talk podcast with Ripon Ray, three distinguished individuals share their knowledge on another important subject, ‘Leasehold & charges’. Suz Muna from the Social Housing Action Campaign says that renting and leasehold are two sides of the same coin where leaseholders are very much trapped in an exploitative situation from developers, freeholders, and management companies. Many of the leaseholders are living in unsalable homes whilst service charges are rocketing up. She argues for the abolition of leaseholds. Nicolas Kissen, senior adviser and a solicitor at the Leasehold Advisory Service, explained the rights leaseholders may have against stakeholders when there are high charges, bad behaviour and cladding in properties. Matthew Connell, Director of Policy and Public Affairs for the Personal Finance Society emphasised exploring different insurance and service products for leaseholders and explaining free money advice when leaseholders need support. They also provided TOP TIPS to the new Labour government to make policy changes to improve the conditions for leaseholders who are struggling with service charges. The next podcast on Debt Talk is on: 'Carers & benefit Overpayment'. If you want to get involved, get in touch with Ripon Ray - ripon.ray@yourdoctordebt.com
Thames Water considered a rise of 40% whilst its parent company is on the verge of liquidation. Southern Water requested Ofwat last October to increase its bill to consumers by 66% on top of the rise in inflation. In this month's Debt Talk podcast, Ripon Ray explored 'UK waters & our bills’. Eugenio Vaccari - Senior Lecturer from Royal Holloway, London, who researches sustainable restructuring procedures, explored the legal framework in which Thames Water and its parent company work and the potential challenges faced from the perspective of shareholders, government and sustainability of the water companies for the public interest. Andrew White - Senior leader for Social Policy of the Council for Consumer Water which represents the interest of consumers in the water sector explained the the impact of the rise in cost for vulnerable communities and explained that there is a genuine need to have a social tariff to support struggling consumers. He also explained how important it is to collaborate to raise awareness of the cost of water while there are families with deficit budgets. My panel members have also provided TOPS TIPS to listeners to drive changes as the general election looks in the UK. My next podcast is on: ‘Leasehold & Charges.’
Another thought-provoking podcast on Debt Talk is ‘Poverty & ethnicity premium’. This time, leading experts from academia, think tanks, debt advice, and funders spoke about issues that matter in financial services. Maria Booker from Fair By Design explained the poverty premium and how communities are paying more and being financially discriminated against because many can’t afford to pay by direct debit and are also on low incomes. This is particularly the case with paying for insurance and fuel or customers who pay a fee for withdrawing cash from a cashpoint when they have no alternative option. Sara Davies from Bristol University explored how many customers are directly impacted by services in the retail finance sector based on her research on those digitally excluded or affected by disability. However, when one product has been regulated, others seem to come into the market to exploit vulnerable customers. Jerry, during MBE from Money A&E, passionately spoke about how direct and indirect discrimination exists when the system disadvantages minority communities. He emphasised that Muslim South Asian communities may find that financial products are not Sharia compliant and the Afro-Carribean community may end up paying more towards mortgages compared to their white counterparts. He argued for representing such communities in product development processes to drive change. Ayesha Begum from Fair4All Finance, which published ‘Levelling the playing field—Building inclusive access to financial services for people from minority ethnic groups’, explained that minority communities face multiple barriers and exclusion in financial services while also experiencing frequent financial shocks compared to their white counterparts. When mainstream lenders do not support some minority communities, they turn to their community or fintech companies due to a lack of trust from mainstream lenders. My guests also provided TOP TIPS to listeners of Debt Talk for regulators, policymakers, customers and businesses. The following podcast will be on ‘UK Waters & Our Bills.’ Thank you for listening to the Debt Talk podcast with your host, Ripon Ray.
Introducing Consumer Duty principles by the Financial Conduct Authority resulted in a dramatic shift from treating customers fairly to focusing on customer outcomes, which requires a readjustment of thinking for many regulated firms in Britain. To navigate such an insightful subject on the Debt Talk podcast, Ripon Ray invited distinguished experts from research and consultancy, debt recovery, and the advice sector. Kathy Ellison from Savanta, a research and consultancy firm, explained how some regulated firms had changed their governance structure, consumer terms and conditions, communications and marketing, and in dealing with vulnerable consumers. Savanta's research showed that although many firms have significantly addressed regulatory expectations to benefit consumers, some work is still needed to improve consumer outcomes. Bob Winnington of the Money Advice Liaison Group emphasised the importance of delivering world-class service. He explained how the group brought different regulated communities within the financial services market together to encourage firms to share best practices in a highly competitive environment. Alex Pitcher from Step Change emphasised that Consumer Duty enabled them to revisit their consumer advice journey through the organisational process. They had to explore diverse ways of communicating with their clients whilst considering their client profiles and meeting regulated funders' expectations to demonstrate how their mission is aligned with the best outcome for consumers in debt advice. They also provided TOP TIPS to listeners who require extra support and firms struggling with implementation today. The following podcast is as pressing as the current one. It is on 'Poverty and ethnicity premium'. If you want to provide feedback on the content of this and other podcasts, do not hesitate to contact Ripon Ray: ripon.ray@yourdoctordebt.com
Birmingham Council went bankrupt and accelerated its debt recovery to collect council tax and other fines by 500% between 2022 and 2023. It was revealed under the Freedom of Information Request. Other councils throughout the United Kingdom also use enforcement agents to recover unpaid debts since many are overstretched with their finances. To highlight the severity of this issue in this month's podcast on Debt Talk, Ripon Ray explored: 'Council finance, tax & debt recovery’. To assist him with the subject, Helen Ganney from Christians Against Poverty explained the challenges the debt advice sector faces in negotiating with some councils when many clients have insufficient funds to pay council tax debts and are in a deficit budget. Yet, there have been challenges with them and their agents to accept minimal payment or to hold enforcement action. She emphasised that many of these agents focus on collecting debts whilst not considering whether some residents can afford to pay. Russell Hamblin-Boone from the Civil Enforcement Association (CIVEA) looked at the causes of the intensification of recovery of many councils and, most importantly, the causes of the Birmingham Council going bankrupt and its debt recovery. He explained that as part of the commercial agreements with councils with private enforcement agents, enforcement agents are required to identify client vulnerability and provide welfare support as part of the agreement. He emphasised that enforcement agents don’t get a commission from council tax recovery but only a set fee. To standardise the behaviour of the enforcement sector, however, CIVEA proactively funded the set up of an independent regulatory body to make sure the enforcement sector works for all. Chris Nichols recently joined the newly founded Enforcement Conduct Board as CEO to make sure the Board works for the public interest. As part of developing a framework to ensure the enforcement market is fit for purpose, it creates a robust and accountable governance structure and complaints system to ensure any complaints against an enforcement agent are investigated fairly. He emphasised that input from the debt advice, enforcement agents, vulnerable communities, and other stakeholders is crucial to keeping the enforcement sector accountable. They also provided TOP TIPS to assist Debt Talk listeners in conversing on such a charged and tense subject. On the next Debt Talk podcast, Ripon Ray will cover: 'Consumer duty & debt updates’.