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A Government report released in April shows a stark picture of how households are coping with their housing costs and savings in the pandemic. The problems apply to both the home-owning and rental sectors, but renters seem to have been hardest hit. The Second Wave Household Resilience Study After more than a year of the pandemic, the Government has published a study of how households are holding up in the wake of the

On the 10th March, the Government announced that the current moratorium on evictions will be extended until 31st May, for both domestic and commercial tenancies. This is clearly good news both for people who rent their home and for struggling businesses, but not necessarily for equally struggling landlords. So, does this mean that no evictions can take place, regardless of the circumstances? The Extension of the Mora

If a company that owes you money has debts so extreme that there’s no possibility of payment, you can apply to the courts to have it wound up. This is a drastic measure and usually a final one — once the winding-up order is granted, it normally means the company is finished. Exceptionally, however, you might change your mind. It’s possible to apply to have the order rescinded, but the process is complicat

The financial effects of the pandemic have been severe on many of us, whether we’re acting as companies, landlords or individuals. One lifeline has been the ability to take “payment holidays” in the repayment of mortgages, loans or debts. This has been invaluable — but is it really the straightforward benefit it seems? Recent research by Resolver suggests it may not be. Payment Holidays Early in the

Are you one of the many SME owners who have been forced to close your business, wholly or partially, during the Covid-19 lockdown? If you have Business Interruption insurance that covered closure due to disease, you may have been one of the policyholders refused payment by your insurer. However, there’s good news. A ruling by the Supreme Court on the 15th January has established that in most cases closures due

During the first Covid-19 lockdown, we were in unknown territory, and rules had to be worked out on the go. This time, we’re more used to being locked down, and regulations (many of which are much the same as for tiers 2 and 3) have been put quickly in place. And this includes the regulations for enforcement visits for writs of control, writs of possession and serving eviction orders. The Rules for Writs of Con

The options open for people who fall into debt have needed reform for some time, but the Covid-19 pandemic has made the issue urgent. The Money Advice Trust has now published a new briefing, urging the government to commission a full review of the options for debt management. The Debt Crisis The need for review of debt options was already being urged before this year. In 2018, the Money Advice Service (now part of th

On 16th OCTOBER 2020, RYAN BEMBRIDGE headlined in the above A quarter (23%) of home-owners are worried about renewing their mortgage during the pandemic, a poll from specialist broker Willow Private Finance has found. A third (32%) said their income was less secure now than before the pandemic, while more than one in 10 (12%) had to take a payment holiday during COVID. The proportion of those feeling less financially

Over the past six months, many businesses have had a false sense of security. A raft of government support schemes have been keeping them afloat — but these will be ending soon. So how devastating will the lockdown be on SMEs? The Insolvency Landscape It may seem strange that global insolvencies are actually down on last year’s figures. The UK is typical of this, with a fall of over 20%, in spite of so many hig

If there’s one thing that unites virtually all SME business owners, it’s the scourge of late payments. This is always a problem, especially for those operating on narrow margins, but the pandemic seems to have turned it into a crisis. The Scourge of Late Payments The great majority of SMEs don’t enjoy the huge cash reserves and almost unlimited credit enjoyed by the giant companies. If they’re