Policy and Government

CAP has submitted evidence to the Ministry of Justice, looking at how the 2014 rules and regulations are working in practice. Whilst we appreciate that there is much good practice within the enforcement sector, without a regulatory body bad practice does still exist. Our response highlights the severity of bad practice and the hugely detrimental impacts it can have on an already unpleasant experience. As well as calling for a regulatory body, we would like to see a clear and easy complaints procedure, as well as better incentives for enforcement agents to treat debtors fairly.

CAP has responded to the BBC’s consultation on their TV licence concession for over-75s. From 2020, the Government will no longer fund free TV licences for over-75s, the focus on this consultation was to suggest how the BBC best move forward, whether to keep it, remove it or reform it. CAP has suggested that this concession should still be given to those who are means-tested and in receipt of Pension Credit, targeting support to those who need it most.

CAP welcomed the opportunity to respond to this consultation, looking at legislative proposals for a 60-day breathing space and a statutory Debt Management Plan (DMP). We are broadly supportive of these schemes being introduced, so long as they include debts owed to local and central government, helping to provide time and space to reach and implement a debt solution. However, we are concerned that the current proposals may be too onerous and place excessive costs on debt advice.

CAP has responded to the latest consultation from the AiB, looking at the design of their Debt Arrangement Scheme (DAS). We were pleased to see the suggested introduction of short term crisis payment breaks, helping to effectively support people in financial hardship. We did suggest, however, that the automatic approval process for a DAS Debt Payment Programme should be higher than suggested, bringing it in line with other debt solutions for consistency. To read more, click below. 

CAP welcomes the FCA’s latest consultation on rent-to-own (RTO) and alternatives to high-cost credit. We were pleased to see the proposals aimed to reduce the harm in the RTO industry and agree that intervention is necessary. We welcome the proposals for a 100% price cap, as well as the requirement for benchmarking the base price, helping to reduce the cost of RTO goods and make them more affordable. We were concerned, however, that the rule regarding controlling the price of arrears may be too vague and in need of additional detail, in order to ensure that the measures designed to reduce harm are effective. Read our full response below.