Policy and Government

We have made a submission to Sinn Fein's Prosperity and Opportunity consultation which is looking at ways the party can tackle poverty, disadvantage and social exclusion. They believe poverty is a denial of economic and social rights. In our response we outlined how over-indebtedness in Northern Ireland contributes to this and the challenges the families we support in Northern Ireland face.

At present, you can go through the County Court or High Court to evict someone. It's a quicker process through the High Court and the evictee receives no notice of the time or date of their eviction. CAP is in support of bringing in a statutory notice period for High Court, as there is in the County Court, which would help people make alternative housing arrangements or provide more time for them to seek advice. We are also in support of bringing in safeguards to prevent cases being unnecessarily transferred to the High Court.

CAP carried out a study of over a thousand clients to see what additional difficulties affect people in debt. The report shows how these problems combine to intensify situations and takes a fresh look at what vulnerability means in practice.

CAP welcomed the opportunity to respond to the FCA’s latest consultation in their high-cost credit review. We are pleased to see the FCA propose reforms to help ensure BNPL deals and the risks involved are clearly communicated from the outset. It was concerning, however, to learn that half of BNPL deals are not repaid within the offer period and that most consumers do not understand that they will be subject to backdated interest.

CAP welcomes the opportunity to respond to the FCA’s latest consultation on overdrafts. We welcomed the move to align the cost of unarranged overdrafts with arranged overdrafts, as well as the requirement for firms to do more to tackle repeat use. The ability for customers to compare the cost of their overdraft with other credit products using an APR percentage and online tools was also welcomed, but CAP is concerned that those who are digitally excluded may not be able to access these benefits.