News & Views

Efforts to tackle the harms caused by financial abuse have exposed a bigger truth: credit reporting must evolve. Context, fairness and accountability can’t be optional.

Our new report finds a third of low-to-middle income borrowers are cutting back their essential spending to preserve their credit scores, and highlights how the marketing of scores can increase the risks of over-indebtedness and deter people from seeking advice.

Next week’s Budget will take place in the context of an urgent need to boost economic growth. If we are serious about this, we need to tackle household debt and restore the safety net.

New CfRC research indicates that some lower-income borrowers are highly sensitive to their credit scores, and this could be negatively impacting their financial behaviours: causing them to prioritise credit repayments over the payment of household bills and other essentials. People in financial difficulty may also be receiving inappropriate messages that encourage them to take on more credit than they can afford.