Blog: Consumer Duty should not be underestimated

Abstract

The latest economic data shows that rising inflation, caused by increasing food and energy prices, is driving down real incomes, affecting every household in the UK. In the 12 months to June 2022, consumer prices grew by 9.4% and are expected to rise further, into double digits, later this year when household energy prices will be subject to another price cap review. In the labour market, unemployment rates remain low at 3.8%. Both Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic have impacted employment, resulting in a smaller workforce. This reduction in the supply of workers, combined with a sharp pickup in demand following the end of Covid related restrictions, has contributed towards a sharp rise in job vacancies, reaching record highs of 1.3 million in Q2 2022. Approvals for house purchases in the first six months of this year is around 20% lower than the same period last year and broadly compares to the levels we saw pre-Covid. Re-mortgaging is up 36%, so total loans are only down by 3% The share of loans for house purchases reduced from 65% last year to 53% this year. House prices continue to grow in double digits with a 10.7% annual growth in June 2022 according to Nationwide, but this is down from 11.2% in the previous month.