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Opinion
What happened to the ‘free trade agreement’?
Boris Johnson claimed he had secured a ‘cakeist’ Brexit deal, meaning Britain can have its cake and eat it, but UK shoppers are facing many unexpected charges. Government must act or UK-EU shopping will collapse. The government has failed to warn
shoppers buying online from EU sellers about new charges on goods or guarantee their consumer rights. UK shoppers buying from the EU are
now frequently faced with hefty, unexpected charges, because the so-called free trade agreement with the EU is far from free in many cases. Many shoppers have been left entirely
confused about whether VAT was charged when they bought an item online from an EU seller, or whether they must pay it when the goods arrive. Even worse, the imposition of new customs duties of up to 25% on online purchases valued at over £135 has left many consumers baffled. It is no wonder the European Consumer
Organisation (BEUC) is demanding that the EU, its Member States, and the UK clarify immediately what the Brexit agreement means for consumers when it comes to paying customs duties. I entirely back the BEUC’s call for action. Thousands of packages are piling up as
UK shoppers are refusing to take delivery due to extra charges. This will have a knock- on effect on EU and domestic deliveries. The same is true across the Channel, with British goods stalled because of unexpected charges for EU buyers.
David Jinks Head of consumer research, ParcelHero
Mounting financial impact on families
As 2020 came to a close, the fuller picture of Covid-19’s effect on UK household finances continued to emerge, demonstrating the significant mounting financial impact of the pandemic, according to the January 2021 Money Statistics. Moving into the final month of 2020,
the uneven and heavy financial burden being shouldered by many millions of UK households became plainer. By December 2020, 8.9 million people had borrowed more money because of the pandemic’s impact, while one-third of low-income families were reported to have increased their spending through 2020 in order to cover the extra costs arising from Covid-19 restrictions. The UK unemployment rate continued
to rise, with the total figure up by 418,000 in the year until November 2020, to 1.72 million in total, amounting to 5% of the total UK workforce. Redundancies surged by 4,341 per day between September and November 2020. Meanwhile, evidence of increasing financial
inequality continued to be seen with many households fortunate to have been buffered from the pandemic’s worst effects and instead seeing their financial situation improve in 2020. The UK household savings rate continued
at a high level, 16.5% of income, between July and September 2020. Outstanding credit card debt fell by 17.8% and first-time buyer house prices rose by 7.3% in the year to November 2020. The contrast between increased savings for some households but increased debt for others is one of the most striking facts of the pandemic. Michelle Highman, chief executive of
The Money Charity said: “The government have put real emphasis on their agenda of ‘levelling up’ communities across the UK in
the coming months and years, but these signs of widening inequality are a serious challenge to that. To achieve that agenda, ways will need to be found to recover the financial positions of those on low incomes and others adversely affected by the pandemic,
including the young,
the
self-employed and those who have lost their jobs because of the ongoing restrictions we are all living under. “We believe that Financial Capability
must be a critical element of any roadmap to recovery, with urgent needs for better contingency saving,
robust Financial
Education for all young people before entering the workforce or higher education, as well as improved and simplified pension saving. With these and other factors fully integrated into levelling up, the UK can succeed in increasing its Financial Wellbeing across all communities.” Other striking numbers from the January
Money Statistics: l Total UK household expenditure fell by 11% from July to September 2020. l Citizens Advice Bureaux in England and Wales dealt with 1,767 debt issues every day in the year to December 2020. l 16% of women reduced their working hours during the first Covid-19 lockdown for childcare or home schooling, compared with 9% of men.
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www.CCRMagazine.com
February 2021
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