Consumer finance new business fell by 10% in April 2023

New figures released today by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that consumer finance new business fell in April 2023 by 10% compared with the same month in 2022. In the first four months of 2023, new business was 4% lower than in in the same period in 2022.

The retail store and online credit sector reported new business up in April by 5% compared with the same month in 2022, while the credit card and personal loan sectors together reported a fall in new business of 8% over the same period.

Commenting on the figures, Geraldine Kilkelly, Director of Research and Chief Economist at the FLA, said:

“The performance of the consumer finance market in April reflected the ongoing uncertainty about the economic outlook as core inflation continued to rise and consumers face the prospect of further increases in Bank Rate over the summer.  

“Households are likely to remain cautious about discretionary spending in the near term and our latest research suggests that the value of new consumer credit in the UK is now likely to grow by 5% in 2023 as a whole.

“As always, customers who are worried about meeting payments should speak to their lender as soon as possible to find a solution.” 

Table 1: New consumer credit lending

 Note to editors:

1. FLA members in the consumer finance sector include banks, credit card providers, store card providers, second-charge mortgage lenders, motor finance providers, personal loan and instalment credit providers.
2. In 2022, FLA members provided £150 billion of new finance to UK businesses and households. £116 billion of this was in the form of consumer credit representing over a third of total new consumer credit written in the UK in 2022.
3. Consumer car finance reported in these figures refers to finance obtained through the point of sale.
4. For media enquiries, please contact the FLA press office on 020 7420 9656.