DEBT JUDGMENTS RISE BY 10 PERCENT IN JERSEY BUT THE VALUE OF REGISTERED DEBT NEARLY HALVES IN Q1 2020

The total value of registered debt in Jersey has almost halved from £1.2 million in Q1 2019 to £678,567 in Q1 2020 – a fall of 45 percent.

This is despite an increase of 10 percent in the number of judgments issued in the Jersey Petty and Royal Courts over the same period. The average value of debts registered fell by 50% from £2,737 to £1,382. The latest data indicates a large rise in the number of lower value judgments.

The numbers of judgments registered against Jersey businesses fell from 33 to 27 in Q1 2020. The value of business judgments registered in the quarter was £100,440 compared to £443,497 in the same period of 2019, a fall of more than three quarters.

The number of judgments against Jersey consumers rose by 12 percent, from 415 to 464. The total value of consumer judgments fell from £782,843 to £578,127, a fall of 26 percent. The average value of consumer judgments fell by 34 percent from £1,886 to £1,246. However, the median value has risen 10 percent suggesting a number of outlying judgment values are distorting the average value.

Registry Trust chairman, Mick McAteer said: “The latest data suggest there has been a rise in the number of smaller value judgments against consumers in Jersey. The full economic impact of Covid19 has not yet shown up in the data. It will be interesting to watch how the numbers in Jersey change as a result of policy interventions and creditor forbearance aimed at protecting consumers.”