"To me, that is as dangerous for the economy as going too far the other way. A return to individual responsibility is something that could benefit us all."
David Kennedy, chief lending officer at Masthaven, is clear there is "no established playbook" when it comes to Covid-19. He acknowledges the "difficult task of balancing continued support against this unpredictable virus timeline", a task which falls on the industry, regulators and the government.
However, he urges lenders to "continue to review their forbearance and vulnerable customer policies, using the broadest range of support and solutions available to them."
He adds: "It’s crucial that lenders focus on adapting in-line with the ongoing advice and directives from regulators and the government. Reassuring customers is absolutely vital – borrowers want to know that the industry is here to help and support them, in 2021 and beyond."
Some commentators believe there has been a lot of support that will bode well for future months.
The SMP's Mr Thomas believes the government has done a lot to help protect those who feel vulnerable. He says: “Overall, I believe the response from the government has been decisive and swift and that very few borrowers/tenants have suffered financially."
But he points out there is a "real issue" for those borrowers who had recently become self-employed. Just a couple of years ago, there was a significant trend towards becoming self-employed, with nearly 5m people in the UK classed as self-employed at the end of 2019.
This is because the lack of documentation and proof of earnings over the past two years has made it very difficult/impossible to qualify for the bounce-back loans.
Kate Davies, executive director at the Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association, believes there is yet more the government can do to protect people in the short-term and longer-term.
She says: “IMLA and the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries recently cautioned the potentially disruptive impact the current hard stamp duty holiday deadline could have on homebuyers and sellers.
"We have asked for flexibility or an extension to the deadline, so those borrowers whose transactions haven’t completed by the deadline – through no fault of their own – aren’t disadvantaged by having to find the money to pay SDLT. This will help to avoid a ‘cliff edge’ scenario where many people are impacted by the collapse of buyer chains."
Better action needed
Ms Davies also speaks to the problems facing landlords and tenants: "Many landlords have also been impacted by the crisis, with their tenants currently unable to pay rent. Landlords often rely on their rental yields for income."
