The Finance & Leasing Association has released data that show £27m of new second charge business carried out in June this year, a fall of 72 per cent on June 2019.

In the 12 months to June this comes to £1.03bn, an 11 per cent fall on last year’s total.

The FLA also says that 661 new agreements were booked in June, an annual fall of 71 per cent, which brings the total number of new agreements in the 12 months to June to 23,156 – an 11 per cent drop.

FLA head of research and chief economist Geraldine Kilkelly says: “The relatively slow recovery in second charge mortgage new business volumes reflects the gradual re-opening of the economy and continued household caution as the outlook for employment and the progression of the virus remains uncertain.

“Lenders are continuing to do all they can to support customers during this challenging period and customers experiencing payment difficulties should contact their lender as soon as possible.”