More people seeking debt advice
Citizens Advice has reported a large increase in the number of people seeking debt advice.
A survey has revealed a 35% rise in the number of queries regarding mortgage repayments when compared to last year. A similar increase has been seen in relation to the rising cost of household bills.
Citizens Advice staff dealt with 5.7 million new cases in 2006/07, of which a third were about debt.
Director of Policy at Citizens Advice, Teresa Perchard, has commented that debt was the largest issue encountered by staff, “It is a worrying trend that our bureaux are reporting very sharp increases in the number of mortgage areas problems they are dealing with.”
Ms Perchard said that the survey had revealed many cases of households facing higher utility, telephone and council tax bills.
“The combination of big increases in household bills, especially fuel, and rising housing costs is putting additional pressure on people’s finances when they are already stretched to the limit.”
The Citizens Advice study has also revealed, however, that people seeking help with credit card debt had actually fallen by 9%, a figure mirrored by a report by Experian.
Experian credit this downturn to better debt management by cardholders and increased caution from lenders, both of which had combined to hold down a large rise in credit card use.
“The flat, almost negligible, growth in credit card balances suggests that consumers themselves have also taken a more responsible approach to borrowing,” Experian reports.
Citizens Advice continues to urge anyone facing debt problems to advise their creditors immediately.
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