Debt mountain growing £1m every four minutes

Consumers in the UK are still in spending mode even though interest rates are starting to creep upwards and credit cards are being blamed as one of the reasons for this phenomenon. Individual debts (not including mortgages) now stand at £5660 on average. Consumers show little signs of slowing down their spending and this is worrying many financial analysts. The cost of taking on mortgages, personal loans, overdrafts, hire purchase agreements and credit and store cards has seen the nation borrowing the equivalent of £1 million every four minutes.

A ‘buy now pay later’ culture has been built up in the UK and many people now think nothing of spending money on purchases by increasing their debt.

Andrew Redmond, chief executive of Debt Free Direct, an organisation which advises and counsels on management of debts, said the fact thousands of people admitted to hiding their debts from their partner or family was a worrying development.
He said: “People often find it difficult to admit money problems to themselves, let alone to their loved ones.