Member Article

One in 11 still paying for last year’s Christmas

One in 11 people in the North East are still paying for last year’s Christmas, according to a new survey.

The figures were highlighted in a survey by insolvency trade body R3, which also found that one in six think they will struggle to make ends meet when the bills come in after Christmas this year.

The research, which covered more than 1,000 people across the country, said that the North East has the highest proportion of people in England (9%) who are still paying off the costs of last year.

Jim James, the North East regional chairman of insolvency for R3, said: “It’s very easy for personal debt to get out of control at any time, but this is especially the case around Christmas, when everyone wants to enjoy the holidays and do their best for their friends and families.

“It’s a real concern that such a high proportion of people still have debts hanging around from a year ago, and given the continuing rise in unemployment rates and the difficult economic climate, we have to expect this figure will rise next year unless people take steps to manage their spending.”

Recent figures show the number of people being declared bankrupt has risen by 28% in the last 12 months, with more than 2500 individuals going into insolvency each week.

Mr James added: “The most important thing that anyone with money worries can do is to face up to and act on them, rather than hoping they will somehow go away, and to get expert advice about how they can begin to get their financial affairs back on track.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .