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Baby boomers too indebted to retire

Friday 9th October 2009

Following the failure at the High Court of the appeal against the mandatory retirement age, leading debt management provider, EuroDebt, is warning that those older workers forced into retirement could face serious debt problems.

Analysis of the company’s current client base shows that of those over 60, almost one in three still have a mortgage and the average unsecured debt for these homeowners is just under GBP 40,000.

“The big question is what happens to these people if they are forced to retire”, said Kevin Still, director at EuroDebt.

“The analysis of our client base indicates a worrying trend, as more and more over 60s appear to be getting into serious debt, struggling to cope with the pressures of the recession. For some their savings have been hard hit as a result of the interest rate cuts and for others the prospects of living off the equity of their properties has diminished.

“The prospect of retirement should be a happy and relaxing time, after a lifetime of work. But our figures reflect that not only are some older workers going to stay on in their jobs for much longer, but for those forced to retire there are real concerns of managing their financial commitments.”

EuroDebt has thousands of clients where one or both of the people on a debt management plan is over 60 and are either retired or facing the prospect of retirement. The average level of unsecured debt for these clients is just over GBP 28,000 with seven creditors. But for over 60s couples with a mortgage, their average unsecured debt is GBP 40,000 with nine creditors, said Eurodebt.

The EuroDebt analysis also shows that its male clients over 60 have an average unsecured debt level slightly higher than female clients over 60. Male clients’ average debt is just over GBP 32,000 whilst for women it’s just over GBP 27,500.

The company also, worryingly has a reasonable proportion of clients in their 70s.

“The figures for debt in the over 60s has gone up quite considerably since the recession really took hold”, continued Kevin Still. “When we analysed our client base at the beginning of 2008 we found that our over 60s clients had an average unsecured debt of just under GBP 26,000 with an average of eight creditors. This has now gone up to an average unsecured debt of just over GBP 28,000. But what is also worrying is that we now have a higher proportion of over 60s clients that have a mortgage – just over 32 per cent compared to 21.5 per cent at the beginning of last year.

“This suggests to us that this age group is really struggling to keep on top of finances as their income has dropped and cost of living has risen. Obviously not putting their home at risk is crucial – this could be their most important long-term asset. “

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