Debt Crisis - a third of people struggling to meet repayments

Approaching a third of people are struggling to meet loan repayments of all kinds because of the cost of living crisis.

That’s the result of a survey by peer-to-peer investment platform easyMoney which means 28 per cent of people with personal loans are, at the very least, struggling to pay them back and many others have already been referred to debt collection agencies.

easyMoney commissioned a survey of 6,479 UK adults to find out how the current cost of living crisis is impacting people’s ability to repay personal loans.

The results show that 18 per cent hold some kind of personal loan: the majority of those people (67 per cent) hold just one loan, but one in five say they hold two, while the remaining 13 per cent hold more, including three per cent who hold five or more outstanding loans.

The most common type of loan people in the UK hold is a basic personal loan provided directly to them from a finance provider such as a bank. The second most common loan is vehicle finance, followed by debt consolidation, buy-now-pay-later loans, payday loans, and bad credit loans. 

When asked whether the current cost of living crisis is impacting their ability to repay their loans, 28 per cent say ‘yes’.

Of those, two thirds say the cost of living has meant they have struggled to meet loan repayments, while one in five have actually missed repayments. A further 14 per cent confirm that the crisis has actually forced them to default on their loan which has now been passed to a debt collection agency. 

easyMoney chief executive Jason Ferrando says: “It’s such a difficult time for people who owe money to financial institutions. A loan repayment scheme that was once very affordable has, as a result of rising interest rates, become an incredible burden leaving too many people in financial distress. Never has the phrase ‘unforeseen circumstances’ carried more weight. 

“We would recommend that people who are considering taking out personal loans take time to consider the decision carefully. With such economic uncertainty in our immediate future, how far can your monthly budget stretch when it comes to repayments?

“The flip side of high interest creating an ecosystem of expensive borrowing is, of course, better returns on investments for those fortunate enough to have some money set aside. Cash ISAs are being offered at very attractive rates, but these are incredibly short-term, rarely guaranteed beyond 12 months.”