UK debt reaches £1,459bn

Personal debt in the UK reached £1,459 billion in April 2009, according to statistics released by one charity.

Credit Action compiled figures earlier this month that revealed the average household owes £58,370 including mortgages.

Individual debt stands at £30,500 per homeowner, which represents 124 per cent of annual earnings.

Analysis also showed that typical consumer borrowing constituted £4,850 in overdrafts, unsecured loans, credit cards and finance deals.

This amounts to £182 million in daily interest across the UK, with each household normally paying around £2,660 a year in payments.

The data also stated that 331 people a day become insolvent or bankrupt and forecasted that one out of every 33 people would lose their job in 2009.

According to the figures, a house is repossessed every ten minutes, with 3,178 people being made redundant per day.

A recent survey from National Savings & Investments urged people to consider their financial situation during the summer by budgeting efficiently.

By Francis Finch