‘Struggling spenders’ urged to seek advice

Anyone struggling to deal with their debt management problems because of overspending during Christmas ought to seek out expert advice, it has been asserted.

James Ketchell, from the Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS), suggested recently that independent advice can be crucial for people struggling to become debt free and particularly in the early part of the year.

However, Mr Ketchell also made clear that indebted consumers can help solve their own financial problems simply by setting themselves a budget and sticking to it.

“In the new year, especially if one’s had a really expensive Christmas, the first thing to do is to not go to the sales, because there’s nothing worse than having a big credit card debt and piling on another load of debt,” said the CCCS’ spokesperson.

“Budgeting is always important, at any time of the year – but especially now,” he added.

A report published last year by the CCCS claimed that the burden of debt management in the UK is increasingly shifting on to older generations.