Debt collection agencies ‘chasing nearly £60 billion’
Nearly £60 billion of UK consumer debt is being chased by UK debt collection agencies, a new report has revealed.
Data supplied by the Credit…
Nearly £60 billion of UK consumer debt is being chased by UK debt collection agencies, a new report has revealed.
Data supplied by the Credit Services Association – a trade body for the debt collection industry – revealed the amount of cash being chased by such agencies rose by £6 billion to £58 billion in the second half of last year.
Chief executive of the Money Advice Trust Joanna Elson said: "These figures make it clear that individuals across the UK owe a huge amount of money that they are struggling to repay."
People who owe £15,000 or more and have no way of paying this may find an individual voluntary arrangement (IVA) can help keep the debt collectors and bailiffs at bay.
An IVA works through a deal by which a reduced amount is paid to creditors over a period not exceeding five years.
To be agreed, it needs at least 75 per cent of creditors to agree to it.
In 2011, 49,056 IVAs were taken out in England and Wales, according to Insolvency Service figures.
By Joe White
