Unemployment threatens ‘black hole’ of debt

Unemployment can lead to people being sucked into a “black hole” of debt, it has been claimed.

Commenting in the wake of this week’s unemployment figures showing a 2,400 rise in the jobseeker’s allowance (JSA) claimant count in January, the Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS) said a quarter of those seeking its aid in 2010 were out of work.

Of these, 11 per cent were on JSA and the average claimant seeking help from the CCCS owed £15,816, with unemployed people often having to borrow money to get by due to an average shortfall of £2,436 in daily living costs over the course of a year.

This means many people not in work fell they “have no option” but to get into debt, the charity’s director of external affairs Delroy Corinaldi remarked.

He added: “Anyone who has lost their job and is worried about making ends meet should seek help as soon as possible before being tipped into the black hole of debt which can be a real struggle to get out of.”

Data published by the Office for National Statistics this week showed the overall number of people out of work rose by 44,000 to 2.49 million in the three months to December 2010.

This equated to 7.9 per cent of the overall workforce, but those aged 16-24 were hardest hit, with one-in-five out of a job.

Women may also be among those at greatest risk of getting into debt due to unemployment.

While each of the last 12 months has seen the number of men claiming JSA falling, the tally of female claimants has risen in each of the last seven months.

By James Francis