Brits taking longer term debts for granted
(31 January 2006)

A worrying number of Brits seem to take hefty debts as being par for the course, according to research carried out the AXA.

The insurance firm, which is carrying out an ongoing experiment to assess the impact of financial advice upon reducing personal debt, has revealed that 70 per cent of us simply aren't bothered about the amount of debt we become encumbered by – because it's seen as something that happens to most of us.

What's more, four in five seem to believe that it's more acceptable to be in debt than it was 20 years ago – a perturbing insight as to the conditioning of today's society and also an indication that the number of loan and credit deals on the market has simply changed our mindsets.

Typically, people in the UK are happy to borrow up to £6,370 – 28 per cent of the average salary – although this figure is often far exceeded.

AXA's financial advice experiment has focussed upon 20 households in Brighton, assessing the impact of time spent with a devoted financial advisor. The results from the first ten households show that an average of £1,215 in three months could be shaved off a household's debts by paying heed to qualified advice.

If you think it's time to arrest your long term debts but still want some short term cash while you readjust to a more responsible financial lifestyle, a payday loan may be able to help you out.

Borrowing between £80 and £1,000, repayable next time your monthly salary comes through, a cash advance can act as a good bridge while you plan what to do about getting your future credit and debit plans on an even keel.



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