The Growing Debt Problem for under 25's in the UK

Not at any time since the last major economic recession of the 1990's have so many people in the UK suffered so much with debt problems. Although the principal underlying economic factors look good on the surface, a closer inspection of the statistics reveals a structural debt problem in the UK, manifested by the total amount of personal debt exceeding the trillion pound mark in July 2004. Previous cycles of economic decline have seen a combination of high interest rates and unemployment; affecting mortgage holders especially. This time around, however, 18 to 25 year olds are reporting difficulties with repaying their credit card debts and other personal loans. According to the UK charity, the Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS), there has been a rapid rise in the percentage of 18 to 25 year olds reporting with debt liability problems, doubling from 6% to 13% since 2002. The CCCS reported that the average amount of money owed by under-25's who contacted them has gone up from