In Focus Consumer Credit


So much more than a maths problem


A new report shows the true impact of problem debt, and points to pathways to improve the situation for troubled customers


Dawn Stobart Director of external affairs, Christians Against Poverty dawnstobart@capuk.org


In March of this year, we released our annual client report, Bringing Restoration To Desolate Homes. The report reveals the shocking reality of UK poverty and the devastating impact it is having on thousands of households. In 2017, with consumer credit closing in


on 2008 levels, combined with a rise in the number of priority debts, the result was that more people than ever sought debt advice. But, debt is rarely found in isolation. Debt,


combined with inescapable life events can cause desolation, emotional turmoil and further financial hardship. As one of our clients, Katie, said: “I was


at risk of losing more than my home, I was going to lose my family.” Katie had been


struggling in financial hardship a long time before she arrived at this very real possibility.


More than finance Katie’s story started when she went to university, she was going to study nursing and had her whole life ahead of her. She knew that managing money, as


a student, was going to be a challenge. Because of her nursing bursary she was not able to access a government student loan and this meant she struggled to cover her costs. She started running up credit-card debts,


as well as her overdraft, and came to the realisation that she could not afford to attend university, so she dropped out.


“I eventually dropped out of uni, so then had a nursing bursary to repay,” she said. “I am the sort of person who always puts on a brave face, so when I tried talking about my mental health, I was not believed, which made matters worse.”


“I eventually dropped out of uni, so then


had a nursing bursary to repay,” she said. “I am the sort of person who always puts on a brave face, so when I tried talking about my mental health, I was not believed, which made matters worse.” When Katie met Andy, neither of them


were in a good place. Neither of them were able to hold down


jobs for long, which meant their incomes were volatile and, as a result, their lives were chaotic. Managing spending is a challenge for


46% of our clients, due to their payment schedule. They hid their debts from each other


and continued to take out credit, which caused further arguments and mistrust.


May 2018 www.CCRMagazine.com >> 25


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