Latest Debt News
Brits are Europe's most indebted
08/12/2005 14:13:00
New research has revealed that people in the UK are in more debt than any other European nation.
A study from market analyst Datamonitor shows that the average Briton is £3,035 in debt, spread across overdrafts, loans and credit cards.
This is far more than the next most indebted nation, Germany, where the average debt per person is £2,037, while Italy fares best of all with just £742 owed on average.
Between 2000 and 2004, the UK's unsecured debt has risen by an alarming 41 per cent, compared to just 6.2 per cent in Germany.
The report indicates that borrowing, which was boosted by high consumer confidence and low interest rates, was further bolstered by aggressive action from banks to market credit.
Report author Maya Imberg said: "Attitudes towards borrowing in the UK are very positive and the propensity towards saving is generally quite low. But bank attitudes towards consumer credit have been crucial to the market's development.
"Banks tend to be aggressive in their tactics and offer highly competitive pricing. Moreover, there is a vast range of products available to consumers."
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