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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Business
Phillip Inman

Debt ‘breathing space’ requests rose 25% last year in England and Wales

England Wales Pandemic The Insolvency Service
A young woman sits at her kitchen table at home checking over the household bills
A standard breathing space is available to people with problem debt and gives legal protections from creditor action for up to 60 days. Photograph: Andrew Aitchison/Alamy

The number of people asking for breathing space from their debts under rules brought in during the Covid-19 pandemic jumped by 25% in 2023 compared with the previous year.

Across England and Wales, there were 88,390 registered debt relief breaks in 2023, up from 70,772 in 2022.

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