March 20-26 is National Debt Awareness Week, and this year charity StepChange is focusing its attention on people who need debt advice for the first time in the cost of living crisis.
The toxic cocktail of spiralling energy bills, rising food costs and rising mortgage rates have meant that many households are struggling to stretch their income to meet their outgoings - and plunging into debt just to make ends meet. A survey by credit management company Lowell found that one in five (22%) Brits claimed that the cost of living crisis is having an impact on them accumulating debt, but 32% of people find it too uncomfortable to discuss finance issues.
John Pears, UK managing director of Lowell UK said “The cost of living crisis is having a huge impact on many households, and in such an intense financial period, we want to ensure that people are as well-equipped as possible to handle and discuss their finances, so that they don’t have a heavy influence on accruing debt. We want to help break down the stigma surrounding money and people asking for help because it’s very difficult to learn about money matters when you’re discouraged from talking about them."
