Report: 70 days’ salary on interest alone

Posted 2008-03-9

The average person has to set aside 70 days of their earnings to pay off interest charges on loan and credit card borrowings, new research has suggested.

Unbiased.co.uk has dubbed March 10th Debt Freedom Day in recognition of the lifting of the burden - and despite acknowledging that the day is merely a symbolic date it nonetheless said the study highlighted the gravity of overstretched finances for many Brits.

UK residents will pay some £1.5 billion in interest on debts, the financial website said, with a total of £9.8 billion going towards personal loan repayments and a massive £54.9 billion on credit cards.

David Elms, chief executive of Unbiased.co.uk, said that the findings should serve as a wake-up call for UK consumers.

"This years Debt Freedom Day is a real warning for UK consumers," he said. "Compared to last year we spend almost two months longer this year to pay off the interest of our borrowings and this doesnt even take into account mortgage costs."

The Co-operative Bank recently revealed that the average Brit spends eight days, 18 hours and 36 minutes of each year worrying about debt.

Leave a Reply