Debt and social misery: the flipside of Britain's financial services boom: "According to a survey published by YouGov for the debt management agency Thomas Charles, more than one million people could be on the verge of bankruptcy. One in five adults—eight million people—has unsecured debts of more than £10,000 (US$17,000), and 1.7 million people often struggle to keep up with debt repayments, with more than half of them having problems meeting their obligations every month.
Young people are by far the worst affected, with under-25s representing 61 percent of those with debts of between £10,000 and £30,000. More than a third of those surveyed said that debt was having an adverse effect on their health or relationships, while 8 percent said that it had made them clinically depressed.
Home repossessions rose by 70 percent last year, as house prices soared and people borrowed more than they could afford.
Record numbers of people are ringing help lines. The Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) said that the number seeking help with debt management had doubled in the last eight years, and accounted for three quarters of the 1.25 million new debt cases that the charity dealt with every year. Young people and the elderly are particularly vulnerable. Women over 60 are the fastest growing group seeking advice."
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