By Lucy Palmer-Richeson
A debt charity has revealed that the area where it has received the most cries for help this summer is in Denbighshire in North Wales.
Citizens Advice reported that they dealt with 405 clients in Denbighshire between July and September of this year, which equates to 0.54% of the adult population.
Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales came in a close second, with 0.53% (248) of its adult residents seeking financial help in the same period.
Other areas where Citizens Advice reported large numbers of clients seeking help included Stoke-on-Trent, Middlesbrough, Lincoln, Stevenage, North and South Tyneside, Gateshead Liverpool, Hastings and Barrow-in-Furness and Darlington.
According to Citizens Advice, consumer debt complaints regarding credit cards, store cards and personal loans have dropped considerably, while concerns about priority debts, such as council tax and rent arrears, are increasingly more common since the financial crisis.
Gillian Guy, chief executive of Citizens Advice, said: “Times have changed, and so have people’s debt problems.
“Consumer debts like credit cards and personal loans have traditionally been the most common debt problems that come through our doors. But now priority debts such as council tax arrears are gradually building up as people struggle to cover everyday costs,” she said.
She continued: “In the past, people were more likely to get help for debt problems triggered by life events such as illness, redundancy or separation.
“But in recent years more people are being pushed into debt as they struggle to stretch their income to cover everyday living costs.”