15 January 2008
Britons indebted through excessive usage of personal loans and credit cards should be provided with government-backed financial counselling, Citizens Advice said today.
The charity said that it would like to see a nationwide roll-out of its Moneyplan service, which is currently being trialled in 28 of its Bureaux.
Moneyplan is a partnership between Citizens Advice and the Personal Finance Society, which sees independent financial advisers (IFAs) volunteering free advice for debtors.
According to the charity, a wide variety of people have been using the scheme, including retirees and those made suddenly redundant.
Jackie Nowell, Head of Partnership Development for Citizens Advice said: "The results so far of partnering Citizens Advice Bureaux with IFAs in the Moneyplan project indicate both that there is a need for a national Generic Financial Advice service - and that this is an effective model for delivering it.
"The range of issues presented to the IFAs is broad, but it appears that there is particular demand from those who may own their own homes, but have low incomes: this evidence emphasises that there is a gap in provision which needs to be addressed.
Figures from Credit Action show that current levels of personal debt in the UK are approaching £1.4 trillion.
Including mortgage payments, each household in the UK holds £56,000 of debts.
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