Adverse Mortgages UK

People in Britain are nearly twice as much in debt as their European counterparts, a new study shows.

Research by analyst Datamonitor found that the average British resident now owes £3,175 in unsecured loans, compared with a European average of just £1,558, and the UK consumer credit card market soared to £214 billion last year.

Britain now has the highest level of unsecured personal debt in western Europe, with French and German consumers having particularly low levels of debt. Unsecured lending in Britain now accounts for more than a third of the total for 16 European countries.

The UK now has a debt mountain of around £1.2 trillion and analysts have increasingly expressed concern about levels of consumer debt, particularly in light of the recent quarter point increase in interest rates to 4.75 per cent.

However, consumer credit growth in the rest of Europe, particularly in smaller economies such as Turkey and Greece, is growing at a faster rate than it is in the UK, where some experts have suggested that debt levels are approaching saturation point.

"UK lenders looking for business opportunities should look overseas to realise their expansion plans," Datamonitor financial services analyst, Paul Marsh, said.

"The UK is an increasingly difficult place to do business, due to the highly indebted nature of the population. Yet in other European countries consumers are not as indebted and the markets are not as sophisticated."


© Adfero Ltd

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