- Overindebtedness - Nature And Extent
There have been numerous studies conducted into credit and debt in
the U.K. during the past two decades. Of these, 'Credit and Debt - The
PSI Report' (PSI Report) is probably the most comprehensive. The PSI
report is based upon a detailed survey into 2,200 households' and 160
non-householders', use of credit and experience of debt, undertaken in
1979.
Although the findings are now 12 years out of date, the reports main
findings on the six main explanatory factors for debt still appear to
hold, namely: poverty, changing circumstances, Overcommitment, money
management, reluctance to pay, and creditors' actions. The PSI
report's analysis highlighted that 'none of these factors led to a high
risk of debt on its own. It was a combination of characteristics which
led to (debt) problems.'
