Thursday 17th of September 2009
Individual voluntary arrangement (IVA) advice could increase in popularity after the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reveals that the employment rate in the UK has plummeted to 72.5 per cent.
The number of available vacancies has fallen and the Jobseekers Allowance claimant count has risen, which could leave many households unable to meet their financial commitments such as credit card bills.
When a family income drops and credit card debts get out of hand, an IVA can rein them back in and merge each plastic balance into a more manageable, monthly repayment.
The figures show that the unemployment rate for the three months to July 2009 stood at 7.9 per cent.
"It has not been higher since the three months to November 1996 and it is up 0.7 over the previous quarter and up 2.3 over the year," the ONS explains.
The Financial Ombudsman recently revealed that during the 2008/09 year ended March 31st, the ombudsman received 18,590 complaints about credit cards, many of which were about default charges bumping up Britons’ debt.
By Kimberley Parsons
- House price rise 'may not indicate recovery'
- Equity release 'needs to be increased'
- Need for IVA help could increase as expert predicts reduction in lending
- Government announces 'breathing space' for those needing IVA help
- Lack of subprime lending creating need for IVA help, expert suggests
- IVA questions may assist those who understand it is 'crucial' to have financial control
