Debt levels are rising fastest among retired people and those who are nearing retirement, states the charity Consumer Credit Counselling Services (CCCS). The average sum owed by clients aged 60 or over who have contacted CCCS in the past year is £33,568, a 25 per cent increase on the previous year.

Gordon Lishman, the head of Age Concern, says:
“People who have relied on credit cards while working may experience a large drop in income when they retire but still have outstanding balances and/or continue to use their cards. Inadequate pension provision and changes in circumstances, such as illness and disability, divorce and bereavement, can all contribute to debt problems in retirement”.

Mr Lishman said that older people should check that they are receiving all the benefits to which they are entitled. However, official figures uncovered by the Liberal Democrats show that more than two million eligible retired people are not claiming council tax benefit of more than £1.2 billion a year.

The Department of Work and Pensions sniffily replied that many of the non-claimants were probably missing out on “very small sums of money”.

Depends on one’s definition of small, I guess.

Posted on behalf of Janet Harris