1.4m Brits spend a year or more paying off the debt they build up on holiday
Summer holidays taking over a year to pay for
Monday, 30 Jul 2007 16:52
While people might want their summer holiday to go on all year, some 1.4 million Britons are instead spending that long paying for it.
Figures from MoneyExpert.com show not only do that many take at least 12 months to pay for their trip abroad, but another 926,000 take at least a year to pay off money they borrowed to pay for summer 2006 with the average holidaymaker taking 3.8 months to clear the debt.
"Holidays are a time for getting away from it all but too many of us are just getting into debt and building up troubles for the future," said MoneyExpert chief executive Sean Gardner.
Not all holidaymakers spend months paying for their weeks away, some 2.3 million UK residents clear their debts inside a month.
However, Britons aged 45 to 54 are the most likely to take over a year to pay for a summer holiday, with six per cent of this group still in debt from last year when they head to the airport for their new holiday - the national average is three per cent.
"With borrowing costs rising across the board there is real concern that too many people are trapped in a spiral of debt which ultimately threatens to overwhelm them," Mr Gardner said.
"We all deserve a holiday but running up debt is not going to help in the long-run. Lenders are getting tough by increasing interest rates and by cutting back on the amount they will lend. Borrowers need a strategy to control their debts.
"Anyone with debt problems needs to cut the amount they are paying each month and to draw up a plan to become debt-free. That should include switching debts to more competitive credit cards and consolidating debts into a personal loan. In some cases it could include taking out a secured loan if you are a homeowner."