Citizens Advice issues stark warning as 2,670 people seek debt help every day in first week of the year
Citizens Advice helped more than 400,000 people with debt problems in 2025, up nearly 45% since the cost of living crisis took hold in 2021, while the average amount owed has soared 36% from £6,500 to a staggering £8,900
January remains the busiest month, with more than 50,000 people contacting Citizens Advice for help with debt in January 2025, 10% more than the monthly average of 46,000
One in three (35%) people trapped in problem debt have been unable to buy essentials like food in the last six months
The charity shares its expert advice to help people stressed about post-Christmas debt and calls on the government to improve a vital lifeline to help them get back on track
Citizens Advice is issuing a stark warning as a staggering 13,300 people turned to the charity for help with debt in the first working week of 2026 alone.
January already marks the busiest month for debt enquiries. In January 2025 more than 50,000 people got in touch with Citizens Advice for help with debt - the equivalent of more than 2,300 every day, and 10% more than the monthly average of 46,000.
But the charity’s advisers are bracing themselves for numbers to rise even further as the month goes on - last year’s peak was 21st January, with 3,630 people reaching out for help in a single day.
These pressures are unfolding against a backdrop of deepening financial hardship:
More than 400,000 people sought help from Citizens Advice with debt problems in 2025, up nearly 45% from 282,560 in 2021 when the cost of living crisis began
Over the same period, average total debt jumped by 36% from £6,500 to almost £9,000
Meanwhile new polling commissioned by the charity shows the real impact behind these numbers. In the last six months, one in three (35%) of those trapped in problem debt* have been unable to buy essentials like food, while nearly one in five (20%) have had their phone, gas or electricity cut off
Citizens Advice said that the government’s Breathing Space scheme - designed to give people temporary protection from creditors while they get advice and make a plan - could be a vital lifeline for people in serious debt, but simply isn’t working. The scheme was launched in 2021, but so far take-up has been just over 10% of what the government expected. Awareness is also low - just under one in four (24%) people in problem debt said they had heard about Breathing Space, according to Citizens Advice research.
And worryingly - like in Angela’s case (below) - some creditors don’t even comply with the rules.
Angela’s story: “I dreaded hearing the letterbox going”
Angela** fell into debt in 2025 as a result of expensive vet treatment when her cat was poorly. Angela, who is in her 60s and is currently in remission from cancer, lives with her adult daughter, who is also her carer. They often went without essentials to make monthly debt payments and were sometimes forced to resort to food banks. Angela’s mobile phone was cut off for a fortnight after she missed a payment, making her reluctant to leave the house in case of emergency.
She said: “It affected us both quite badly. We’ve both had a lot more headaches and that’s down to tension, the stress and worry.
“We’ve had to go without essentials, just buying the minimum amount of food we need. My friend took me to the food bank. I felt embarrassed but she said, ‘Don’t be embarrassed about needing help.’ So did the lady at the food bank. They were absolutely wonderful.”
Recognising they needed to take action, Angela and her daughter sought advice and applied for Breathing Space. Most creditors were understanding, but some completely ignored the scheme and continued to aggressively pursue Angela and her daughter by text, email, letter and phone. One catalogue company called them up to four times a day and sometimes at night.
She said: “We had phone calls, letters, emails, texts. There are a few nights where I’ve cried in the bathroom because I don’t like to worry my daughter. It gets to you. I dreaded hearing the letterbox going. It’s very stressful, especially when you can’t do anything about it.
“It’s not on when you’re worried about where your next meal’s coming from, to be harassed all day, every day for money you’ve told them you don’t have.”
Anne Pardoe, Head of Policy at Citizens Advice said:
“It’s clear the cost of living crisis hasn’t gone away. Millions of people are battling to keep their heads above water.
“It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by money worries, especially in January. But the most important thing to remember is that you’re not alone and there is help available.
“It’s crucial that the government’s upcoming review of Breathing Space - promised by May 2026 - makes a real difference, and is not just a box-ticking exercise. Some simple changes, like offering longer protection and harsher punishments for creditors who break the rules, would help more people get back on track.”
Citizens Advice’s top tips on what to do if you’re worried about debt:
Collect and organise all debt-related documents to create a comprehensive list of all your debts
If you’re behind on household bills, prioritise paying your rent or mortgage, plus energy bills and Council Tax first. Not paying these bills has the most serious consequences
It might feel overwhelming when you see all of your debts written down - but try not to worry, the important thing is that you're sorting them out
You can then contact creditors to discuss options to deal with the debt
We know that times are incredibly tough but please remember, you don’t have to face this alone, do contact Citizens Advice to help you find a way forward. We can help to check eligibility for benefits and financial support and give advice on next steps
-ends-
We give people the knowledge and confidence they need to find their way forward - whoever they are, and whatever their problem.
Notes to editors:
*‘Problem debt’ is based on the definition used for people needing debt advice in the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) Debt Needs Survey 2023. This includes people who are behind on at least one priority bill, are facing early or late-stage creditor action, or are using credit to pay for essentials. Specifically, meeting at least one of these criteria:
In the last 6 months have experienced: a court summons from the people you owe money to, being contacted by bailiffs, being evicted from your home, having your home repossessed
Currently behind on one priority bill (for example, rent or mortgage, loans secured against their home, council tax) and experienced a negative impact from this (for example, being unable to buy essentials) or using high cost credit
Currently behind on more than one priority bills
** Name changed to protect privacy
Data taken from Casebook (Citizens Advice’s case management system for its advice services across England and Wales) on 5th January 2026 reflecting client cases between 1st January and 31st December 2025, and 1st January and 31st December 2021.
Citizens Advice helped 407,416 people in England and Wales with debt problems during 2025, up 44.2% from 282,564 in 2021.
Citizens Advice helped 50,820 people with debt problems in January 2025, a percentage increase calculated for the monthly average of 46,107. And 70% more than the 29,967 people helped with debt in January 2021.
Citizens Advice supported 13,365 people in the first working week of January (5th-9th) 2026, compared to 7,736 in the first working week of 2021 (4th-9th January 2021). Data accessed on 12th January.
Figure for average number of people helped with debt calculated using Casebook data for 1st-31st January 2025, accessed 12th January, and the number of working days in January 2025.
Busiest day for debt client enquiries in 2025 from Casebook data, accessed 8th January 2026
Data on Citizens Advice clients average debt levels. Debt clients are people who come to Citizens Advice for help managing their debts. Our advisers carry out a budget assessment with the client to help them make a sustainable repayment plan for their debts, and this assessment will include recording debt, income and expenditure information. These figures relate to the increase in average total debt our debt clients had from £6,557.53 between January and December 2021 to £8932.90 in the same period in 2025.
Citizens Advice commissioned Opinium to survey 2,000 adults in England & Wales in problem debt, based on the definition used for people needing debt advice in the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) Debt Needs Survey 2023. We focused on those who are expected to definitely need debt advice, based on the MaPS definition. This includes people who are behind on at least one priority bill, facing early or late-stage creditor action, or are using credit to pay for essentials. Fieldwork took place between 26 September and 15 October 2025. Results were weighted to be representative of adults in problem debt according to targets from the Money and Pension Service 'Debt Need Survey 2023' on gender, age, region, home tenure, and ethnicity. To accurately assess how people in problem debt might perceive Breathing Space, questions relating to this were asked to those who had not used the scheme or were not about to enter it. This gives a new unweighted base of 1,868 adults (with a weighted base of 1870) for questions about Breathing Space.
HM Treasury forecast 851,000 applications during the first year of Breathing Space in 2021, rising to 1.45m by 2030-31. In reality, an average of just 87,000 to 88,000 people are using it per year. See Breathing Space impact assessment and individual insolvency figures.
Citizens Advice is made up of the national charity Citizens Advice; the network of independent local Citizens Advice charities across England and Wales; the Citizens Advice consumer service; and the Witness Service.
Our network of charities offers impartial advice online, over the phone, and in person, for free.
Citizens Advice helped 2.68 million people face to face, over the phone, by email and webchat in 2023-24. And we had 51.7 million visits to our website. For full service statistics see our monthly publication Advice trends.
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