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Treasury Select Committee should investigate whether lenders are trapping people in debt

8 November 2017

Today (Wednesday 8 November) the Treasury Select Committee is announcing a new inquiry into household finances.

Welcoming the inquiry, Gillian Guy Chief Executive of Citizens Advice said:

“We welcome the Treasury Select Committee’s decision to investigate the state of the nation’s finances.

“In the past 12 months, Citizens Advice across the country have helped almost 343,000 people with debt problems.

“People’s finances are increasingly stretched with rising prices, stagnant wages and now growing levels of personal debt. Our research shows that lenders are also pushing credit onto people in problem debt without them requesting it, which risks pushing them further into financial difficulty.

“With people facing so many different pressures, it’s important that the Committee not only examines people’s overall financial stability, but whether the behaviour of lenders is trapping people in debt.”

Notes to editors

  1. The Citizens Advice service comprises a network of local Citizens Advice, all of which are independent charities, the Citizens Advice consumer service and national charity Citizens Advice. Together we help people resolve their money, legal and other problems by providing information and advice and by influencing policymakers. For more see the Citizens Advice website.
  2. The advice provided by the Citizens Advice service is free, independent, confidential and impartial, and available to everyone regardless of race, gender, disability, sexual orientation, religion, age or nationality.
  3. To get advice online or find your local Citizens Advice in England and Wales, visit citizensadvice.org.uk
  4. You can get consumer advice from the Citizens Advice consumer service on 03454 04 05 06 or 03454 04 05 05 for Welsh language speakers.
  5. Local Citizens Advice in England and Wales advised 2.5 million clients on 6.2 million problems in 2014/15. For full service statistics see our publication Advice trends.
  6. Citizens Advice service staff are supported by more than 21,000 trained volunteers, working at over 2,500 service outlets across England and Wales.