Debt "more acceptable""
01 October 2007
Having large amounts of personal debt may be more socially acceptable nowadays, but young people must ensure they are in a position to pay back what they have borrowed, the Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS) has warned.
As many young people start university this week and begin to accumulate large student loans and increasing overdrafts, CCCS said that introducing oneself to debt is not necessarily a bad thing as it accustoms people to lending levels.
However it added that people must learn to be financially savvy about their levels of borrowing so as not to spiral into worrying levels of debt.
James Ketchell, a spokesperson from CCCS, said: "Debt has become a lot more acceptable than it was in the past. It's practically impossible to go to university without coming out with some kind of debt.
"Once people are used to the idea of debt then its easier for them in the future, to take up credit cards and personal loans, because the stigma has already been removed by taking out student loans during university."
But he added: "It's important for people to realise that they need to be able to pay back what they are borrowing."
Barclays Bank's most recent graduate debt survey carried out in 2005 found that students are now leaving university with an average of £13,501 worth of debt.
