Recently released research from the Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS) has shown the parts of the UK with the largest personal debt.
In 2010 the average debt level was £19,338 on unsecured credit. Shetland had the lowest debt levels while Slough had the highest.
Average Debt Levels
Scotland - £17,069
North East - £18,254
North West - £18,656
Yorkshire - £18,180
Northern Ireland - £18,855
East Midlands - £19,524
West Midlands - £18,210
Wales - £18,472
South West - £20,326
South East - £21,581
London - £19,789
East of England - £20,708
Debt Hotspots
Shetland had the lowest average debt - £12,278
Birmingham had the highest total debt of a post code are - £75m
Crewe had the highest debt levels outside of London/SE - £23,177
Slough had the highest average debt levels in the UK - £24,946
Which? debt expert Martyn Saville commented: 'The surprising thing about these new statistics isn't that the south east of England has the highest personal debt levels, but how uniform the broad debt levels are across the country. Once you factor in regional differences in salaries and house prices, as well as job insecurity and high food and fuel inflation, it's arguably those areas outside the south east that are at greatest risk from unmanageable debt. If you're struggling with your finances, it's best to seek independent advice sooner rather than later.'
