Citation
(2012), "Over 400,000 people over the age of 70 are struggling to make ends meet", Quality in Ageing and Older Adults, Vol. 13 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/qaoa.2012.55913baa.010
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2012, Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Over 400,000 people over the age of 70 are struggling to make ends meet
Article Type: News and events From: Quality in Ageing and Older Adults, Volume 13, Issue 2
Research commissioned for debt charity Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS) has found that hundreds of thousands of people over the age of 70 are struggling to make ends meet, many with debt problems. The charity is warning that the plight of older people with financial problems is particularly challenging due to their limited options in increasing income and social care costs.
Conducted for the charity by the Financial Inclusion Centre, the research identified 427,000 households in the over-70 age groups as “already in financial difficulty”, either three months behind with a debt repayment or subject to some form of debt action such as insolvency or “at risk” of falling behind.
CCCS says that the situation among the over 70s is likely to deteriorate considerably over the next year as they struggle with continuing budget pressures such as inflation. The research found that 30 percent of its clients aged 70-74, 23 percent of those aged 75-79 and 22 percent of those aged 80 and over would have no money to repay their debts once they have covered the cost of living expenses at the end of the month if their monthly income was reduced by £50.
CCCS director of external affairs Delroy Corinaldi said: “While most people would hope to have paid off their mortgage and other debts by the time they are 70, this is a distant dream for a significant number of older people… Old age brings its own added expenses, and so the key message for anyone retired who is struggling to cope with existing debts is to seek free advice from a debt charity as soon as possible.”
Financial Inclusion Centre is an independent research and policy innovation think-tank dedicated to promoting financial inclusion and fair, efficient, competitive and accountable financial markets. For general information on the Centre’s work please see: www.inclusioncentre.org.uk
The CCCS free phone helpline 0800 138 1111 is open 8 am-8 pm, Monday to Friday. See also: www.cccs.co.uk