Problem debt: number of households affected rises by a quarter

New research finds 3.2 million families spent at least 25% of their gross monthly pay servicing unsecured debt in 2014

The number of households struggling with problem debt grew by a quarter between 2012 and last year, as stagnating wages forced a growing number to borrow to get by, according to the TUC.

By 2014, 3.2 million families were spending at least 25% of their gross monthly pay on servicing unsecured debts, the definition of problem debt. The figure for 2012 was 2.5 million, according to research commissioned by the TUC and Unison.