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Major life changes. These
include job loss, relationship breakdown, bereavement, or any ‘big’
disruption in circumstances where individuals borrow money or stop
paying bills, to cope with their new demands.
Onset of illness. Mental and
physical illness can trigger debt, both for people with mental
health problems and carers. Incomes may drop (e.g. resultant job
loss), and expenditure can also rise (e.g. prescription charges, or
travel costs to health services).
Low incomes. Individuals on
lower than average annual incomes are more likely to have
outstanding debts.
Income disruption. Benefit
disruption is a common form of this, as well as not claiming all
the benefits a client is entitled to.
‘Low-income grind’. Living on
a low-income for long periods, debts can accrue. Eventually, the
overall burden of debt becomes too great.
Spending and new
purchases.
Spending can be exacerbated by mental health
problems (e.g. mania and spending sprees). Lots of new
purchases may provide a clue.
Ignored paperwork. Debts can
be ignored or pile-up if individuals withdraw or find communication
difficult.
Creditor pressure. This can
be through pressure to pay debts, automatic credit limit increases
or lender ‘sales persuasion’.
Creditor knowledge. People
may say that creditors don’t understand or take into account their
mental health (3). They may be wrongly seen as difficult or
fraudulent customers and not get the help they need.
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