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Use of OFT's debt counselling service reaches seven-year high

Tue, 27 Feb 2018

The Isle of Man Office of Fair Trading says the number of people using its debt counselling service is at a seven-year high.

177 new clients sought help from the OFT in 2017, with 49 making contact in the final three months of the year.

Those seeking help in 2017 owed a total of over £2.6m, more than a quarter of which was owed on credit cards.

Personal loans made up almost 18% of the figure owed, while overdrafts and bank loans accounted for around 10%.

The organisation is urging Manx residents to think twice before using their credit cards or running up catalogue debt, and warns that store cards can be too good to be true.

The debt counselling service can be contacted on 686510 or by emailing debt@gov.im.

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