Problem Debt Significantly Affecting Mental Health of British Columbians, Consumers Waiting Longer to Seek Help – 12th Annual BC Consumer Debt Study

40% of individuals polled say they waited more than two years to seek professional debt help, even as almost 4 in 5 say being in debt caused their mental health to suffer. Credit cards reported as number one type of problem debt for consumers.

Article content

Article content

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Jan. 20, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Sands & Associates, BC’s largest firm of Licensed Insolvency Trustees focused on consumer debt help, released findings from its 12^th annual BC Consumer Debt Study today, a unique survey detailing consumer debt problems in the province.

Article content

The annual study focuses on exposing the causes and effects of problem debt on British Columbians – polling over 2,100 individuals who recently made an insolvency (formal debt relief) filing in BC. As President of Sands & Associates, Blair Mantin, explains:

“This year’s study clearly illustrates that it’s time for a conversation about the significant, and severe, mental health impacts of too much debt. Consumers in BC are dealing with extremely high daily costs and are feeling squeezed on all sides, often leading to accumulated debt. What’s most concerning is that people are suffering longer than ever before reaching out for help, many spending more than 2 years living in a debt nightmare that impacts nearly every aspect of their life. We see firsthand how demoralizing overwhelming debt can be and we feel it is one of our most important responsibilities to shine a light on these issues – and the solutions. No one should be suffering in problem debt alone.”

Click here to read the 2024 BC Consumer Debt Study report in PDF format

PDFs accompanying this announcement are available at:

Article content

Article content

http://ml.globenewswire.com/Resource/Download/ed8691df-7336-487d-a6a4-74b48711f3d1

http://ml.globenewswire.com/Resource/Download/4c42038f-6298-4588-9e21-1c68712bcffd

How British Columbians Are Getting into Debt

While roughly one-quarter (27%) of BC consumers polled said their debt issue was due to overextended credit due to general financial mismanagement, most of the top-reported causes of problem debt were connected to conditions or events outside of an individual’s immediate control:

• Nearly 1 in 4 people said the direct main cause of their debt was using credit for essential costs of living income could not cover (24%).
• Illness, injury or health-related problems (11%), marital or relationship breakdown (7%) and job-related issues (7%) made up the remaining top five direct main causes of debt identified by survey participants.

Credit card balances and payday loans continue to overwhelm consumers. These two types of debt are often identified by Licensed Insolvency Trustees as high risk due to the costs of borrowing:

• Over half of people polled (56%) indicated credit card debt was the main type of debt they had. Credit card debt was cited as the primary issue more than 4.5 times more often than the next leading type of debt.
• Payday (or instalment) loans were the second-most reported (12%) type of problem debt for consumers, similar to the proportion of people whose debt problem was caused by balances owing to the Canada Revenue Agency for tax debt (12%).

Article content

The largest cohort of participants (36%) said they had $25,000-$49,999 of debt (excluding vehicle loans/mortgages) when they made a Consumer Proposal or filed for personal bankruptcy, and nearly 30% of all individuals polled described their credit rating at this time as ranging from ‘good’ to ‘excellent’.

How Personal Debt is Impacting British Columbians

The BC Consumer Debt Study series demonstrates the staggering effects that financial difficulties cause consumers, with impacts felt on emotional and physical levels by nearly all individuals surveyed:

• Almost 4 in 5 people (79%) said their mental
  health suffered because of being in debt, and 3 in 5 individuals (60%) said their self-esteem suffered by being in debt.
• Close to half (48%) of respondents said being in debt caused their physical health to suffer.
• Nearly a third (32%) of consumers said their relationships suffered as a result of being in debt, and 29% said they had to put life events on hold being in debt.
• Over 4 in 5 people (84%) said they had a constant worry about debt, 78% had anxiety, 69% feelings of helplessness or hopelessness, and 61% had depression because of debt stress.
• Roughly 1 in 7 individuals said they experienced suicidal ideation because of their debt-stress.

Article content

More than 7 in 10 people surveyed (72%) said overwhelming stress was how they knew their debts were becoming a problem. Other top signs of a debt problem as reported by consumers polled included: Only making minimum payments (58%); seeing debt balances remain almost the same every month, despite making payments (55%).

British Columbians Waiting Longer to Seek Debt Help

Realizing that most people suffer considerably with their debt issues, it is particularly concerning that the length of time consumers are delaying seeking debt help has increased dramatically in the past six years.

• 41% of individuals polled in the 2024 BC Consumer Debt Study said they waited more than two years before seeking help – a 51% increase since the 2018 BC Consumer Debt Study.

Most survey participants (62%) say they waited to seek professional debt help because they wanted to manage debt on their own, and more than half (54% and 51% respectively) said they waited because they felt ashamed they couldn’t handle the debts they incurred or were embarrassed to ask for help.

With aim to promote open conversation, understanding, and reassurance that support and solutions are available, Sands & Associates strongly encourages readers to explore further insights revealed by the 2024 BC Consumer Debt Study, including how individuals attempted to manage their debt, how these experiences have impacted their financial attitudes and outlooks, and more.

Blair Mantin, Licensed Insolvency Trustee
778-735-0498
[email protected]

Article content