A debt map of the UK has showed the 16.9% of people in the North West are over-indebted and struggle to keep on top of their debts.
Renters, young people, single parent families and those with three or more children are most likely to be affected by debt.
Renters are more likely to be over indebted, especially those in social housing. 29% of those with a debt problem lived in social housing, whilst 21% of people are housed with private landlords.
Parents ARE 50 per cent more likely to be in problem debt than those without children, with the figures rising further for those with three or more children.
Single parents are also more likely to be over-indebted and 28 per cent fit into this category while the figure drops to 18 per cent for two-parent families.
There are 3.8 million single-parent families in the UK and the more children the higher the likelihood of being over indebted.
Whilst the North West does have a relatively high rate of over-indebtedness – none of the local councils feature in the top 10 most over-indebted local authorities.
Caroline Siarkiewicz, head of debt advice at the Money Advice Service said of its report: ‘This research breaks new ground, providing us with the most up-to-date look at levels of problem debt across the UK.
‘We estimate that 8.2 million UK adults suffer with financial worries – with younger adults, larger families and single parents noticeably at higher risk.
‘We know that debt advice works but currently, only one in five people with financial difficulties seek advice. Today we are calling on everyone with problem debt or money worries, no matter how large or small, to access free advice as soon as possible.’