More than 10 million UK adults struggling with bills and credit repayments, UK watchdog warns

Millions of people are now struggling with bill payments amid the cost of living crisis and at risk of falling into the debt trap, the UK regulator has warned.

Woman working at home
(Image credit: © Getty images)

The number of people struggling to make all their bills and credit commitments on time remains concerningly high with one in five people grappling with debt in January 2023, according to the City regulator.

January usually tends to be a month when people particularly struggle with their debts, as bills from Christmas pile up. But the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) says the number of those struggling has increased by 3.1 million since May 2022 - jumping from around 7.8 million in May last year to 10.9 million in January 2023.

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Katie Binns

Katie is deputy editor of Times Money Mentor and long-time contributor to the Sunday Times where she started on the Irish desk in 2012 and spent 10 years covering news, culture, travel, personal finance and celebrity interviews. 

Her investigative work on financial abuse has examined the response of banks, the Financial Ombudsman and the child maintenance service to victims, and resulted in a number of debt and mortgage prisoners being set free - and a nomination for Best Finance Story of the Year at the Headline Money awards in 2021 and 2022. 

Katie was also shortlisted for Freelance Journalist of the Year at the Headline Money awards in 2022, 2023 and 2024 and won Personal Finance Journalist of the Year at The British Bank Awards 2022.