Christmas on the credit card is seen as the main reason why many British people will be feeling the pinch in 2017.
A survey by uSwitch found that 85% of people will be paying off credit card debts in the New Year. This could lead to people being more conservative about their spending as they look to reduce those debts.
Worse still the deadline for Self Assessment tax returns is looming large for the country’s growing number of self-employed workers and this could well produce a spike in business debt to start the year.
People have seen the average amount of debt on their credit cards reach £636 which has left 65% of all those surveyed becoming concerned about how much they owe.
Even before Christmas, household credit debt levels had reached record levels which led to warnings from the governor of the Bank of England that things had started to get out of hand.
2017 already promises to be a tough year for businesses with uncertainty over Britain leaving the EU and how this might increase inflation.
With many businesses relying on demand from consumers it would be wise for business owners to take steps to recover debts early to avoid problems later on.