A charity in Rutland are telling us that people are worried they won't cope with the increase in bills
It comes as water, energy and council tax are set to rise from today
A charity in Rutland say the increase in bills could put more people in debt.
It's comes after StepChange, a debt charity, found arrears on household bills have surged by 25% among those seeking debt advice.
This could get even worst for people with increases to water, energy and council tax from today.
I think it's going to have a huge impact on people
Clare Bryan, deputy CEO of Citizens Advice Rutland, said:
"I think it's going to have a huge impact on people."
"Those that are on low incomes and receiving means-tested benefits will see the majority of them increase by 1.7%."
"So whilst that is a small increase, it's not enough to cover the expenses that people are going to incur, and things are just getting more and more expensive."
"It can get bad quite quickly."
"Council tax, for example – if you miss a payment, you will get a letter reminding you, and that can escalate quite quickly to having a bailiff on your door."
"If you're struggling to pay your rent and your council tax and you get into arrears, you then get further charges because you're in those arrears, and then it becomes a vicious circle."
"We know that poverty equals poor mental health and poor physical health."
It can get bad quite quickly
The StepChange said its average client was £3,911 in arrears on household bills, up from £3,124 in 2023.
Overall, the average amount of debt for each StepChange client jumped 7%, from £16,706 in 2023 to £17,936 last year.
Mortgage arrears saw the most dramatic rise, soaring by 69% from £6,054 in 2023 to £10,239.