A watchdog said on Friday that Most Uk adults find it as a heavy burden or somewhat of a burden to pay their bills as a cost of living crisis bites.
According to the watchdog, nearly 32 million people, or 60 per cent of all UK adults find it as aburden.
They are faced with challenges like rising food and fuel prices, with inflation now topping 10 per cent, far higher than most pay increases.
The latest Financial Lives survey of the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) said that the total was up 6 million from 2020, when the economy went into lockdown to fight the Coronavirus pandemic.
According to the survey, 4.2 million people were missing domestic bills or credit repayments in three or more of the last six months, up from 3.8 million in 2020.
One in four UK adults are in financial difficulty or could quickly find themselves in difficulty if they suffered a financial shock, the watchdog said in a statement.
Furthermore, the survey found out that 27 per cent of Black people said they found it a heavy burden to keep up with bills, compared with 15 per cent of all UK adults.
The watchdog added that banks are already been reminded on how to support customers in financial difficulty, who should contact providers in the first instance to discuss options.
The FCA said its survey is the largest of its kind, with more than 19,000 people interviewed between February and June this year.