Londoners expected to turn to debt charities after Christmas spending
It's as polling found 28% of people said they would struggle to pay for Christmas
January is the busiest month for debt support charities, after the high spending Christmas season, according to debt charity Step Change.
Last month, polling by Step Change and YouGov found over 1 in 4 people, equivalent to 14.5 million brits, said they would struggle to afford last Christmas.
One in 12 admitted they would rely on credit, such as pay day loans, to fund their festive spending. Of those doing so, 47% of them admitted it would take more than 6 months to repay these loans.
Richard Lane is Chief Client Officer at StepChange Debt Charity working in London.
He explained why winter is such an expensive time for people.
"December is a very expensive time. Lots of celebrating, wanting to give your family a good Christmas.
"We know energy bills are higher during the winter and they are still are at very high levels. We still see energy bills at around 3 times what they were 3 years ago".
Richard told us, even though January is still StepChange's busiest month, they're seeing demand rise across the year.
"We've seen a lot of busy months over the last few years with the cost of living crisis, but January is the month where lots of people are coming to us.
"This does mean that we are busy but if you are worried, we are here to help".
StepChange says that, whilst not all debt is bad, there are some key signs of financial distress to look out for.
"Are you worried about making payments at the end of the month? Are you having sleepless nights? Is it causing you anxiety?
"If that is what is happening when you have money that you owe, then it might be a sign that you're in financial distress and you should be reaching out".
Richard did explain Christmas debt isn't the only reason why January is a busy time for StepChange. He said, often, they get people contacting them to make a positive change at the start of the new year.
"We see lots of people get into January and think 'right, new years resolution I am going to get on top of my finances and I am going to make a positive change'
"That is a really positive step and we would urge people to do that if they are worried".