YouGov & Equifax Poll: 16% of Britons take credit with no intention to repay…

New Equifax research* identifies consumer attitudes to repaying their debts

London, November 2014

New YouGov research commissioned by credit information provider, Equifax, sheds light on consumer attitudes to repaying debts.
The survey of 2,010 people found:

16% of Britons have taken out credit with no intention of paying it back, and half of those would consider repeating the behaviour – becoming serial non-payers.
Men are more than twice as likely to repeat the practice, compared to women at 11% and 5% respectively.
11% of 35-44 year olds have taken this action and would do it again compared to 5% of 18-25 year olds, the lowest percentage of all the age groups surveyed.
10% of those in employment have taken out credit with no intention of paying any or all of it back, compared to 17% of unemployed people.
In total, 19% of people answered that they would consider taking out (or had taken out) credit with no intention of paying any or all of it back. 31% of these people said that this would most likely be (or had been) prompted by a difficult financial situation.
Of all those who said they have taken credit with no intention of paying it back, 9% said they would not care about the consequences of paying it back. This was the answer provided by 12% of men and 5% of women.

More results of the poll can be seen below

Members of the public were asked:

“Please think about taking out credit and having no intention of paying any or all of it back yourself…Which ONE of the following statements BEST applies to you?” to which the responses were as below:

I have done this before, and would consider doing it again in the future

8% Total
11% Male, 5% Female
5% 18-24, 9% 25-34, 11% 35-44, 10% 45-54, 6% 55+
10% Working full or part time, 5% Full time student, 4% Retired, 17% Unemployed, 3% Not working/ Other.

I have done this before, but would not consider doing it again in the future

8% Total
7% Male, 9% Female
3% 18-24, 8% 25-34, 8% 35-44, 8% 45-54, 8% 55+
8% Working full or part time, 1% Full time student, 5% Retired, 7% Unemployed, 15% Not working/ Other.

I have not done this before, but would consider doing it in the future

3% Total
4% Male, 2% Female
7% 18-24, 4% 25-34, 3% 35-44, 3% 45-54, 2% 55+
4% Working full or part time, 10% Full time student, 1% Retired, 4% Unemployed, 1% Not working/ Other.

I have not done this before, and would not consider doing it in the future

19% of the above were asked which would be reasons for taking or considering taking credit with no intention of paying any or all of it back

I was/ if I was in a difficult financial situation and needed to focus on the short-term need for the money, rather than long-term requirement to pay it back

31% Total
28% Male, 33% Female
39% 25-34, 29% 35-44, 29% 45-54, 25% 55+
29% Working full or part time, 9% Retired.

I didn’t/ if I didn’t care about the consequences of not paying any or all of it back

9% Total
12% Male, 5% Female
10% 25-34, 8% 35-44, 12% 45-54, 6% 55+
8% Working full or part time, 9% Retired.

I planned/ if I planned to move abroad and thought I wouldn’t have to pay any or all of it back

3% Total
2% Male, 3% Female
1% 25-34, 2% 35-44, 3% 45-54, 4% 55+
1% Working full or part time, 10% Retired,.

*All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 2010 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 6th and 7th November 2014. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+).

The Equifax Credit Report and Score is accessible for 30 days free. If customers do not cancel before the end of the 30 Day Free Trial, the service will continue at £14.95 per month, giving them unlimited online access to their credit information and weekly alerts on any changes to their credit file. It also includes an online dispute facility to help them correct any errors on their credit file simply and quickly.