Debt driven by fuel prices

I went to see some relatives in Scunthorpe recently and a story in the local paper – The Scunthorpe Telegraph – caught my eye.  It said that tourist attractions around the country are suffering low visitor numbers because of the rising cost of fuel.  Quite simply, motorists cannot afford to take their children out for the day, if it means driving them to an attraction, because it costs too much to fill up their petrol tanks.

In July, fuel sales were down by a billion litres, because of the impact that petrol prices are having on the average household budget.  The high petrol prices coincide with smaller wage packets for many, or even redundancy, as firms cut back on their overheads to get to grips with the recession and the effect of public sector spending cuts.

68% of people who responded to a survey on the Motorpoint website apparently said that they would have to curtail their usual visits to attractions this year, because of the price of fuel.  This rang bells in my own head, as I remembered the findings of a Moneyextra.com Facebook poll that said that a quarter of people are currently having to pay for fuel on their credit card, because they cannot afford to fill up their cars with money from their household income.

The fuel situation is most definitely having an impact on many families, both in the short term and probably the long-term. In the short-term, it is becoming the factor that is finally channelling people towards getting debt counselling and debt advice.  Fuel is an absolute necessity for many of us, but we are recognising that if we pay for the fuel that will keep getting us to work, to the shops and on the school run, we simply cannot pay the interest and minimum payment charges required by our creditors.

Those who are avoiding the debt advice route at present and using their credit card to pay for fuel purchase are probably just delaying the day when debt counselling becomes essential, but playing a dangerous game.  Sooner or later, the card is going to be maxed out, but before that day comes, it is likely that there will be missed payments and the accumulation of a massive amount of interest that is only going to make the situation worse. 

The best advice I can give to motorists is to put the brakes on motoring costs if you can, or see a trained debt adviser about your personal debt or budgeting, to see where you can make cuts on your outgoings.  If you cannot afford to make minimum payments to your creditors, you need to get help fast and come to an agreement with them through which you will make reduced payments that you can afford. If you do that, you may be able to carry on motoring to work and to the shops, ensuring your job security and family’s welfare and maybe attractions visits too.