Budgeting 'can reduce Christmas debt problems'
Published On 14 November 2007
Consumers hoping to avoid slipping into debt over the Christmas period should think about setting a budget at the start of December, an industry expert has said.Figures released earlier this year by moneyexpert.co.uk indicated that UK consumers were still paying off the £11.4billion they put on credit at Christmas by the time Easter arrived.
However, James Falla, director of Thomas Charles, said that it was possible to avoid long-term debts over the holiday.
"In terms of trying to avoid getting into debt, the first thing to do is to understand your budget," he explained.
"The easiest way to do that is to do a bit a personal budgeting, look at your monthly money coming in and your expenses going out and then work out what you have available after that for your Christmas spending.
"Plan to save at the beginning of the month. Work out what your income expenditure is and work out what you can save."
Figures from Lloyds TSB recently showed that 59 per cent of consumers expect to overspend and get into debt over Christmas.
