Fewer people have issues paying debt, but many have multiple problems

The number of Netherlands residents with current debts decreased last year, and along with that, the number of people struggling to pay their debts. But tens of thousands of people are facing multiple arrears, according to Stichting BKR, the foundation that keeps track of debts in the Netherlands.

Last year, 7.8 million people had 11.7 million current consumer loans in the Netherlands, compared to 8.0 million people with 12.3 million loans a year earlier.

The number of people with payment arrears decreased from 469,000 at the end of 2021 to 439,000 in December last year. The number of people with a debt arrangement or municipal credit dropped from 46,000 to 41,000. That is less than 10 percent of the people with payment arrears. The foundation called it “worth investigating” how the other 90 percent manage to make ends meet.

“We see that the number of payment arrears is decreasing, as is the number of debt arrangements. That seems to be at odds with the current financial challenges for many vulnerable households in the Netherlands,” Stichting BKR chairman Peter van Bosch said.

The number of loans with arrears decreased from 667,000 to 619,000. “That means that there is a group of several tens of thousands of people who are struggling with multiple arrears,” the foundation said. The number of arrears compared to the number of loans also shows that arrears have increased in relative terms. According to the foundation, that increase is particularly visible among young people up to age 30.

“The financial resilience of young people seems to be decreasing,” Van Bosch said. “Young people generally still have few financial reserves,s o increasing arrears may be an indication of more problems. Obviously, this requires further research.”

Limburg, Twente, and Achterhoek count the most residents with debt to their names. However, the payment morale in these regions is excellent because the number of people with arrears is no higher than average.

Rotterdam and its surrounding municipalities of Schiedam, Vlaardingen, and Capelle aan den Ijssel, and The Hague, Almere, and Lelystad count the most residents with payment arrears. Rozendaal, a pricey municipality north of Arnhem, has the fewest residents with payment arrears.