Debtor social structure survey

In 2007, the proportion of socially deprived debtors fell for the first time in five years. The figure decreased by 1.7 percentage points from 54.5 per cent to 52.8 per cent, indicating a reversal of the negative trend which has persisted since 2002. This is the result of a survey which has been conducted by the financial services provider EOS since 1996. The company surveyed 1288 individuals who had failed to pay their bills despite repeated reminders or titles of execution. Individuals who are considered socially deprived are those in receipt of unemployment benefits and social security benefits, job-seekers not in receipt of financial assistance and prison inmates. 

‘The number of socially deprived debtors has fallen in line with the positive trend on the job market – last year the unemployment rate fell by 1.9 percentage points,’ says Uwe Schmidt, Managing Director of EOS Field Services GmbH. ‘This shows that even those EOS clients’ customers who were financially worse off were able to benefit from the upturn on the employment market.’ This is particularly true for Germany’s western region. In overall terms, the proportion of debtors who are socially deprived there fell by 5.8 percentage points to 45.2 per cent. In the eastern region, on the other hand, the proportion increased slightly by 1.4 percentage points to 59.6 per cent. 

A further positive result of the EOS debtor social structure survey is the decrease of 0.6 percentage points in the proportion of debtors under 25. The proportion of socially deprived among them decreased by 7.8 percentage points. ‘This also mirrors the positive trend on the employment market,’ says Uwe Schmidt. For 2008, however, he expects to see a moderate slowdown in this positive trend as a result of the general economic outlook.

• Here you can download the chart showing the debtor social structure survey free of charge: Picture archive

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