Record numbers of Scots were declared bankrupt last year as the effects of the global credit crunch hit, it has been reported.
Accountancy firm PKF analysed figures and revealed that nearly 14,000 people in Scotland became bankrupt – four times the number becoming insolvent ten years ago.
Bryan Jackson, corporate recovery partner at PKF, said the full effects of the credit crunch will not be understood for some time as those who became bankrupt in 2007 are likely to be people who began having trouble in 2005-06.
"What these figures show is that indebtedness in Scotland is continuing to increase at a historically high rate," he warned.
According to financial advice charity Credit Action, across the UK, 305 people will be declared insolvent or bankrupt today.
It warns that Britain’s personal debt levels increase by £1 million every four minutes, meaning a further £335 million will be borrowed by consumers in one day alone.