A leading thinktank has warned British economic growth is "more mirage than miracle" and is linked to unsustainable factors.

The Policy Exchange has expressed concern such growth was built on rising house prices which eroded Britain’s savings culture and made the country more reliant on personal debt.

It has warned that between June 1993 and June 2007, inflation-adjusted personal debt rose by 137 per cent until it exceeded annual gross domestic product.

The Daily Telegraph warns that consumers on the "good ship Great Britain" are watching the cooling housing market nervously, adding: "By the way, that shape looming in the darkness is an iceberg. It’s called debt."

For those anxious to protect their families from possible bankruptcy and repossession, it could be that now is the time to take charge of finances and make arrangements with creditors where possible.

Individual voluntary arrangements allow debtors to retain key assets such as their homes, which bankruptcy can not protect. They enable borrowers to write-off unaffordable debt and make monthly payments and can allow interest on the debt to be frozen.