A former bankrupt has spoken of the pressure and distress a large amount of debt can cause.

Ian Broadmore, who now runs Surviving Bankruptcy – a firm which advises failing businesses on how to sort their finances out, warns that debtors should not ignore the issues of problem borrowing as it will not go away.

He said: "Mountains of debt puts you under tremendous pressure and stress, this can lead to divorce, illness and lack of self worth."

Finance education charity Credit Action warns debtors not to simply ignore their debt, stressing it will not go away. It warns people against taking out further borrowing in order to repay their existing debt.

Those with some means of making an offer to creditors can seek help from an insolvency practitioner in arranging an individual voluntary arrangement (IVA), which can help a debtor protect some of their assets in the face of overwhelming money problems.

IVAs were created by the government to provide an alternative to bankruptcy.