Most Thais burdened by huge credit card bills, survey finds
A recent survey shows that most Thai households have large credit card and personal loan debts, with the average coming in at 1.24 million baht per household. Civil servants have been found to have the highest credit card debts, averaging up to 1 million baht per person.
The Suan Dusit Poll, conducted from November 22 to 25, covered 1,059 respondents.
It found that 46.52 per cent of the respondents owed money to credit cards and had taken personal loans, while 39.85 per cent had a mortgage to pay.
Civil servants were found to owe an average of 1 million baht per person to credit cards, while private-sector employees were found to owe about 500,000 baht per person. However, the latter group was found to be most worried about their ability to pay back.
Of the respondents, 71.11 per cent were confident they could pay off all their debts, while 38.15 per cent voiced concerns.
To solve their debt problems, 80.88 per cent admitted that they need to be disciplined, plan their budgets and put some cash aside, while 61.85 per cent said the government needs to restructure debts and reduce the interest rate.
Meanwhile, 89.23 per cent said they can pay their own debts, though 46.33 per cent expect help from friends and family.
“Financial discipline needs to be practised in order to reduce debts. Additional income can be generated using technology and online media, which can also help reduce business costs. Debtors can also ask their bank for debt restructuring, while the government should provide citizens access to low-interest funding,” Suan Dusit Poll suggested.
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