OVER 50s made redundant during the financial crisis and unable to afford early retirement are the biggest driver behind a sharp rise in self-employment, new figures show.
Yet while self-employment is a natural solution for many people, it was also revealed this week that the self-employed are especially vulnerable to getting caught up in debt.
The number of self-employed workers in the UK aged between 50 and 64 has jumped 15 per cent over the past four years, according to the Office for National Statistics, while the number over 65 has rocketed by 54 per cent.
The rise in the ranks of the self-employed – who make up more than 12 per cent of Scotland’s workforce – is down to a number of factors. The financial crisis has been the main influence, sending redundancies up – particularly in Scotland’s financial sector – and pushing pension savings down.
But self-employed status comes with its own insecurities, new research shows. The self-employed are the most dependent on credit and vulnerable to debt, according to research for the StepChange debt charity (formerly the Consumer Credit Counselling Service).
The average debt on credit cards among self-employed debtors is £17,237, across 3.6 cards, according to StepChange, compared with £10,517 across 2.8 cards for the wider population.
There are similar patterns on overdraft and personal loan debts, where the amount owed by self-employed debtors is again greater than that owed by the average StepChange client.
The vulnerable and often inconsistent incomes of the self-employed are the main reasons for the greater need for credit among that group, said the charity.
Delroy Corinaldi, external affairs director of at StepChange, said: “While anyone, whatever their job or income, can find themselves struggling with debt, those working for themselves seem to be particularly vulnerable to debt problems.
“I would be particularly concerned about the strain of trying to seek enough work to maintain an income while struggling with debt. Anyone in this situation should not suffer alone, but seek professional advice and support help from a debt charity as soon as they realise that they have a problem.”
