Missed bill payments could end up having a negative effect on the credit ratings which the UK's consumers possess, according to one firm.
Over the course of 2010, price comparison website
moneysupermarket.com suggests that regular monthly bill payments were missed by a total of eight million people across the country.
Credit card payments were skipped by nearly four million of these consumers last year, the firm's research also showed.
In addition to these findings, 2010 saw 1.5 million consumers miss bill payments regarding things like electricity, mobile phone costs and council tax outgoings, moneysupermarket.com found.
However, following the publication of this research, the negative implications of missing bill payments has been highlighted by the website's head of banking, Kevin Mountford.
He stated: "Avoiding paying a bill might not seem like a big deal, but the consequences can be far reaching for your
credit rating and can have a knock-on effect when applying for a new card, mortgage or securing any kind of credit."
For those who are financially struggling, the commentator went on to advise: "Sit down and go through all your finances and see where you can make suitable savings."
A total of 11 per cent of the London residents who were included in the site's survey reported that last year saw them miss credit card payments at some stage.
This contrasted with the figure recorded among consumers based in Northern Ireland, with just two per cent saying that they had missed such payments in 2010.
In the last 12 months, 4.5 million people making credit card or loan applications have been denied the opportunity to borrow money, separate statistics from moneysupermarket.com suggested last month.
Discussing this research from his organisation, Mr Mountford said that people's credit scores could be hit by failed borrowing applications which they have made.
Posted by Tom Burroughs.
