Which debts and bills should I pay first?

11 million adults in the UK struggle to pay their bills in January. This is a rise of 3. 1 million compared with 2022. Citizens Advice says you should work out how much you owe and who to pay.

There are what are known as priority debts and bills. If you do not pay them, you could lose your home or face court proceedings. Rent, mortgage repayments, and loans secured on the home should be paid first. These are credit cards, store cards, buy-now-pay-later payments, overdrafts, unsecured loans and water bills.

Ignoring them would still see the cost of those debts spiral. Always see how you could boost your income by checking your benefits. It is important that you do talk about financial difficulties before finding yourself in a spiral of debt. The earlier, the better.

If you think you cannot pay your debts or are finding dealing with them overwhelming, seek support straight away. You are not alone and there is help available. Your supplier must give you a chance to clear your debt through a payment plan first. A trained debt adviser can talk you through the options available.

Information and support is available and free of charge - click here to find out about organisations who may be able to help. If you don#39;t agree a plan with your supplier, they might try to force you to have a prepayment meter installed. In Scotland, an alternative short-term debt relief system is known as a Statutory Moratorium. Under an IVA, an insolvency practitioner will help you strike a deal with your creditors, which allows you to pay off your debts over a fixed period.

If you own a house or a car you may lose them. IVA: All interest on unsecured debt is frozen. If accepted, some debts will be frozen for one year, then written off. A DRO costs £90.

If you live in Scotland, bankruptcy is known legally as sequestration. However there are three alternatives: a Debt Arrangement Scheme, a Debt Management Plan, or a Trust Deed.