Average household bill arrears 10% higher than a year earlier

Average household bill arrears among people who sought debt advice from StepChange reached £4,447 in September 2025, the charity reported. That is 10% higher than the £4,059 average reported in September 2024¹.

The charity's monthly client data report covers the demographic and debt information of new clients who first received debt advice in September 2025¹. It also found that the proportion of clients in debt because of personal loans rose by three percentage points over the year, from 47% in September 2024 to 50% in September 2025¹.

Energy arrears were widespread among those responsible for the bills. In September 2025, 46% of clients responsible for paying dual fuel reported arrears on that bill type, two percentage points higher than the 44% recorded in August 2025. The share of clients with electricity arrears rose from 26% in August 2025 to 29% in September 2025¹.

The most commonly selected main reason for debt in September 2025 was a "lack of control over finances" at 18%, followed by a "cost of living increase" at 17%. StepChange said these were also the most common reasons in September 2024¹.

Three in five clients, or 60%, were in employment as of September 2025, a fall of two percentage points from 62% in August 2025¹.

Source: StepChange monthly client data report, September 2025¹

Why it matters for households

The figures describe a specific group: people who contacted StepChange for debt advice for the first time in September 2025, not the UK population as a whole. They show the arrears position of households already in financial difficulty, and the report gives no figures for arrears among households generally.

For that group, the average amount owed on household bills was £388 higher in September 2025 than a year earlier¹. Energy debts were the most common bill arrears reported: nearly half of clients responsible for dual fuel owed money on that bill, and electricity arrears affected 29% of clients in September 2025, up from 26% the previous month¹.

The report also indicates that problem debt is not confined to people out of work. Six in ten new clients were in employment in September 2025, down two percentage points on the month before¹.

What happens next

StepChange publishes this client data series monthly, and says the September 2025 report is the latest in the series¹. No further dated announcements are set out in the report.