These are the 10 UK cities where people have the highest personal debt

New research has revealed the UK cities where residents have the highest amount of personal debt.

The data (from VoucherCodes.co.uk) found that over half of Brits (48 per cent) are currently in some kind of financial debt, and 15 per cent have turned to illegal money lenders to ease the burden.

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Above any other generation, millennials are most likely to use loan sharks (23 per cent) to get hold of extra cash. So-called 'buy now, pay later' schemes and payday loans are also used most by people aged between 25 and 35 (52 per cent). This age group said they would only consider themselves to be "in debt" once owing £5,773 or more.

Why are we in debt?

The top reasons for people being in debt were credit card spending (78 per cent) and overdraft payments (44 per cent).

The data found that Edinburgh was the city with the highest number of people in personal debt, with 55 per cent of respondents in the area being in debt. The largest proportion of this debt (78 per cent) was down to debt on credit cards, with using an overdraft (40 per cent) and taking out a personal loan (34 per cent) in second and third place.

The top 10 cities where people have the most personal debt

EdinburghDerby and Cardiff London Norwich and Belfast Leeds and Manchester BristolSouthampton and AberdeenSheffieldPortsmouthSunderland, Nottingham, Oxford and Birmingham

Also revealed by the data was the average amount owed to loan sharks by borrowers - £744.

The Gen Z generation were found to be more likely to ask their parents for financial help than cut back on holidays.