Household over-indebtedness is increasing by 8% in Isère in 2023, particularly due to consumer debt. If this situation is often difficult to admit, a woman from Grenoble recounts how she found herself strangled by loans before going to find help.
Unpaid bills piling up, a dwindling salary and increasingly heavy expenses. Françoise* was caught in the vicious spiral of over-indebtedness. Despite a stable job, the Grenobloise gradually found herself facing the wall.
“I no longer saw the solution at all”she says, sitting in front of piles of documents listing her expenses that have become unsustainable. “My salary was between 1 600 and 1 700 euros. I had four consumer loans and a repayment loan, notably for my vehicle purchase, so that made five loans in total. for a total amount of 30,000 euros.
The realization took a long time for Françoise, initially walled in shame. “I waited a very long time before making a move but I think that in a year, I had hit rock bottom, telling myself that I was inevitably going to get by on my own. We cut back on food, we tried to spend a little less, on request a deposit… But the charges remain the same every month”summarized the Iséroise.
From month to month, I realized that there was no favorable outcome, so I had to find outside help.
But his income dwindled month by month, making it impossible to make ends meet and the situation inextricable. “It was a descent into hell. We end up not sleeping anymore, we think about it all day, we ruminate, we look for solutions that we can’t find…”
It was then that she approached the Municipal Center for Social Action (CCAS) to straighten out her budget. “From month to month, I realized that there was no favorable outcome, so I had to find outside help”recognizes Françoise who found support “caring”.
Long-term adjustments were planned to clear its debts until the filing of its first over-indebtedness file in 2018, without resolving the situation. “At the first stage of over-indebtedness, I said to myself: ‘It’s okay, it’s done, I’m going to get out of this.’ In fact, no. Five years later, for other reasons, I had to file for over-indebtedness again. There, I told myself that it was no longer possible.”confides Françoise who opted for long-term follow-up.
“Managing your budget is not innate, there is no embarrassment, so it is important that we are guided”she assures, encouraging all those who find themselves in a delicate financial situation to find external help. “We must avoid entering this infernal circle, not reach situations that seem insurmountable and not wait”advises the Grenobloise.
Several organizations support households in returning to financial balance, such as the Departmental Union of Family Associations (Udaf) of Isère. “We must not be ashamedreassures Chloé Follot, social service assistant at Udaf. There are events in life that can cause us to have difficulties, to have to take out a loan because there was a problem and today, we are in difficulty with our expenses, we I don’t know how to manage anymore.”
The Budget Advice Point offers support to all those going through financial difficulties, whatever their situation. “We support families and people who submit a file throughout the overindebtedness procedure. We can also support them after the decision of the Bank of France to implement these decisions with them and readjust the budget”completes Chloé Follot.
Household over-indebtedness is increasing by 8%, in Isère, in 2023, affecting 2,311 people, according to figures from the Banque de France. A trend similar to that observed at the national level which mainly concerns single people or single-parent families. Household over-indebtedness is mainly linked to consumer debts (40%) and real estate debts (27%).
∗ The first name has been changed.