‘Tap and go’ payments fuel debt among young people

CONTACTLESS payments are leading young people into debt because it is now “too easy” to spend money, experts have said.

More than one in 10 young people are thinking of cutting out contactless and online payments and moving back to cash as a way to control their spending, research has found.

The study, which was carried out by The Claude Littner Business School at the University of West London, found that one in five Londoners below the age of 45 are struggling to pay their debts because of the ease of “tap and go” payments.

The findings come after data showed earlier this year that the number of young people going bankrupt has increased 10-fold over the past three years.

Dr Yehia Nawar, of the business school, said: “This study has discovered that the primary factor that affects the Generation Y’s buying behaviour was overspending as a result of reliance on digital payments.”

The study, which surveyed 100 people from the ages of 18 to 44, found that around two thirds said overspending was made easier by digital payments.

The findings were presented at the British Academy of Management’s annual conference in Birmingham.

Data from the Insolvency Service showed that between April and June almost 2,000 18 to 25-year-olds entered a formal insolvency procedure.