A poll conducted by ComRes and R3, the insolvency trade body, has found that almost a quarter of British adults surveyed worry about repaying mortgages.

The survey, which included 2,000 British adults who were interviewed in March this year, showed that personal finance pessimism has hit record low, with only 16 per cent of adults expecting their personal finances to get worse in the next six months, however debt worries still remain high.

Poll results revealed that 46 per cent of British adults worried about their debts with 41 per cent struggling to payday.

It was also found that almost a quarter (24 per cent) of those interviewed were worried about mortgage repayments, 20 per cent were concerned about overdrafts and 14 per cent were worried about loans from family or friends.

Commenting on the data, Giles Frampton, R3 president, said: “The improving economy is finally starting to affect how British adults see their own personal finances. It’s taken a while, but the personal finance picture is finally looking up after years in the doldrums.”

“However, the number of people with debt worries or repeated financial struggles remains a source of concern.

“Despite increasing economic optimism, there is a group of people who consistently struggle from week-to-week or month-to-month,” explained Giles.

“Although falling inflation should ease cost of living problems, relief is only coming after years of prices rising far faster than wages.

“It will take a while before families can regain some financial breathing room.”

Of those “extremely worried” about their debts, 29 per cent were likely to seek a payday loan in the next six months.

Frampton added: “It’s all too easy for financially vulnerable people to get caught in a debt trap where debt is needed to finance other debts, leading to a vicious cycle from which it is very difficult to break out of without help.”