General Chat

for demanding repayment. Especially when they draw huge salaries and get unwarranted bonuses for treating their vulnerable account holders in this way. This was Barclays!



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A 23-year-old student took his own life after writing a suicide note on the back of a letter from the bank asking for him to repay his £3,000 overdraft.

Computing student Toby Thorn, who studied at Cambridge's Angela Ruskin, had also run up a £5,000 student loan.

He wrote on the back of a the note from his bank: "Thank you to all my friends I appreciate all your support, Later ANON."

An inquest has said his debt was a contributing factor to the suicide, the Daily Mail reported.

His mother Anne, 56, said she had "no idea" his debts were "bothering him." The single mum now campaigns for awareness of the effects debt can have on young people and is a trustee of PAPYRUS, who work to prevent suicides in young people.

"Young people can't find jobs, so they can't see a way out of debt. If graduates can't get jobs what hope is there for those without degrees?," she was quoted by The Daily Telegraph as saying.

"I'm a single mum – it's unbearable to think that Toby didn't know how much he was loved.

"People don't realise that suicide is so common in young people, especially young men. Men don't talk about their feelings. They keep it all bottled up which can lead to depression.

Toby had been asked to repay his £3,000 overdraft

"I wonder if I'd been aware of the statistics would I have been looking for signs?," she said.

"I don't believe that's the only reason why he took his own life but it must have been a big contributing factor.

Dan and I were just talking about this, so very sad, people do not appreciate the 'drip drip' effect of debt on the soul, it is a constant 'presence', your first thought in the morning and the last at night. And it is for such paltry amounts in the grand scheme of things, when giving debtors more time to pay, freezing the interest charges, and accepting small payments could make all the difference.

And not everyone asks for help, even though there is help available, because it is 'failure' and being in debt is seen by many who are in a comfortable situation as a sign of profligacy, laziness, etc,

Maybe not in his case,but they hand out loans too easily these day's and it soon adds up.

I expect a lot of families will get in debt just trying to buy their kid's all they want,and forgetting it's got to be paid back with a lot of interest.

Marion

When I went to University (when England last won the World Cup), I left with no debts at all and a more or less guaranteed job. Every graduate did.

Do we need these bright young people to go to University or not?

If we do, we should not expect them to pay. We should be giving them a subsistence grant like the old days and banks should be stopped from giving them credit cards and loans till they finish full-time education.

And all debts should now be wiped from this ridiculous loan system. If countries can have billions wiped, I am sure that my son's £15k can be wiped too.

As if students do not have enough pressure already :-(

How clever is google?

As I was reading here I noticed the two ads at top of page ...one advertising Barclays Credit cards and the other advertising free money advice.

Big brother is watching ;-)

lolol Rose, now that wouldn't be a coincidence would it?

Rather like the adverts that appear on FB when you use key words!

Perhaps we should start a thread about contraception and see which companies have subscribed to GR links ;-)

and Santander now appears lol.

lmao they have obviously signed up to counter any Barclays ads.

I have read that the amount of graduate debt students are being left with has recently been revealed, showing that the average graduate has to repay around £26,000 after graduation.

One of the main problems about university graduates today is that they face an uncertain future. It was once the case that a degree would mean that you had a certain amount of career stability and expected earning potential. Now however, graduates face uncertainty and paying back this money might be a challenge for them.

It is estimated that nearly 90 percent of students who started university in September 2012 are going to have to borrow around £9000 a year from the government in order to meet their academic fees. This figure is particularly grim when you consider that around 25% of graduates are unemployed. These figures are going to make it an unappealing option for students who are leaving school, especially those who are from poor economic background. It is likely that they will simply feel the cost of university is going to be too high. Student loans will cover the cost, however it is important to remember that although these are contingent on income, it is entirely possible that a future government will decide to change the repayment terms of these loans and force previous students to make repayments even if they are not earning the required amount of money. My heart goes out to the family of this young man.

Paula, one of my children is still paying back their student loan and it will go on forever at her rate of pay. The other two now don't owe anything thank goodness.

It's a catch 22 isn't it? Young people need a good degree to stand any chance of competing for a job in some sectors but by the same token not many employers are willing to take on someone without experience due to the further in house training costs and loss of revenue due to inexperience.

I'm glad I don't have children who have to face the dilema now and in the future, it seems to be very bleak.

DS I agree my son studied law which took seven years including his solicitor training placement. He paid off his student loan at the minimum amount over the longest period of time. He is now a partner in a law practice. People say he is very lucky, I think anyone leaving uniiversity now and going into employment is very lucky.

I hope things improve for everyones sake.