ABSTRACT
There is an increasing amount of evidence that indebtedness is becoming problematic, at least for certain groups within society; that is, that the routine repayments of credit cannot be met and that 'bad debts' or arrears are a growing feature of our society. The exact extent of default is not known and the coverage and nature of the information available varies and has to be interpreted with care. One aim of this chapter is to indicate the likely extent of default, in the context of a recognition of the problems that make this exercise a complex one and the likelihood that in most cases the available statistics are an understatement of default. A further aim is to draw together some of the published material that allows a consideration of who it is that defaults and why, and in passing to contrast the evidence and frameworks from research with more popular perceptions of default and defaulters. Many of the themes raised in general here recur in the more specific discussion of mortgage default in Part II.
