The number of people who are behind in repaying bank loans rose slightly to 7.7% over the first six months of this year, but is set to reach 8% by the end of 2012, the credit registration agency BKR said on Monday.

By the end of this year, some 720,000 people, or 8% of the population, will be behind in their loan repayments, BKR says. The organisation lists credit agreements with banks, mortgage providers and other official credit agencies.
However, the problem is likely to be far more serious because BKR does not include people who have rent or energy bill arrears. ‘We only see a small part of the payment problem,’ a spokesman told news agency ANP.
According to government figures last year, some two million households – or nearly 28% of the total – were behind in paying their bills.