Many people with reminder letters piling up wait too long to call a counselling service. It is free, and demand is growing: Creditreform’s new SchuldnerAtlas puts the number of over-indebted adults in Germany at 7.36 million, about 293,000 more than a year ago. That is 10.58 per cent of adults (reference date 1 October).
Creditreform changed its method and recalculated 2025 retroactively, so the 5.67 million published last year cannot be compared directly. The direction is still clear: the rate rose in every federal state, and among under-30s the number grew 5.8 per cent to 1.17 million. The most common causes are illness, addiction or accidents, and unemployment. “The number of over-indebted consumers will in all likelihood continue to rise,” said Patrik-Ludwig Hantzsch, Creditreform’s head of economic research.
Bavaria fares best – which will not help your own case
Bavaria has the lowest rate at 7.58 per cent; Bremen has the highest at 15.89, ahead of North Rhine-Westphalia (13.19) and Saxony-Anhalt (13.08). An average is no comfort when the rent is behind. Personal insolvencies are rising too: Creditreform estimates about 38,800 cases in the first half of 2026, up 2.3 per cent – slower than in 2024 and 2025 (7.8 and 7.5 per cent), but the fourth increase in a row.
What you can do now
First, do not ignore it. Counselling deals with the most urgent problems first so that housing, electricity and food are safe; then comes a household budget, negotiation with creditors over instalments or settlements and, if needed, consumer insolvency proceedings.
Second, in Munich, book a short first appointment at the Sozialbürgerhaus for your district. The city’s debt and insolvency advice is free of charge, with no income limit. Hotline: 089 233-724353 (Mon–Thu 9–3, Fri 9–12). Bring paperwork on all your debts and the intake form from the Sozialbürgerhaus. For rent arrears or a threatened power cut, go immediately. Caritas also advises free of charge and offers online counselling where there is no local office, though it warns of longer waits because municipal funding is tight.
Third, set up a protected account (P-Konto) before a creditor acts. Since 1 July 2026 about €1,590 a month is protected (the official basic allowance is €1,587.40, plus €597.42 for a first dependant and €332.83 for each further one). Banks must convert an existing account on request.
Our assessment: with advice centres stretched, every week counts, and arriving with organised paperwork can save months. Whether the numbers keep rising in 2027 depends mostly on the labour market; with industrial jobs being cut, further growth looks more likely than a fall.
Sources: Creditreform/RNZ, Creditreform (consumer insolvencies), City of Munich, Caritas, Verbraucherzentrale
