Consumers who find they regularly rely on payday loans have been advised to take immediate action to address the state of their finances.

Payday loans are short-term high-interest loans designed to help people to manage financially until they receive their next monthly wage.

Latterly, the loans have proved a significant growth area, with Moneysupermarket noting a 55.4 per cent increase in take up for the products since September 2007.

However, according to Beccy Boden Wilks, a spokesperson for National Debtline, the use of payday loans on a frequent basis is typically a sign that a person is "overcommitted" financially.

As such, it is vital that they look at ways to improve their situation or risk falling into debt, she added.

Ms Boden Wilks advised: "If somebody feels the need to use a payday loan on a regular basis, it's probably symptomatic of a serious underlying debt problem.

"So, you need to look at budgeting, or [ask] are your credit commitments too high, or have you overcommitted yourself with your mortgage?"

Source ::londonstockexchange.com