One in four people have cut back on food and heating or electricity bills because of the pandemic, a report revealed yesterday .
Householders are facing financial pressures including loss of income, increased household spending on basics and an erosion of savings to meet expenses.
Research by the Society of St Vincent de Paul found almost 10% are behind on their rent.
Meanwhile, a quarter of people polled admitted they were in arrears on other regular payments.
More than a third of one parent families had to cut back on heating or fell behind on bills and 25% had to reduce their outlay on food due to increased expenditure on basics.
SVP’s Dr Tricia Keilthy said: “Lone parents and people with disabilities are the groups most at risk of poverty in Ireland today and COVID-19 added huge additional pressures to these groups as they navigated the practicalities of self-isolation and increased food and energy bills from being home.
“We are concerned that if the eviction ban is lifted, and without a financial mechanism to address rent arrears, many people in the private rental sector will be put at risk of homelessness,”
The health emergency had a much greater impact on families with children as they coped with the additional financial pressures associated with school closures.
A total of 24% of people polled said they have cut back on food, heating or electricity due to cost and 14% stated they had fallen behind on bills such as rent and mortgages.
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