Consumer insolvencies in Newfoundland and Labrador have jumped dramatically in the last year.

That’s according to Credit Canada, a not-for-profit group which recently released a new poll showing almost four in ten Atlantic Canadians feel the topic of personal debt and bankruptcy is taboo.

Credit Canada CEO Laurie Campbell says insolvencies in this province are up 52 per cent over the same period last year. She says that tells them that people are struggling, and with interest rates rising, the highest numbers are in this province.

Campbell says social media isn’t helping matters as people continue to spend beyond their means.

She says many Canadians are trying to “keep up with the Joneses” and spending more than they have.

Add to that rising interest rates and you have a recipe for disaster says Campbell, but there is hope. Get your spending in check, reduce your debt load and consolidate high-interest debt.