Nearly one in four young people would consider declaring themselves insolvent in order to get rid of the high debts they have run up, a report showed.

Around 22% of people aged between 18 and 34, the equivalent of three million people, said they would consider going bankrupt or taking out an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) if their financial situation became serious enough.

Market analyst Mintel said bankruptcy had lost its stigma for young people, with twice as many under-34s considering insolvency to be an acceptable solution to their problems as those in their parents' and grandparents' generations.

The group found that many young people had adopted an "easy-debt lifestyle" with those aged between 18 and 34 the most likely of any age group to have unsecured debt, with 60% owing money on credit cards, overdrafts and loans.

They have also racked up higher levels of debt than other age groups, owing an average of £3,200 each, 40% more than the average adult owes and four times the level of debt that those aged over 55 have run up.

Worryingly, one in four people aged between 18 and 24 blamed their debt on frivolous spending, admitting they had borrowed money to buy things they did not really need.

But while young people view bankruptcy as being an acceptable solution to debt, they admitted feeling stressed about the amount they owe. Many people aged under 34 face a dual struggle of paying off student debt and trying to get on to the property ladder - and 23% admitted they were worried about debt, compared with only 17% across all age groups.

Todd Davis, senior finance analyst at Mintel, said: "Student loans and the endless stream of credit card offers, overdraft extensions and hire purchase mean that there is no longer the stigma of going into debt that there once was.

"But the fact that it is now more accepted has done little to alleviate the stress of accumulating high amounts of debt. Bankruptcy is now widely accepted among young adults mainly because it is the natural follow on from rising debt but also because the Government has made the conditions of bankruptcy less painful."

He said many people saw the restriction put on them after being declared bankrupt as being the lesser of two evils.

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