WASHINGTON, DC, June 17, 1997 - A new poll released by the National Consumers League shows that 76 percent of Americans believe "individuals should not be allowed to erase all their debts in bankruptcy if they are able to repay a portion of what they owe." The League commissioned the poll to gauge what consumers know about current bankruptcy laws.
"From our survey, it's plain to see that consumers do not understand current bankruptcy laws," said NCL President Linda F. Golodner. "While we have education efforts on personal credit and family budgeting, it is clear that more work needs to be done to educate people about bankruptcy."
The survey showed that two out of three Americans believe that under the current system most people who file for bankruptcy have to repay a portion of their debts. In reality, most who declare personal bankruptcy do so under Chapter 7, which in most cases allows debts to be erased, regardless of ability to repay.
In addition, the survey showed that most consumers, 71 percent, think that it is "somewhat " or "much too " easy to declare personal bankruptcy.
The telephone survey of 1,004 adults aged 18 and older was conducted by Chilton Research, of Radnor, Pa., June 11-15, and has a margin sampling error of plus or minus 3 percent at the 95 percent confidence level.