In 2010, there were 1.55 million consumer bankruptcy cases filed. In 2011, there were almost 1.37 million. This is a 12 percent decline. Less people are filing bankruptcy. However, the poverty rate is rising. The 2010 poverty rate was the highest since 1993. The 2010 rate is the last year information is available regarding the poverty rate.
Approximately 30 million people in the US are being pursued by debt collectors. and 200 million people have had information collected by a credit reporting agency.
