South Africa's debt crisis: Over 1,000 summonses issued daily in July

More than 34,000 people and businesses found themselves before magistrates for unpaid debts in July alone, with courts ordering them to cough up R359.8 million.

The latest Statistics South Africa numbers for July paint a picture of widespread financial distress from Cape Town medical practices to Joburg consulting firms - everyone's feeling the pinch.

Magistrates' courts sent out 34 978 debt summonses in July – that's more than 1 100 every single day. Of these, 10 452 cases resulted in judges ordering payment of R359.8 million worth of IOUs.

Put another way, that's enough cash to snap up 1 200 luxury cars or keep a decent-sized hospital running for a year. And this is just one month's worth of financial pain.

The biggest chunk comes from money lent and never repaid: R82.2 million. Then there's services – professional services like doctors and lawyers grabbed R26.5 million, while other services like builders and mechanics are owed R48.1 million.

Provincial pain points

Gauteng's taking the biggest hit with R101.4 million in debt judgments, showing that even the country's wealthiest province is seriously strapped.

Western Cape's not far behind at R88.0 million, from township spaza shops to fancy Constantia practices all drowning in debt.

KwaZulu-Natal clocked R56.0 million, while Mpumalanga hit R43.6 million – suggesting the mining heartland is in deeper trouble than anyone's letting on.

The stats reveal exactly who's gasping for air:

Professional services taking a knock – doctors, dentists, lawyers and accountants had R26.5 million in court judgments against their debtors. Even the traditionally stable professions are feeling it.

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Other services drowning – builders, panel beaters, mechanics and contractors are owed R48.1 million collectively. These backbone businesses employ millions.

Landlords chasing rent – property owners dragged tenants to court for R57.2 million in unpaid rent, covering everything from residential to big commercial deals.

Credit instruments going bad – R56.2 million in promissory notes, credit cards and acknowledgments of debt ended up in court. This is desperation borrowing coming home to roost.

"Other debts" mystery category – A massive R71.7 million falls under this catch-all, likely including unpaid salaries, municipal services and professional fees.

The bigger picture

Looking at the three months to July, the numbers show mixed signals. Civil summonses dropped 9.4% compared to the same period last year, and judgments fell 12.4% – but the total value of judgments actually increased 3.9%.

That suggests fewer cases are making it to court, but when they do, the amounts owed are getting bigger.

The next figures, due in October, will show whether this R360 million monthly debt crisis is stabilising or continuing to spiral.

IOL