The rising number of individual voluntary arrangements being entered into by creditors is leading more banks to question them, a charity has said.

Debt management services are being treated with more suspicion than before, the Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS) says, because lenders are seeing the creation of "an IVA industry".

James Ketchell, spokesperson for CCCS, said his organisation generally never experienced any difficulties when dealing with lenders because "they are very trusting of CCCS".

He added that, in his experience, most lenders were sympathetic towards borrowers who approach them individually when in difficulty.

"Generally most creditors, when they realise someone is in a situation where they cannot meet their repayments, are quite accommodating," he said.

The comments came as a Citizens Advice survey revealed they had recorded a 15 per cent increase in the number of people seeking help with debt this January, compared to last year.

A registered charity, the CCCS seeks to assist people who are in financial difficulty by providing free and independent advice.

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