A STUDY in Britain has found that young women are 'lured into bankruptcy by celebrity lifestyle'.

Their quest to have that slinky Victoria Beckham look or a flirty Paris Hilton tog has caused a surge in female bankruptcies, said The Daily Telegraph.

New research from accountancy firm Wilkins Kennedy reveals that 55 per cent of bankrupts under the age of 24 were women last year, reported The Independent.

This was just 48 per cent five years ago.

In total, 1,560 women under 24 were declared bankrupt compared to 1,250 men in the same age group.

Many young women have become trapped in debt because they buy designer clothes and accessories to display the 'trappings of success', the study said.

Mr Anthony Cork of Wilkins Kennedy, told the Daily Mail: 'Five years ago it tended to be young men who got out of their financial depth, but now it is far more likely to be young women who spend irresponsibly.

'That gap between the genders seems to be growing. Over the last decade, the pressure on young women to follow the lavish lifestyle of female celebrities has grown immensely.

'In all seriousness we are told that Paris Hilton and Victoria Beckham are role models to be followed. The growing availability of credit has meant that for the status-conscious, who want to exhibit the trappings of success, designer clothes and jewellery seem misleadingly achievable.'

The researchers said young men did not appear to feel the social pressure to 'spend conspicuously' or set up on their own to the same extent that women do.

Gender pay gap

As a result, they are able to build up a bigger cushion of savings. The extra pressures on women are exacerbated by the gender pay gap, although this is relatively small among under-24s.

Last year, around 67,500 people in all age groups went personally bankrupt in England and Wales, an increase of 89 per cent over the past five years.

Overall, those over the age of 45 are the most likely to go bankrupt, as falling house prices and rising unemployment reduces their ability to manage debt.

This article was first published in The New Paper