Calgary-area respondents in an insolvency survey were less likely than Canadians overall to describe bankruptcy as a loophole, but more likely to say they would view someone close to them differently if that person filed for bankruptcy.
The Calgary data was provided to DiscoverAirdrie by Maverick PR after a request for local or regional results. The Calgary-specific material provided to DiscoverAirdrie did not include a regional sample size or margin of error.
A Calgary-area breakdown compares local and national responses to statements about bankruptcy, debt repayment and future borrowing. 
A Calgary-area breakdown compares local and national net-disagreement responses to statements about bankruptcy, debt repayment and future borrowing.
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The national study was commissioned by licensed insolvency trustee Shawn Stack and conducted by the Angus Reid Forum among 1,501 Canadians from March 27 to March 31. The survey was conducted in English and French.
A national insolvency survey shows net agreement by demographic on statements about bankruptcy, debt repayment and future borrowing. Graphic / Shawn Stack
The Calgary figures show support for both ideas: that using bankruptcy laws to eliminate debt is a legitimate financial decision, and that people who file for bankruptcy should have limited access to borrowing in the future.
Calgary results complicate national pattern
The national release frames one of the study’s central findings as an “empathy gap.”
Nationally, 41 per cent of Canadians agreed that bankruptcy is usually the result of poor personal choices, while 23 per cent said they would view a close friend or family member differently if that person filed for bankruptcy.
The Calgary numbers show a narrower gap.
Thirty-nine per cent of Calgary respondents agreed that filing for bankruptcy is usually the result of poor personal choices, compared with 41 per cent nationally.
But 32 per cent of Calgary respondents said they would view someone close to them differently if that person filed for bankruptcy, compared with 23 per cent nationally.
That means Calgary-area respondents were slightly less likely than Canadians overall to agree that bankruptcy is usually the result of poor personal choices, but more likely to say a bankruptcy filing by someone close to them would change how they viewed that person.
Less likely to call bankruptcy a loophole
The Calgary data also showed regional respondents were less likely than Canadians overall to agree with several negative statements about bankruptcy.
Thirty-two per cent of Calgary respondents agreed that declaring bankruptcy is breaking a financial promise, while the national figure was 41 per cent.
On whether people who do not pay their debts are untrustworthy, Calgary and Canada were both at 37 per cent.
The widest difference came on whether bankruptcy is viewed as a loophole.
Twenty-two per cent of Calgary respondents agreed that bankruptcy is a loophole people use to avoid paying what they owe, compared with 35 per cent nationally.
The disagreement numbers showed the same contrast. Forty-eight per cent of Calgary respondents disagreed that bankruptcy is a loophole, compared with 35 per cent nationally.
Second chances, with limits
The Calgary results also show differing views on what should happen after someone files for bankruptcy.
Fifty-four per cent of Calgary respondents agreed that using bankruptcy laws to eliminate debt is a legitimate financial decision, compared with 44 per cent nationally.
But 54 per cent of Calgary respondents also agreed that people who file for bankruptcy should have limited access to borrowing in the future, compared with 51 per cent nationally.
Thirty-seven per cent of Calgary respondents agreed that people should face consequences before having their debts forgiven, compared with 40 per cent nationally.
The national release describes that tension as a “punishment paradox,” saying bankruptcy law exists to allow people to discharge unmanageable debt and rebuild, while a majority of Canadians favour limiting future borrowing after bankruptcy.
Stack says shame remains part of insolvency
Stack said in the release:
“We have built an economy that runs on credit — on using tomorrow’s potential to sustain today’s appearances. And then we shame the people who fall through the cracks of a system we all participate in.
“The data shows that Canadians know something is off. The generational divide alone tells you the story is changing. But empathy alone isn’t a policy. Until we separate the legal process of insolvency from the moral verdict we’ve attached to it, we will keep punishing people for doing exactly what the law allows them to do.”
National results show generational divide
The national study also found a divide between older and younger respondents.
According to the release, 47 per cent of baby boomers viewed bankruptcy as a loophole to avoid paying what is owed, compared with 21 per cent of Gen Z respondents.
Fifty-two per cent of baby boomers agreed people should face consequences before having debts forgiven, compared with 23 per cent of Gen Z respondents.
It also said 51 per cent of baby boomers equated bankruptcy with breaking a financial promise, compared with 31 per cent of Gen Z respondents.
Study is first part of two-part series
The release says the study, Debt & Moral Perception in Canada, is the first in a two-part national study on how Canadians perceive debt, insolvency and the financial system.
Part One examines the moral views Canadians apply to individual debtors. The release says Part Two is expected later in May and will examine how Canadians assess the role of lenders, institutions and the broader economic system in financial hardship.
The release says the study was conducted from March 27 to March 31 among a representative sample of 1,501 online Canadians who are members of the Angus Reid Forum.
For comparison purposes only, the release says a probability sample of that size would carry a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
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