Pay day loans are being used by many US households to pay rising energy bills and meet daily living costs, it has been claimed.

Letitia McEastland, creditor relations supervisor at Family Credit Counseling Services, told BusinessRockford.com that many families see pay day loans as "a means to survive".

"It's no longer so they can go on a quick vacation and go out of town," she explained. "This is so they won't get their lights cut off."

Official figures from the state of Illinois show that the average amount borrowed by citizens on pay day loans stood at $375 in June, with 26,337 loans being issued.

A recent poll by CNNMoney.com revealed that 43 per cent of US citizens feel worse off now than they did at the end of the last recession in 2001.

And a survey released by Rutgers University shows that 32 per cent of US employees are "very concerned" about their job security.

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