Less than 1-in-3 Britons optimistic about money: Santander

Only 1-in-6 Britons feels unaffected by the
financial crisis in the UK while less than 1-in 3 people are
optimistic about their financial prospects.

A survey conducted for Santander by the
consultancy FreshMinds reports that although 69% of people in the
UK manage to save something each month, only 1-in 2 people surveyed
has £100 or more left in their current
account at the end of the month.

Worryingly, 1-in-4 save nothing at all.

Other FreshMinds/Santander survey findings
include:

• 83% of people in the sample say that they have had to cut back
  on spending on luxuries in order to cover expenditure on the
  basics;
• Almost  1-in-5 (19%) of survey respondents find themselves
  overdrawn at the end of the month;
• The rising costs of basics such as food and energy exacerbates
  the difficult situation that most households find themselves in,
  and
• People are resorting to innovative ways of saving money, such
  as taking in lodgers and also trading down on the brands they buy
  and shopping at discount retailers.

The report found that the majority of
households accept the need to save as insurance against what the
future may hold but highlights that for many, it is becoming harder
to save.

41% of people have opened a savings account
but never pay into it because they do not have spare cash.

According to the Consumer Credit Counselling
Service Consumer Debt and Money Report, the average household
parts with £200 per month to service its debt.

Release of the report coincided with news that
Santander has increased the rate of its easy access e-saver account
by 0.2% to 3.2% to top easy access savings rates on price
comparison websites. (0.03% ahead of the previously top-ranking
Post Office online saver account).

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