Millions turn to family and friends for financial help
- 19m say they are struggling financially and 4m turn to family and friends for help
- A quarter of workers have less than £1,000 in savings and families with young children are most likely to have taken on unsecure debt to make ends meet
Research from pensions and retirement specialist LV= highlights how rising in prices are squeezing UK consumers.
The LV= Wealth and Wellbeing Monitor* – a quarterly survey of 4,000+ UK adults – shows that millions of people are worried about their finances, struggling financially and increasingly worried about money.
The LV= Wealth and Wellbeing Monitor asked consumers to describe their financial situation and found:
- Money struggles: 36% (19m) said they were struggling financially – the highest figure since September 2020. Women are more likely to say they are struggling compared to men (41% vs 30%)
- Financial worries continue to increase: 38% (20m) say they are worried about money – and this figure has risen each quarter over the past year
- Utility bills: 7% (4m) say they have fallen behind on or missed utility bill payments in the last 3 months. Parents with young children (14%) are twice as likely to have fallen behind
- Unsecured debt: 3% (2m) have taken on high interest unsecured debt in the last 3 months with the figures rising to 11% for parents of young children
Parents with young children are most affected
The LV= Wealth and Wellbeing Monitor highlights how parents with young children (age 0-10) are most likely to say they have financial worries:
- 14% have fallen behind or missed payments on utility bills in the last 3 months compared to 7% of the general population
- 9% have fallen behind or missed credit card and loan repayments (4% general population)
- 11% have taken out unsecured debt such as payday loans (3% general population)
- 6% have missed mortgage or rent payments (3% of general population)
Money worries mean people are turning to families for help
The research found that increasing numbers of people are turning to family and friends for financial support:
- Savings: A quarter of workers (26% – 8m) say they have less than £1,000 in savings while the figure rises to 33% of women
- Paying the bills: 57% (30m) of adults are worried about being able to pay day-to-day living expenses
- Credit cards and loans: 39% (21m) are worried about paying credit cards and loans
- Family help: 8% (4m) UK adults needed financial support from friends and family in the last 3 months – double the amount in the previous quarter