5 Million UK adults can’t afford bills and day to day living costs (Source: http://www.lowincomefinancialhelp.com)
In an email sent out to brokers this morning, insurance advisor LV= have announced that their research has revealed that 5 million UK adults can’t afford bills and other day-to-day expenses. In LV=’s newly released report, they revealed several statistics that really illustrate the struggles that people in the UK are coming up against in the face of the ongoing economic crisis.
What Is The LV= Wealth and Wellbeing Research Programme Report?
According to LV=’s website, the report researched and provided by LV= gives valuable insights into UK consumer finances and wellbeing. Their pension knowledge, and their attitudes towards investing. The programme has evolved into a longitudinal study that has tracked UK adults’ behaviours to help build industry understanding of the issues consumers are facing.
What Does The Report Show?
Commenting directly on the findings of the latest report and the responses from research subjects, LV= have said:
‘Many consumers have reported worsening finances or they are expecting their finances to worsen over the next three months. Our research data shows many experiencing rising costs, including increased spend at the supermarket, on energy bills and on vehicle fuel.’
Specifically, the report shows the following information:
5 Million UK adults can’t afford their day-to-day costs and bills.
5 Million UK adults can’t afford bills and day to day living costs (Source: LV=)
Another 48% (25 million) say they can only just afford their day-to-day costs and bills. This makes a total of 57% of UK adults (30 million) who are currently struggling.
A quarter of parents with young children say they may end up in debt to pay their heating bills
Cost of heating bills (Source: LV=)
A third of UK adults say they will be cutting down on spending on leisure activities and holidays to pay their heating bills this winter. Even 29% of mass affluent (those with assets of between £100,000 and £500,000 excluding property) are saying that their heating bills will reduce their leisure and holiday spend. 15% (which equates to 8 million) of UK adults say they may end up in debt to pay their heating bills. Parents with young children (aged 0-10) were particularly likely to say their heating bills may land them in debt, with nearly a quarter (24%) saying this.
Only 13% of workers have seen a pay increase that is in line with the increased cost of living, For those workers whose pay has not matched the cost of living, 1 in 4 is working overtime
Pay disparity (Source: LV=)
55% of working adults received a pay increase in the last year, but only 13% saw a pay increase that was in line with the increased cost of living. 1 in 5 workers are looking to change jobs to something better paid. 8% of workers have already changed jobs because their pay wasn’t matching the cost of living.
What Can I Do About It?
In our minds, this data very clearly and quite frankly highlights why good financial planning and securing the right kinds of insurance are so important. Unfortunately, we can’t wave a magic wand and make all financial troubles disappear, but we can help you to try and make sure that even if you are faced with potential financial hardship, your finances are set up and arranged so that you can weather any storm. Give our team of financial advisers a call today to discuss how we can help you to cope with the financial crisis.
