UK 'addicted' to saving
Published On 8 September 2007
One in five British savers (20 per cent) are addicted to saving money and a further third (35 per cent) feel uneasy if they don't save as much as they had planned, according to the latest Quarterly Savings Survey from NS&I. The survey revealed that Britain is actually a nation of spendthrifts, with 47 per cent of adults admitting that they worry if they waste money or overspend, while two fifths say they are concerned about dropping into their savings to pay for unplanned purchases.
"This result challenges the bleak view of Britain as a nation obsessed with spending and debt, and demonstrates there is a distinct group of British savers who are not only in the black, but committed to saving every little penny," said Dax Harkins, senior savings strategist at NS&I.
However, a study from debt management specialist Chiltern revealed that four million Brits prefer spending rather than saving and are officially over-indebted, spending more than 25 per cent of their monthly income on debt repayments.
Worse still, the study revealed that those heavily in debt are also the most deluded about their personal finances. While one in 16 people in Britain is over-indebted, only one in 45 consider themselves to be in financially dire straits.
