AS PERSONAL DEBT HITS £1.2TRILLION, IT'S TIME TO LOOK FOR A LIFELINE
AS the Christmas spending spree gets into full swing the last thing on most people's minds is saving.
And it's not only during the festive season that putting something away has a low priority.
In today's spend-now, pay-later society the notion of saving up for anything has all but vanished.
It may go a long way towards explaining why families are sinking under record debts of £1.2TRILLION.
Banks and credit card companies are seeing sharp increases in bad debts and a record 100,000 people are expected to go broke this year.
Research by Bradford & Bingley revealed that only one in four people was saving more than they were a year ago.
Of those that are saving, 51 per cent said they were putting money away for a "rainy day".
Holidays, retirement, home improvements, Christmas, a new car or bike and furniture were the next most popular reasons.
B&B says 54 per cent of those polled claimed they were putting money away for their children.
Of those 62 per cent said they were putting money away for university fees.
Clothes, birthday and Christmas presents, weddings, cars and a house deposit were also named as saving targets.
According to B&B UK savers can be split into six distinct groups.
PLEASURE SEEKERS are the "spend now, pay later" generation. They are often women aged 18-40 and have children living at home.
SMART SPENDERS make up the biggest group. They share a lot of the easy spending attitude of Pleasure Seekers but have eye on the long term. They save enough, but leave enough for a good time.
THRIFTY - live within their means, saving for treats. Mostly women, they are likely to make regular savings. They are also a bit conservative, reluctant to switch banks.
MICRO PLANNERS have a firm grip on their finances. They tend to be older, often retired and invest more. Some 75 per cent have an ISA and 54 per cent a pension.
BARGAIN HUNTERS are not traditional savers but make an effort to economise. They tend to be women and unlikely to save for Christmas.
AWARE AND IN CONTROL People in this category have tight control of their finances so they can budget for treats without breaking the bank.
They are keener on saving than bargain hunters but are less likely to pore over the financial pages to find the best deals like Micro Planners.
Steve Potter, head of savings for B&B says: "We have become a nation of spenders living now and not thinking about how we pay for things.
"It is great to have a spending spree at Christmas but building up savings means not having to worry about how to pay for it.
"More than half of the 1,500 people we surveyed said they are saving less now than they did last year.
You don't need to change your habits much to increase your savings. Rates have risen twice in the past few months so now really is a very good time to save.
"Make saving more money your new year's resolution."
Source: Daily Mirror
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