Nearly all Brits need a financial workout

Almost all of Britons would benefit from a financial workout, according to the results of a latest survey.

The findings from Abbey show that only one in every 100 Brits manages the various aspects of their personal finance well.

With a higher score indicating the greater the room for improvement in their personal financial management, the average score for the UK population was 43.

Steve Shore, Abbey director of banking, said: “Less than a third of people score less than 30 which suggests that the majority of the population could do with a financial workout.”

Women scored 46 compared with 41 for men and Wales and the South West were the most financially fit.

The research looked at the financial behaviour of British consumers and gave them a score according to the products they held, the competitiveness of these products and how often they shopped around for better deals.

Meanwhile, recent research from Abbey has revealed that the odd jobs economy for children is worth an estimated £696 million.

Tags: british consumers, director, improvement, uk population, personal finance, steve shore, Wales

Britons saving at record levels

Savings among British consumers has reached record-breaking highs, new research indicates.

According to research by Unbiased, savings in the second quarter topped £47 billion, which has been attributed to an increasing number of people taking advantage of the recent rise in interest rates.

Commenting on the figures, David Elms, chief executive of Unbiased said: “It is extremely encouraging to see that savvy consumers are taking advantage of the recent rate hikes with previously unseen record levels of savings now taking place!

“Plus it’s even better that Britons appear to have tightened their belts and are approaching borrowing far more cautiously than in previous months.”

The research, which also analyses the rate of borrowing, claims that £4 billion was loaned during the quarter, almost £13 billion less for the same three months of 2006.

In addition the saving to borrowing ratio has also decreased for 32 pence borrowed against every pound saved to eight pence borrowed against every pound.

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Brits urged to borrow sensibly

British consumers are being encouraged to make sure that they only borrow what they can reasonably pay back.

Debt advice firm Thomas Charles is calling upon Britons to take control of their finances following the expensive Christmas period.

The company says January and February are some of the worst months for consumers when it comes to falling into debt.

This is put down to over spending during the festive season and often results in people borrowing more money to see them through the difficult period.

James Falla, director of Thomas Charles, says consumers need to ensure that they are only borrowing money which they can afford to repay.

“If you are taking a loan, then you should know full well that you have to pay back an amount every month,” he said.

Consumers are also advised to take a proper look into the best ways of borrowing money and see which method is best suited to their circumstances.

Tags: James Falla, debt advice, circumstances, director, british consumers