Money habits improving, but more struggle to pay bills
02/08/2013
Research from the Money Advice Service has revealed that, despite the fact an increasing amount of UK adults are struggling to pay bills, people are generally falling into better money habits.
The Money Advice Service, a website run by the Government to make people more aware of how to effectively manage their money, says that because of the fact people are struggling more with their finances, they are being self-motivated to seek information on techniques to budget and save money.
However there is real concern over the amount of people who are unable to pay bills or debts on time. Of the 5,000 people questioned in the report, 52pc admitted they are struggling, an increase of 17pc from figures in 2006.
The report also found that 42pc of people would have to think about how to cover an unexpected £300 bill, and 21pc have experienced a large drop in income over the last three years.
As mentioned, though, this has meant that people are starting to adopt better habits. 85pc of people said that they are managing to save money, with 53pc putting money aside monthly, while 46pc of people make a personal budget.
Caroline Rooks, chief executive of the Money Advice Service, puts this all into perspective: “In theory money management is easy – spend less than you earn and consider your future, but the difficulty comes when applying this in the real world. We are all vulnerable to events around us, from a global financial crisis to a personal health issue. To be able to deal with those events effectively we all need the right skills and knowledge, attitudes and motivations and opportunities to react”, she said.
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