17/12/12
By Caroline Prosser
Brits are starting to look after their money better, with data showing that savings are going up for the second financial quarter in a row.
The NS&I Quarterly Savings poll has shown that Brits are typically saving just over 7 per cent - or £90 - of their monthly salary, compared to £87 in July and £83 two years ago.
There was a jump in savings when Northern Rock and Lehman Brothers failed several years ago, and also in spring 2011 when average savings reached £100.
NS&I also reported that just over 50 per cent of people believe that they have adequate savings for a rainy day, a small increase on last year.
Even though women tend to save more of their salaries than men, a typical 7.7 per cent compared with 7.1 per cent, men save more in monetary terms - £102.54 a month against £78.49.
Despite a rise in financial prudence, people are increasingly concerned they will not be able to keep this up, and fear their rate of saving will drop.
NS&I retail customer director John Prout said the results of the poll were positive, however given that the levels of saving are relatively low, it is still important for people to ensure they have prepared for unexpected needs.
At the same time, another survey by Halifax said that almost 40% of people have had to rely on their savings over the past three months, typically taking out £1,186 to pay for garage bills, holiday expenses, poor budgeting, and urgent costs.
Halifax reports that people living in the capital had the highest level of savings (£22,366), followed by Yorkshire and Humberside (£19,233) and the East Midlands (£18,795). The poorest savers were in the North East (£11,951), the North West (£12,179) and the East of England (£14,390)
The poll also suggested that lower earners (under £5,000) often dip into savings more, while higher earners (£30,000-£49,000) tend to spend savings the least.
