Here comes the rain again
Rain has been a pretty dominant feature this year. For those living in areas struck by major flooding, it's been a particularly traumatic experience.
People are saying things like, 'there was no warning', or 'there wasn't time to get things ready, it all happened so fast'. Unforeseen events can cause absolute havoc!
Think about a few common sayings in the English language, like 'expect the unexpected', and 'save for a rainy day'. Unexpected things can happen to us at any time and yet most of us carry on as if we're somehow immune. This is true when it comes to managing our money.
Buy Now, Pay Later
The UK is dominated by the buy now - worry about it later philosophy. For my Grandma, who is in her nineties, the idea of being a few pounds in debt at the Post Office is dreadful. But for younger people today, thousands of pounds of debt on credit cards, overdrafts and loans is barely worth commenting on. The average household in the
One of the big dangers of our debt culture is that people no longer think about how they're managing their money for the long term.
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The number of people who save regularly is at the lowest level recorded in two years (46%).
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Less than half (43%) of the population are planning for their financial future, with a tenth (11%) of these planners confessing that any plan they have is very vague.
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Over one in four (27%) have no savings at all - and a further one in four have less than £3,000 - meaning that the savings pot of more than half of all households in the UK will last less than three months!
Get your sandbags ready
Savings and pensions might not be exciting, (let's be honest, they're not exciting at all), but they're absolutely vital if we want to be prepared for when things go wrong. It really does pay to think through these issues sooner rather than later.
You never know what is going to happen tomorrow. Negative circumstances like illness, job loss, or relationship breakdown; or positive circumstances like marriage or having a baby have a big impact on you and your money. It’s vital to take some time to think through how ready you would be if something happened. In the long run, when the rains come, you'll be glad you had the sandbags ready.
Top 5 Saving Tips
1. Try to have a minimum of two months wages saved up.
2. Save a little bit regularly. Using direct debit from your bank account to a savings account makes this easier.
3. Set yourself some savings goals and make sure you give yourself a reward when you achieve them.
4. Keep a written or computerised budget. It makes managing your money and savings far easier.
5. Separate your wants from your needs. If you want something but can't afford it, then instead of borrowing money to get it, SAVE !
Chris Tapp is Director of Credit Action. After getting a degree in Politics, Philosophy and Economics at
Written by Chris Tapp.
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