Are you a ‘YOLO spender’? How millions of Brits are blowing savings on short-term fun and putting away less than £6 a week
BRITS are becoming a nation of ‘YOLOs’ – living by the phrase ‘You Only Live Once’ - and are saving just £300-a-year so they can have fun with the rest of their income.
Research by the Royal Mint shows millions of us now throw caution to the wind when it comes to their future finances and put away just £5.70 per week.
This amounts to around £300 a year for the average adult, or just £600 per household.
According to historical data published by Lloyds Banking Group*, that’s three times less than 40 years ago, when the average person managed to set aside around £1,500 every year.
But despite living for the moment, six in ten Brits regret not saving from an early age with many wishing they’d started at the tender age of 16.
The Royal Mint study shows many adults are now wary of investing money, with 60 per cent feeling they don’t have enough cash and a further 43 per cent worrying they would lose what they invested rather than make money.
Another four in ten simply don’t know enough about investing to do anything about it, while 25 per cent felt investments in precious metals such as gold, silver or platinum were ‘not affordable’.
The study also found one fifth of adults prefer investing in possessions rather than putting money in savings.
Unsurprisingly, premium bonds, shares and home refurbishments were the most popular money-making ventures for nearly half of Brits.
Chris Howard, Director of Bullion at The Royal Mint, which carried out the research in conjunction with the extension of its Signature investment product, where people can invest in gold, silver or platinum, said, said: “With the current and past economic climate, we’re not surprised to see that people are saving less.
‘’At The Royal Mint, we want to make investing in alternative forms simple to understand and easier to do.
“However, our research has found many are scared to invest or don’t know enough about investing."
*Data taken from Lloyds Banking Group press release : UK household savings rise by 500% in the last 40 years
