Millions Of Brits Are ‘Living Beyond Their Means’

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One of the more stressful parts of life is the week prior to payday; spending your evenings counting out loose change while cursing yourself for splurging during the first week of the month.

At such times, you may find yourself expanding your overdraft a tad more, or reluctantly whipping out your store card.

Frustratingly, the world refuses to stay still until your bank account can be replenished; with bills and family birthdays whacking you in the wallet from all sides.

If this sounds familiar then you’re not alone. A new study has found how millions of Brits are living beyond their means, with a sizeable percentage using credit cards and overdrafts as fall-back options when wage-packets run on empty.

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2,000 Brits were polled in a survey conducted by Vantage Leasing, which found a hefty 43 per cent deal with their excess spending through their credit card, while 10 per cent have an overdraft facility.

20 per cent use both options as provisions for those times when you find yourself too broke for a bus ticket.

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Credit card holders partaking in the research confessed to totting up about £269.17 each month on their card, just to get by.

Among those with overdraft facilities, 17 per cent regularly find themselves in the red as pay-day draws near.

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James Buttrick from Vantage Leasing stated:

It’s a sad fact that most of us are familiar with the feeling of purse strings tightening as pay day fades into a distant memory.

When funds are running dry, most Brits have a fall-back set up which they can plunder as needed, but this shouldn’t be seen as a long-term solution to cash flow problems.

Many of us could take a look at our lives and endeavour to make smarter money choices going forward to keep our spending habits in check, curbing spontaneous, big-ticket purchases for more sensible payment plans.

When pay day arrives and our pockets are deepest, this is when we are at the biggest risk of irresponsible spending.

Whether it’s some new threads you’ve had an eye on all month, a big night out to celebrate or a bigger ticket item like a car or home furnishing, it is worth taking a moment to take stock as impulse purchases could mean your riches are short-lived.

At Vantage Leasing we want to better understand the affordability of car rentals from the perspective of our customer, so we can take a responsible stance when advising on whether an offer is in their best interests.

The most bitterly regretted purchase is clothes, which one in four splashes their freshly received wages on. Others regretted purchases including fast food, meals out and nights out with pals.

Your average Brit about town spends a monthly sum of £101 on non-essential products and services which could have been better placed in a sensible savings account.

Although, don’t beat yourself up too much about the occasional pricey cider in the pub…

Yup. Always best to wait a week until that payday euphoria wears off and those direct debits start firing out left, right and centre…

Check out the full findings of the quiz here.

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Julia Banim

Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.