Abbey notes ‘picking up’ of savings habits

The amount of money the average Briton places in saving accounts has risen significantly over the past 12 months.

People are increasingly putting cash into saving accounts, new Abbey research reveals.

With its latest Snapshot study revealing that the typical consumer is currently setting aside £198 each month, the firm indicates that this is up 21 per cent from that which was being tucked away at the start of 2009.

However, it appears that men are making the most effort when it comes to investing in online savings accounts and other types of saving scheme, with the average male putting £220 away on a monthly basis.

Women, on the other hand, are placing £176 into a saving account each month, a rise of 34 per cent from the beginning of this year.

On a regional basis, Londoners are saving the most each month, followed by those living in the south-west and Wales.

Research from the firm also shows that 44 per cent of people have a cash ISA, while 62 per cent of those questioned are in possession of an instant access savings account.

Reza Attar-Zadeh, director of savings and investments for Abbey, points out: “It’s encouraging to see that the nation’s saving habits have picked up over the past 12 months, despite the fact that people have been faced with such a challenging economic climate, but it’s still concerning that a large number of people still have no savings at all.”

Indeed, one in five people claim to have no money saved whatsoever.

Those looking to compare accounts in a bid to prepare their future finances may be interested in his comments that regardless of their reasons for saving, consumers looking to put money away for the future should “work out a plan of action that works for them”.

Meanwhile, John Fitzsimons noted in a recent lovemoney.com article that a regular saving account can be a “very nifty way” to install good saving habits.

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