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1.6 million Brits cannot afford the cost of Christmas
Written by ey on 22 November, 2011More than 1.6 million indebted Britons will not be able to afford any festive cheer this Christmas time, research by Legal and General found.
The pensions and insurance provider's MoneyMood survey has revealed that just 18 per cent expect to spend more money on presents and celebrations this year than they did for Christmas in 2010.
And more worryingly, 3.3 million households said they will service their festive spending by using a credit card.
Mark Gregory, Legal & General executive director savings, stated: "Last month we reported that a million households are worse off now than they were just one year ago.
"So it comes as perhaps no surprise that in the current economic climate eight out of ten homes say they’re planning to curb spending on presents compared to last year."
He added that nationally only two-thirds (67 per cent) can afford to pay for presents and other Christmas expenses but affordability appears to be very much a regional thing.
People in the north appear to be the best off with 79 per cent saying they can easily afford Christmas.
The East Midlands was second in terms of festive financial welfare at 77 per cent, while residents of Wales and East Anglia were also confident on Christmas spending at 72 per cent each.
In contrast, Londoners and those living in the West Midlands are the worst off as a massive 40 per cent admitted they will struggle financially over the holiday period.
The numbers come as no surprise given that research recently conducted by financial website unbiased.co.uk almost half of Britons are in a worse financial position than they were six months ago and many have debt management issues looming.
This is at a time when debt levels continue to rise. The Bank of England revealed recently that consumer borrowing on personal loans and credit cards rose by an incredible £629 million in the month of September alone.