British Households Still Feeling the Pinch After Yesterday's Budget

CHESTER, England, March 21, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

• Only 18 per cent of people say they are better off as a result of yesterday's budget
• Recent MoneySupermarket report revealed three quarters of consumers already having to limit their household spending
• One in ten (11 per cent) are skipping meals to feed their family

With Chancellor George Osborne attempting to give something back to consumers yesterday by raising personal tax allowances to £10,000, helping with childcare and freezing planned rises on fuel duty, only one in five (18 per cent) of people say they will actually be better off as a result, according to a post Budget MoneySupermarket poll.*

The poll of 3,760 MoneySupermarket site users reveals a staggering 58 per cent of consumers do not think they will be better off as a result of yesterday's Budget. Only one in five (18 per cent) actually think the Budget will help them, and a further 24 per cent are still unsure. This comes at a time when a recent MoneySupermarket report** revealed three quarters of consumers (76 per cent) say they have limited their household spending in the past 12 months, with more than a third (38 per cent) cutting back spending on necessities in the last 12 months and 65 per cent cutting back spending on luxury purchases.

In addition, more than one in ten people (11 per cent) who have made cut backs to necessities have skipped meals to make sure their kids are fed, and nearly one in five (17 per cent) have not paid energy or credit card bills in an attempt to cut back on household spending.

Clare Francis, Editor-in-chief atMoneySupermarket, said: "Household finances are taking a battering from all sides at the moment, and while the Government may seem to be giving with one hand, they are also taking away with the other through other tax increases and benefit cuts. This means that people are no better off, and as our poll shows, people are feeling this. In fact, the cumulative effect of this and previous budget changes, combined with wage stagnation and rising living costs means millions are worse off and an increasing number of families are on the breadline, struggling to make ends meet every month.

More needs to be done to help families - the Government needs to work harder to tackle rising everyday costs, such as energy prices, food and fuel. Average incomes have fallen in real terms over the past four years***, the cost of heating our homes continues to rise and food prices and motoring costs are also taking their toll on family budgets. As a result, it is not only the Chancellor who has a fight on his hands to keep the nation's head above the water - households are having to do likewise and some are making drastic cuts just to get by. 

"In order to free up some vital cash, UK households need to take control of their finances, become their own chancellor and review all of their financial products to make sure they are benefiting from the most competitive deals on the market. Switching to economy brand food may help save the pennies but failing to pay important bills could have a bigger impact on your financial situation in the long term so it's time to tackle them and make sure you're not paying more than you need to. 

"Apathy is rarely rewarded and switching from average deals to the market leading option on a range of financial products could save you hundreds of pounds."

Notes to Editors:

* Budget 2013 - will you be better off as a result?

   Yes (17.7%)
   No (57.9%)
   Don't know (24.4%)

   Total Votes: 3757

** Opinium Research conducted the research of 2010 Online interviews between 13 - 15^th March 2013. Results are nationally representative.

*** Source ONS http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/regional-trends/regional-economic-analysis/changes-in-real-earnings-in-the-uk-and-london--2002-to-2012/art-changes-in-real-earnings-in-the-uk-and-london--2002-to-2012.html

MoneySupermarket.com compares (at 27^th Feb 2013)