£3.5 Billion Lying Around UK Homes - Can You Believe It!
A recent survey has found that a staggering £3.5 billion is being held in homes around the UK, losing an incredible £174 million in interest payments a year. While surveys in the past have uncovered a number of the UK population who have a lack of confidence in banks, like to store money or hide money form the tax man, the figure of £3.5 billion has beaten all expectations.
It appears that an incredible 1 in 6 of the population admit to holding significant amounts of cash in their home, rather than depositing in banks or investing for the future. It seems that 15% of consumers hold up to £1,000 in cash in their home, 2% hold up to £5,000 although some have admitted to hiding more than £5,000 in the home.
Ignoring the potential loss of interest and investment returns, there are also massive security issues here, with many reports each year of substantial amounts of money being stolen from homes across the UK.
Why Store Money At Home?
While a number of reasons were highlighted as to why people hold money at home, the main explanations were :-
· Christmas Savings.
· Hiding from partner.
· Lack of trust in Banks.
· Hiding from the Tax Office.
Which Ages Groups Are Most Cautious?
It seems that the lack of trust in the finance industry is an older generation issue, with many over 50s highlighting this point. Younger families with children seem to be the main culprits for storing Christmas Savings in the home, and the other reasons are spread between all age groups.
Despite many attempts in the past to change the perception of people who store money in the home, the situation has shown little change over the last 20 years. Will it ever change?
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