Research from pensions and retirement specialist LV= highlights the personal finances of millions of people are continuing to worsen.
The LV= Wealth and Wellbeing Monitor* - a quarterly survey of 4,000 UK adults – reveals that millions of people expect their finances to worsen over the next three months, total monthly outgoings are rising, people are saving less while spending in supermarkets is rising and socialising is falling.
The June 2022 figures are the worst they’ve been since June 2020 when LV= started surveying consumers during the pandemic. This highlights how the confidence of UK consumers is falling sharply as millions feel the effects of rising prices.
The LV= Wealth and Wellbeing Monitor* reveals…
Growing numbers are feeling the effects of the cost of living crisis…
“The results of the latest LV= Wealth and Wellbeing Monitor highlight how the finances of millions of people are being squeezed by the large rise in the cost of living. The indices for savings, financial outlook and outgoings are the worst recorded since we started surveying consumers during the coronavirus pandemic, and worse than in the dark days of covid.
“Consumer sentiment had been steadily improving between spring and early autumn 2021 but the sharp rise in the cost of living has dented consumers’ confidence. Millions of people say they are struggling financially and standards of living are falling across the country.
“Rising energy prices are becoming a significant problem for many people, and many families with young children and low income households are struggling.”
LV= uses indices to track overall changes to spending, saving and finances. The indices are calculated by: subtracting the % who stated a negative change over the past three months (e.g. decrease/ worse) from the % who stated a positive change over the past three months (e.g. increase/ better), to work out the overall impact.
LV= Wealth & Wellbeing Indices | Jun-20 | Sep-20 | Dec-20 | Mar-21 | Jun-21 | Sep-21 | Dec-21 | Mar- 22 | Jun-22 | Change QonQ |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
How finances have changed in last 3 months | -18 | -18 | -25 | -9 | -8 | -11 | -20 | -34 | -44 | -10 |
How finances might look 3 months from now | -6 | -8 | -14 | -2 | -1 | -5 | -12 | -31 | -32 | 0 |
Total monthly outgoings | -9 | 2 | -16 | -11 | 14 | 26 | 39 | 49 | 49 | 0 |
Income from work | -11 | -10 | -7 | 1 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 2 |
Amount saving | 8 | 1 | -1 | 10 | 2 | -1 | -3 | -6 | -13 | -8 |
Amount saving into pensions | 1 | 0 | -4 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 6 | 5 | -1 |
Spend at the supermarket | 27 | 21 | 13 | 18 | 16 | 26 | 36 | 46 | 43 | -3 |
Spend on socialising | -53 | -37 | -52 | -47 | -9 | 6 | -2 | -4 | -10 | -6 |
The above data shows that there have been significant changes to some indices between September and June 2022.
LV= is a leading retirement and protection specialist. When we started in 1843 our goal was to give financial security to more than just a privileged few and for many decades we were most commonly associated with providing a method of saving to people of modest means. Today we follow a similar purpose, helping people to protect and provide for the things they love, although on a much larger scale and through a wide range of financial services including insurance, investment and retirement products.
LV= and Liverpool Victoria are registered trademarks of Liverpool Victoria Financial Services Limited (LVFS) and trading styles of the LV= Group of Companies.Liverpool Victoria Financial Services Limited, registered in England with registration number 12383237 is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority, register number 110035. Registered address: County Gates, Bournemouth, BH1 2NF.