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UK personal finance for the future not a priority for the UK's youth
By Harvey McEwan
While the population of England tipped over 50 million recently, a recent survey suggest that around two million households are living on the edge of financial difficulty, and a further half-million are already in difficulty.
The survey, from the Financial Services Authority (FSA), identified the least informed about financial matters to be 18-40 year-olds. Although there is a large amount of financial information available to this age range, particularly online at one of the many personal finance websites now available, such as Moneynet.co.uk, it seems that the available information is being well used to enable ongoing personal finances to remain liquid, but not to provide for the future.
In the UK, the FSA report concluded that in fact the majority of UK citizens are adept at daily or monthly personal financing, but sorely lacking in providing for their future. Savings are rarely being made to supplement any state pension that may be made available when they retire - despite many such pension schemes being available at workplaces or, even more interestingly, at the very online sites that have made the UK so adept at managing their short-term finances.
It seems that UK citizens are actively looking for ways to free up their daily finances but, despite the options being easily available to them, are not interested in planning for the future. Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) are a good way to save for the future, and some great offers are available, but the FSA survey shows that roughly four out of ten ISA owners do not realise that their savings are tied to the stock market and will fluctuate in line with stock market variations.
An astonishing seven out of ten UK consumers have no savings to cater for a potential drop in income from either a change in working direction or losing their job. Those that do have savings would tend to have savings in a standard savings account with one of the main high street banks such as Barclays.
The FSA plans to invest heavily in the promotion of savings as part of personal finance good practice. An estimated £50 million spread over five years is thought to be in the pipeline, with much of that spend thought to be used to target the 18-40 age range highlighted in the FSA survey. Traditionally a tough area to get significant results from, it is to be hoped that the FSA can make inroads into this market as without good personal finance savings and investments being made amongst this age range, the associated financial problems can only escalate as time goes on.
Disclaimer:
All information contained in this article is for general information purpose only and should not be construed as advice under the financial Services act 1986. You are strongly advised to take appropriate professional and legal advice before entering into any binding contracts.
About the Author
An avid follower and writer of all things financial, contibuting to the personal finance blog Cashzilla. Harvey lives and works in Edinburgh and can be contacted online here: tyranadollar@googlemail.com
Article Source: http://www.simplysearch4it.com/article/24652.html
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