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Archive for ‘Insights’

Inflation can be the big enemy of savers, eroding the value of their hard-earned money. Even if inflation ticked along at the level the Bank of England tries tirelessly to keep it at (2%) it could nonetheless have a significant impact over time on money sitting in cash if interest rates are lower than inflation. Currently1, inflation is 2.4% and the very best easy-access cash…


We recently ran a survey* to find out the most popular things that people save up and invest for. And while almost equal numbers of men and women said they put money aside for holidays and home improvements it was work in the garden – at number 4 in our survey – that most divided the sexes. In our survey, more than twice as many…


Cast your minds back to last year and you may remember #TobleroneGate. The chocolate brand, owned by Mondelez International, announced it was reducing one of its bars from 170g to 150g. Another was resized from 400g to 360g. Cue uproar on social media. Well, we hate to be the bearer of bad news for lovers of all food sweet and savoury, but there’s a lot…


Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past year, you’ll be aware of the reported salary differences between men and women, and the debate surrounding pay inequality. What you may not know is that gender also plays a key part when it comes to saving and investing. Our latest Disposable Income Index (DII), which looks at saving and spending habits of households across…


Christmas is a time for giving and it seems that spirit is alive and well in Britain in 2017. However, as the last Scottish Friendly Disposable Income Index (DII) of the year, which is now out, shows, the season of goodwill is putting significant social and financial pressures on us. Family, friends, TV advertising, retailers and social media are all combining to push us even…


Scottish Friendly’s Disposable Income Index looks at the variations in how much money households have left at the end of the month and a key variable we look at is how young people fare compared to older age groups. An area of concern we’ve highlighted over several issues of our quarterly report into the nation’s households’ financial situation is that the median disposable income is…


The UK is stuck in a rut of economic uncertainty. The country is awaiting the outcome of Brexit negotiations and the impact this will have on the wider economy and, even though employment levels are continuing to rise, this is tempered by the reality that wages are stagnating in real terms as inflation increases but the size of our pay packets does not. In short,…


A consistent theme in the media these days is how the financial fortunes of the older generation seem to be improving while the financial outlook for the younger generation is, well, more pessimistic. A state pension with a guaranteed triple lock, decent final salary pensions and homes of their own that are usually mortgage free are just some of the factors that bring a spring…


Borrowing is ballooning. In May, the Financial Times1 reported that “there is a large section of society drowning in personal debt, on credit cards, overdrafts, hire purchase and other high-cost credit.” Last week, the Daily Mail warned that “Debt charities say swathes of the country are living on the never-never, where one false move could plunge them into ruin.” Now these warnings are official. The…


Put down your shopping lists, smart phones and purses, your time is up! Our families took on The Great British Savings Challenge Finale and have told us how they got on. We tasked them to try earning some money by using free cash back sites for shopping they had planned to do anyway. Here’s how they got on… Natalie told us “I am a big…


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