The rising cost of living is forcing Britons to raid their savings accounts, according to research.
The amount of money that people have saved is dwindling at an increasingly fast rate, according to ING Direct, with the level of savings people have set aside dropping by an average of 14% during the three months to the end of September. This is the equivalent of a £279 reduction to £1,771.
It was also revealed that the amount people had saved in their accounts had reached its lowest level since the group started collecting the data in January 2009 and a quarter of people do not have any savings at all.
The group said the situation is likely to have been caused by an increased cost of living while workers either lose their jobs, take pay cuts or have their salaries frozen. It also said that many consumers are focusing on paying down debt as they anticipate large cuts to public spending.
