Bigger spending but better budgeting, says Callcredit research
Research from credit reference agency Callcredit suggests that Brits are planning to spend more this Christmas than last year, but they are keeping a tighter handle on their finances. One in ten people are expecting to spend over £1,000 over the Christmas period. This is twice as many as last year. In contrast, only four in ten think they will spend less than £500, compared to six in ten last year.
However, only one person in ten is planning to use credit to fund the Christmas festivities and most of those will only put a quarter of their Christmas costs on plastic. Instead, most people are going to use savings or their normal income to fund Christmas spending.
Callcredit director Mel Mitchley said: ‘This is a big increase on last year when the equivalent figure was three in ten and means people are spending less on credit than last year. What’s more, people are predicting they’ll pay off their Christmas debt sooner than in 2005. This year 81 per cent of people think their festive credit spending will be history by March, compared to 67 per cent in 2005.’
Ms Mitchley added: ‘Generally the picture is looking pretty positive - people are spending more but budgeting better. Instead of using credit to get them through the festive season they’re using the hard-earned cash they have in their pocket. One slight concern is that the number of people who have no idea how they’ll fund Christmas has doubled from two to four per cent.’