Tell us if costs crisis hurts you, says Nationwide boss
THE boss of Britain’s biggest building society says he is “highly concerned” about the impact of the current cost-ofliving crisis.
Joe Garner, chief executive of the Nationwide, said: “The cost of living crisis is impacting everyone.
“We are particularly concerned about those households where finances are already stretched. We are highly concerned about the impact.”
Mr Garner said the building society had yet to spot a noticeable rise in customers struggling to pay their bills or falling behind with their repayments.
But he urged any customer – or members as the building society is a mutual – who is in financial difficulty to contact it “sooner rather than later”.
He went on: “Those already struggling are finding it even more tough.
“The great injustice of this is the lower your income, the larger proportion is spent on food and fuel. By definition this hits the poorest hardest.”
The Institute for Fiscal Studies revealed this week that the inflation rate for the poorest 10 per cent of households was almost 11 per cent, compared with less than 8 per cent for the richest.
It came as the Nationwide reported that profits nearly doubled from £823million to £1.6billion in the year to the start of April.
Mr Garner said the jump in profits meant it could increase interest rates for savers.
“There is the optionality to increase rates,” he explained.
The Nationwide, which increased gross mortgage lending to £36.5billion last year, also warned rocketing inflation could slow what has been a surge in house prices.
“There is a risk of a downward movement in house prices, given the current pressure on household budgets,” the lender confirmed.
The Nationwide grew deposits by £7.7billion, a slowdown on the £10.6billion the previous year.
Its current account market share reached a new high of 10.3 per cent, with a record 604,000 new accounts opened.
The results are Mr Garner’s last before handing over to the former TSB chief executive, Debbie Crosbie, on June 2.