Virus is biggest fear for finance

People around the UK are more concerned about the impact of Covid-19 on their finances than they are about Brexit, a survey suggests.

When it comes to the two major challenges Britain faces – the handling of the coronavirus pandemic and Brexit – two-thirds (65%) think the Covid-19 outbreak is more concerning for their personal finances, while more than onefifth (21%) believe Brexit is the bigger threat, the Nationwide Building Society found.

The research among more than 11,000 people throughout the UK found that, despite many households now living on reduced incomes, nearly two-fifths (37%) of people had put more into a savings account than they would usually, rising to 45% of 18 to 34-year-olds.

Only one in six (16%) said they had saved less since lockdown started on March 23 and more than one-third (36%) wished they had saved more before the pandemic struck.

Nationwide’s research was carried out as part of its PayDay SaveDay campaign, which encourages people to save on the day they get paid to build a financial buffer.

One in six (15%) people have had to dip into their savings as a direct result of Covid-19, jumping to more than a quarter (27%) of those who are unemployed.

Nationwide’s index also points towards people preferring not to touch their savings at all, if possible.

A vast majority (90%) of the society’s members did not withdraw any money from their savings accounts between January and May.

“People are preferring not to touch their savings at all”