Poor money management hitting holidaying Brits

Millions of people across the UK are falling into financial difficulty due to poor money management before and during holidays.

National debt counselling charity Christians Against Poverty revealed the findings of a survey into holiday habits and found that more than half (53%) of all Brits confessed to getting into financial difficulty following a holiday.

Despite the credit crunch and rise in the cost of living, nearly a quarter (24%) of the 334 people polled admitted to having no spending plan at all while away.

Many were also forced to cut back when they returned home because money was tighter.

Almost half (47%) thought the UK was the most expensive holiday destination from a choice of European countries, including France, Italy and Greece.

Spain was voted as the least expensive, with only one per cent of people thinking it would cost the most to holiday there.

CAP has issued tips on how to effectively budget for holidays to make sure anyone going away can save adequately and avoid increasing the UK’s current £1.4 trillion of personal debt.

UK CEO  Matt Barlow said: “With so many already facing the misery of struggling to make debt repayments, we really want to encourage people to save and plan financially for their holidays. 

“It would be a real shame if the cause of their relaxation were also to become the cause of spiralling debts.

“Estimates suggest that we will spend more than £750 per household on our holidays this year, demonstrating how holidays take up a large part of everyone’s annual disposable income.”

He added:”With a little planning and putting money aside each week, we can afford to go away without the worry that our vacation will push us over the tipping point financially.”We would never begrudge anyone a much-needed break, but we want to urge everyone today if they have got into financial difficulty through a holiday to use our online calculator and seek appropriate help too.”

CAP’s Top Five Tips for Proper Holiday Budgeting:

1.At the start of the year, look at your annual budget and decide how much you can spend on your holiday.  Divide this total by twelve and save this amount of money each month to make sure you don’t over-spend

2.Stick to your budget when it comes to booking your holiday – we all want a fortnight in the Maldives, but we can’t all afford it, so be realistic and avoid the temptation to ‘keep up with the Joneses’

3.Search the internet to find the best deals and if finances are tight, look for cheaper alternatives like camping, instead of staying in catered accommodation

4.Save a small amount of ‘pocket money’ each month for 10 months leading up to your holiday – we all love to take spending money away with us and it will mean you can relax if you want that extra meal out whilst away

5.Buy your sun-cream in winter when prices are cheaper.

by Phil Davies