Overview
This report is based on results from the 11th wave of the Financial Fairness Tracker, a periodic cross-sectional survey commissioned by the abrdn Financial Fairness Trust. The survey has been tracking the financial situation of UK households since the start of the coronavirus pandemic in early 2020, providing an overview of households’ income, spending, borrowings, savings, quality of life and perceptions of key policy-related matters. Data was collected from nearly 6,000 households in November 2024 via Opinium’s politically- and nationally-representative sample and then analysed by researchers at the University of Bristol’s Personal Finance Research Centre (PFRC).
Key findings
• There has been a slight decline in financial wellbeing since wave 10 (May 2024). This has been driven by a decline in the proportion who are ‘financially secure’ (25%, down from 28%) and corresponding increase in ‘exposed’ households (36%, up from 34%). The proportion of households ‘struggling’(24%) and ‘in serious difficulties’ (15%) remains unchanged.
• Much of this appears to be driven by a decline in the proportion of older adults who feel ‘financially secure’ (from 49% to 40% among pensionable age households). Nevertheless, the older population remain more financially secure than those of working age (40% versus 21%) and less likely to be in serious financial difficulties (7% versus 17%). However, nearly half (47%) of low-income pensioner households say they are worried about meeting their energy bills in the next three months, an increase from 30% in May and from 38% a year ago.
• We see gradual improvement on certain indicators of financial difficulty. For example, the proportion of people struggling to pay for food and other essentials has fallen from 24% in October 2023 to 20% in November 2024. However, on indicators of saving and financial resilience, there appears to have been a slight worsening following improvement earlier in 2024: fewer households report being able to cover all of an unexpected bill equivalent to one month’s income (44% in November, down from 47% in May, but similar to 43% last October).
• Households with children remain less financially well. Nearly half (48%) of households with children are ‘struggling’ or ‘in serious difficulties’, compared with 40% of working age households without children. Some families face even more significant financial pressures:
o 62% of families with three or more children are struggling or in difficulty; half (52%) live in homes with problems with damp, mould or condensation; and one-in-three (29%) say they are often unable to afford a balanced or healthy diet.
o Families with disabled children were four times less likely to be financially secure (4%, compared to 17% of other parents). Three-in-five (60%) lived in damp homes, while a third (34%) said they could not afford a healthy diet.
o Children growing up in rented homes are particularly affected. Three-in-five families in private rented homes are struggling financially (63%) and over half (52%) face issues with damp, mould and condensation.
• Much of this appears to be driven by a decline in the proportion of older adults who feel ‘financially secure’ (from 49% to 40% among pensionable age households). Nevertheless, the older population remain more financially secure than those of working age (40% versus 21%) and less likely to be in serious financial difficulties (7% versus 17%). However, nearly half (47%) of low-income pensioner households say they are worried about meeting their energy bills in the next three months, an increase from 30% in May and from 38% a year ago.
• We see gradual improvement on certain indicators of financial difficulty. For example, the proportion of people struggling to pay for food and other essentials has fallen from 24% in October 2023 to 20% in November 2024. However, on indicators of saving and financial resilience, there appears to have been a slight worsening following improvement earlier in 2024: fewer households report being able to cover all of an unexpected bill equivalent to one month’s income (44% in November, down from 47% in May, but similar to 43% last October).
• Households with children remain less financially well. Nearly half (48%) of households with children are ‘struggling’ or ‘in serious difficulties’, compared with 40% of working age households without children. Some families face even more significant financial pressures:
o 62% of families with three or more children are struggling or in difficulty; half (52%) live in homes with problems with damp, mould or condensation; and one-in-three (29%) say they are often unable to afford a balanced or healthy diet.
o Families with disabled children were four times less likely to be financially secure (4%, compared to 17% of other parents). Three-in-five (60%) lived in damp homes, while a third (34%) said they could not afford a healthy diet.
o Children growing up in rented homes are particularly affected. Three-in-five families in private rented homes are struggling financially (63%) and over half (52%) face issues with damp, mould and condensation.
Further reading