The 38-page Savings Report 2014: Planning for Real Life, has revealed that women are less well-off when it comes to having money to put aside, despite them having lower levels of debt and spending less than men each month.
The statistics, taken from research conducted by YouGov which interviewed a total of 5221 adults, showed that women who earn an average £8000 less than men a year tend not to spend as much as their male counterparts. They also have £500 a month less debt, on average, than the British man.
However, women said they felt they had “nothing to save for” or are worried that they might need their money in the short-term.
The report said: “Women are more conscious they are not meeting their long-term savings targets than men, at 39 per cent compared with 29 per cent.
“This is perhaps another part of what is driving them to improve their savings, despite the significant income difference between the genders and the barriers to savings that this presents.”
Overall, the report found that the UK’s savings habit has been eroded, with 23 per cent of adults stating that they had no savings, and 19 per cent stating that they have never saved.
The report also revealed that the average number of Britons with savings fell from 69 per cent in 2012 to 67 per cent in 2013, despite better prospects for employment, wage growth, property prices and economic upturn being cited by the Bank of England and the Office for National Statistics.
In a foreword to the report, Caroline Rookes, chief executive of the Money Advice Service, spoke briefly of the UK strategy for financial capability, which is going through a consultation process at the moment, adding: “This report serves as a powerful reminder of the scale of the challenge.”
ADVISER VIEW
The need to get women saving more for their pensions is urgent, said Maggie Fleming, chartered financial planner at Oxfordshire-based Isis Financial Planners. She said: “I am not sure what more the government can do except publicise the gap. Pension companies must also do their bit to make women aware that they must build their own pensions.”
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