Britons 'dipping in to their ISAs as costs rise'

05/08/2008

Credit crunch it Britons have taken a collective £6 billion out of their savings accounts over the past year, Abbey said today.

According to latest research from the firm, around £579 was taken out by every single ISA saver over the period - 26 per cent of the average subscription.

When asked why they dipped in to the savings, the largest group (31 per cent) said that they did so due to the pressures of day-to-day costs.

Elsewhere, 24 percent said that they had used savings to meet an "unanticipated" cost, while a further 13 percent used the funds to help out loved ones.

Director of savings and investments at Abbey Reza Attar-Zadeh said: "With the cost of living increasing, a significant number of us are being forced to use our savings to meet the rising costs. You never know when you're going to need to fall back on your savings and in this respect dipping into them to meet bills such as gas bills is no bad thing.

"On the other hand dipping in to your ISA savings could prove costly in the long term. With a cash ISA allowance of £3,600 per tax year any withdrawals made can not be replaced, so that part of your allowance would be lost forever."

Tags; Budgeting Advice, Young Family Finances, Credit Card Lifestyle,

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