Christmas cutbacks hit children's gift spend

11/12/2009

Young families are likely to keep their children in the dark about their money worries and debt help this Christmas, despite the fact that they have drastically reduced their festive spending.

Figures from uSwitch.com, a price comparison site, suggest that 56 per cent of Britons are buying fewer presents this year and four in ten are hunting down bargains and "sale items".

The recession, which has led to rising job losses, is a major factor behind this change in habit.

However, just 32 per cent of parents polled who are planning to reduce their spend on children's presents intend to tell their offspring why they have done so.

Ann Robinson, director of consumer policy at uSwitch.com, said: "Many households have heeded the lessons of the last year and have scrimped and saved, set budgets and agreed spending with friends and family. This kind of pre-planning is essential if you want to avoid financial strain in the New Year as the bills come in."

Kevin Still, EuroDebt director, added: "A delicate balance needs to be struck at Christmas. It is a time for celebration, but needs to be tempered by the fact that over generosity needs to be paid for if you can’t afford it. Being ‘thrifty’ has become a virtue again without having to play 'Scrooge' and this is important in the current economic climate. EuroDebt see face-to-face many people in financial difficulty and problems are often caused by excessive expenditure during seasonal holidays like Christmas.

"Whereas in years gone by the credit card spending would be caught up through the Spring, this is now turning into a 'Debt Spiral' rather than a debt snowball that melts away. We encourage people to pan ahead and budget for Christmas and this may sometimes disappoint the kids."

Further data from the uSwitch.com report indicate that 27 per cent of those cutting back on presents hope that their children will not notice the change.

Around 40 per cent will be agreeing a spending limit on presents with family and friends.

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

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