News

• January 2025 debt set to be highest on record while higher energy costs and tax returns will pile on more pressure
• Nationwide data shows debt repayments 4% higher this year vs 2023 as people borrowed more ahead of Christmas
• Debt has risen since the pandemic: customers repaid £796m of debt in January 2024 – 43% more than 2021
• But not all doom and gloom as Brits prepare to banish January blues by booking holidays in the New Year
• Nationwide urges those struggling financially to get in touch with their bank or building society for support

• Seven in ten (70%) are more stressed or anxious about their financial situation this Christmas
• 26% say they will use second-hand websites like Depop, Vinted and eBay to look for Christmas presents
• Brits planning to spend an average of £813 on Christmas including presents, travel, food and entertainment
• Comes as Nationwide offers £175 to those switching to one of its current accounts this festive season

• Website translation service comes as Sign Language Week begins in the UK
• Enhances support Nationwide offers Deaf customers in branch and contact centres
• Just 6% of financial services firms¹ offer websites in British Sign Language (BSL)
• Deaf charities call for greater awareness of BSL as a recognised UK language
• BSL is the primary language of 87,000 of UK’s Deaf population

• New research highlights impact of cost-of-living crisis since 2021 as 69% of families more worried compared to last year
• Since 2021, average family energy bills have risen by 63%, fuel by 39%, food by 32%, rent by 26% and mortgages by 22%
• Percentage of families with no spare cash at the end of each month almost doubles between 2022 and 2023
• Britain’s biggest building society reminds worried or struggling customers to contact its dedicated cost-of-living helpline
• But one in five feel that financial pressures are starting to ease in 2024, and are hopeful things will start to improve

• Poll shows 81% of households cut costs as energy price cap rises – from food to fashion
• Around a third haven’t been able to put money aside to cover increasing bills since April
• 20% of households would consider using credit cards to cover energy bills, 15% would take out a loan
• Nationwide starts offering financial health checks to struggling members across branch, phone and video

• Average household £249 per month worse off than same time last year, research from Nationwide shows
• One in eight avoid seeking help, with younger adults five time less likely to get support than older people
• Majority feel they have cut back as far as they can and don’t think they can reduce outgoings any further
• Half are worried about contacting their bank / building society for help due to any future impact on finances
• Nationwide prepares to offer appointments to members in addition to its dedicated cost-of-living hotline

• Households cutting back as ability to shop around for cheaper fuel is limited, Nationwide poll shows
• Despite reducing spending, many are having to use savings and credit cards to pay for fuel
• More than eight in ten people are more worried about their finances than they were a year ago
• Nationwide launches dedicated cost-of-living hotline to help members struggling financially

• All frontline colleagues will receive cost-of-living training to support and guide members
• Cost-of-living freephone hotline introduced so that those struggling can access support quickly
• Experts in branches to respond and reach out to members face-to-face, by phone and video
• Support will include financial wellbeing reviews and guidance from money experts and charities

• Three in ten people who are lonely & socially isolated say it makes them ripe for romance scams
• Number of people saying they’ve no contact with friends and family trebles since March 2020
• Two thirds have felt suspicious over dating profiles but 12% would carry on flirting regardless
• Young people particularly vulnerable as more use dating apps and more have felt ‘on their own’
• Follows Nationwide’s launch of Scam Checker Service, available in branch or over the telephone

Nationwide is partnering with OpenWrks, a UK based provider of open banking applications, to help members facing financial difficulty.

• Nationwide Spending Report shows Q1 essential and discretionary spend down year on year
• Essential spending down 3.4% while non-essential spending reduces 14.9%
• Brits spending more on emotional connections vs 2020 – from dating to gardening and pets
• Department store spending also soars as people continue to order from comfort of their home
• Spend via mobile payments jumps by 47% due to lower cash usage; credit card spend falls 23%