Long wait 'till pay day

By THIS IS MONEY
Updated:

 

A THIRD of Britons are running out of cash days before their next pay day, leading to an average of 67 days a year spent in the red.

Two-thirds of people claim they never run out of money, but the one in three who does overspend admits they are usually skint at least five days before they get their next pay cheque, according to internet bank Egg.

They are racking up around £27 in overdraft charges, with the average authorised overdraft charging 12.6% and unauthorised rates set at approximately 24.3%.

Andy Deller, chief marketing officer at Egg, said: 'A staggering 16m Britons run out of cash each month and often resort to expensive overdrafts to make it through to pay day.

'Consumers can easily slip into the red each month if they don't have a clear figure of what they can afford to spend.'

Among those who run out of money, young people are broke for the longest, with those aged between 18 and 29 spending an average of 74 days a year in the red, while the over-50s are least likely to overspend at an average of 57 days.

People in Scotland who run out of money before pay day spend an average of 73 days a year without cash, although those in Wales and the Midlands are broke for only 61 days.

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