Irish People still committed to Saving – KBC Bank Ireland Savings Barometer
22 May 2012
Irish People still committed to Saving – KBC Bank Ireland Savings Barometer
Tuesday, 22 May 2012 KBC Bank Ireland’s Quarterly Savings Barometer published today shows that Irish people are still saving, with a strong increase in those aged 35 -44 who now have a savings account. (see page 2 for key findings).
78% of 1,000 people surveyed across Ireland in May had a savings account, a slight decrease on the Q1 Savings Barometer (79%). However, 79% of those aged 35 – 44 had a savings account, compared to 75% in Q1.
“The positive trend is that people are still saving and are trying to manage their finances so that they have some fallback for an unexpected event. The commitment to savings remains strong and 49% are planning to increase their savings in the next year”, said Dara Deering, Executive Director, Head of Retail Banking, KBC Bank Ireland.
Of those who have a savings account, saving for a rainy day at 26% remains the most important reason for saving. 21% of savers are saving for a particular item such as a car, house, children’s education or holidays while 14% say that ‘uncertainty about the future’ is their reason for saving.
The majority of respondents (34%) dip into their savings 2 -3 times a year, while 20% of respondents dipped into their savings more than 5 times in the last year,
“The latest KBC Savings Barometer shows people are dipping into their savings more regularly but they also want to be able to top up again when they have some extra cash.
The top three features sought by savers are the ability to access funds, the interest rate offered and the ability to add additional funds to the account. We’re now launching a new Top-Up deposit account this week with all these features to give savers greater freedom in how they manage their savings”, she said.
“With a very competitive 4.1% AER/Gross deposit rate over 12 months, as well as the flexibility to lodge or withdraw up to 25% of funds during the term, our innovative Top-Up deposit account will be very attractive to savers”, she added.
KBC Bank Ireland’s Top-Up deposit account is available from Thursday, 24th May. Details will be available at www.kbc.ie; from KBC Bank Ireland’s branches in Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Galway; or by phoning 1800 51 52 53.
Ends.
The Key Findings of the KBC Bank Ireland Savings Barometer 2012 are:
• 78% of 1,000 people surveyed across Ireland in May had a savings account, a slight decrease on the Q1 Savings Barometer (79%).
• 79% of those aged 35 – 44 had a savings account, compared to 75% in Q1.
• Connaught / Ulster had the highest percentage of savers (81%) compared to Dublin (78%), Munster (77%) and Rest of Leinster (77%).
• Of those who have a savings account, saving for a rainy day and having an all important ‘financial safety net’ (26%) remains the most important reason for saving. 21% of savers are saving for a particular item such as a car, house, children’s education or holidays while 14% say that ‘uncertainty about the future’ is their reason for saving.
• While 17% have increased the amount they save over the past six months, 44% are saving less.
• The commitment to savings remains strong with 49% of those with a savings account planning to increase the amount they save in the next year.
• However, there has been a 6% increase in those who do not plan to increase their savings (51% in May, compared to 45% in March).
• The majority of respondents (34%) dip into their savings 2 -3 times a year, while 20% of respondents dipped into their savings more than 5 times in the last year,
• Meeting unexpected bills remains the key reason for dipping into savings (60%), followed by planned expenditure, such as a car (44%) or holidays (40%)
• The top three features sought by savers are the ability to access funds (72%), the interest rate offered (43%) and the ability to add additional funds during the term of the account (41%).
