People are cutting back on their spending, and lending money to struggling relatives has become less of a priority.
Credit crunch-hit Britons are steering clear of lending family members money - because their own personal finances are under strain.
Research from the Chelsea building society, released today, shows that around six in ten people are still willing to make the loans to their struggling relatives. However, around half of that total also now say that they feel "unable" to do so.
The financial impact of the credit crunch has been blamed for this trend - with 78 percent of poll respondents also saying that they have cut down on their personal spending recently.
When asked what form of assistance they would give to struggling family members which would not involve loaning money, 54 percent of the Chelsea poll respondents said that they would offer them accommodation for free, while 51 percent would look to help with their childcare.
Commenting, Darren Stevens at the Chelsea said: "Whereas previously Britons could rely on their family members to bail them out when they got into difficulty, now when they turn to their families as a last resort they might find that their families are also suffering the pinch. A lack of extra funds means that families have to help each other out in non-financial ways."
He added: "Britons should start taking control of their own finances through proper financial planning and saving, bypassing a potentially embarrassing situation within their own families."
The Chelsea polled around 1,000 people for its survey.
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