Consumers believe the government is not doing enough to encourage regular savings habits, research shows.
The government needs to go further in encouraging consumers to save regularly, Nationwide Building Society has claimed. New research from the organisation shows that just 19 percent of people believe ministers are pushing the importance of habitual saving.
According to the survey, 41 percent believe the government actually discourages them from putting money aside, while 34 percent believe no positive or negative action is being taken on the issue.
At the same time, consumer attitudes towards saving appear to be suffering. Just 32 percent of respondents said they believe saving is very important and less than half make regular contributions into savings accounts.
The current economic climate may be responsible for this outlook, as less than one in ten consumers think that now is a good time to be saving. But Matthew Carter, director of savings at Nationwide, believes otherwise.
"There has never been a more important time to save, which is why we urge the industry and government to work together to help educate people about the importance of building their own nest-egg, however large or small," he remarked.
Separate research conducted by Lloyds TSB reveals that 37 percent of Brits are saving less now than they were six months ago and four out of ten families have less than £500 in their savings accounts.
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