Coronavirus: 50% of Brits had zero savings to fall back on during COVID-19

Half of Brits had no savings before the outbreak of COVID-19, putting them in a vulnerable financial situation during the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new survey by budgeting fintech bank Thinkmoney.

Almost half (46%) of those 1,000 surveyed have had to fall back on their savings this year with one in eight (12%) spending 100% of their savings.

One in 10 have spent between 50% and 75% of their savings during the pandemic, while 18% of respondents have spent 10% of their savings.

A further 4% of Brits surveyed had to borrow credit or take out a loan to try to survive the financial struggle that came as a result of COVID-19.

The region which has experienced the most financial struggle during the coronavirus pandemic and resulting lockdown is Yorkshire & the Humber, with almost 1 in 6 (18%) residents spending 100% of their savings.

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They are followed by the West Midlands, where 16% of survey respondents went through all of their savings.

Both Yorkshire and the West Midlands have a large number of their workforce — 10% to 12%, according to Thinkmoney — within the manufacturing industry, which has been one of the hardest hit sectors in the UK.

Make UK, the manufacturers group, said in July over 40% of its members had already laid off workers and a third of members were planning to make cuts in the coming six months.

Scotland, the East Midlands, and the East of England all reported 14% of respondents using up all their savings.

The South West is the region that has been the least financially impacted by COVID-19, with just 4% of residents surveyed spending 100% of their savings.