47% of the UK classified as “just about managing”

New research from Provident Personal Credit has revealed that almost half (47%) of the UK consider themselves to be ‘just about managing’ (JAMS) financially. The survey of 2,000 adults revealed that 14% had to give up necessities like food and daily travel costs to pay for unexpected expenses, with a further 11% of respondents saying they had to give up holidays and seasonal events like Christmas to pay for unexpected expenses. The survey results highlighted that it takes the average Brit 4 months to pay off their unexpected expenses, however 8% of the UK are still paying after 10 months

The nationwide research revealed which areas of the UK are considering themselves to be ‘just about managing’.Coventry top the list, closely followed by Chelmsford. The full list can be seen below:

City	Households that consider themselves JAMS
Coventry	70%
Chelmsford	63%
Bristol	58%
Plymouth	58%
Gloucester	55%
Newcastle	53%
Sheffield	53%
Glasgow	51%
Oxford	50%
Southampton	50%
London	49%
Manchester	49%
Cambridge	48%
Aberdeen	47%
Belfast	47%
Wolverhampton	46%
Brighton and Hove	45%
Birmingham	44%
Portsmouth	44%
Leicester	43%
Worcester	43%
Norwich	42%
Liverpool	41%
Edinburgh	39%
Swansea	39%
Leeds	36%
Wrexham	33%
Cardiff	28%

One of the biggest unexpected expenses troubling Brits are cars – costing £226 on average a year in unexpected costs. With 52% of respondents saying they’ve had at least one car related unexpected expense last year and 18% of respondents saying they knew about the issue but left it to get steadily worse.

After general household bills denting another £239 a year in unexpected costs, other expenses that might be smaller but add up throughout the year include:
Pets – £80 on average annually

Christmas – £93 on average annually

Leisure – £97 on average annually

A full breakdown of statistics on unexpected expenses in the UK can be found here.