One in seven skipping meals due to rising costs

One in seven people have skipped meals due to the rising cost of living, new Which? research has found.

According to the latest findings from Which?’s Consumer Insight Tracker, a number of households are going without food and sitting in cold homes due to the rising cost of living.

One in seven (15%) said they had skipped meals – compared to one in eight (12%) in November. The new findings also showed nearly one in ten (9%) had prioritised meals for other family members above themselves and 4 per cent had used a food bank.

People are also looking for ways to save on their energy bills – with seven in ten (72%)  saying they have put the heating on less due to rising prices, four in 10 (39%) using less hot water and one in five (19%) having had fewer cooked meals.

Three in ten (29%) respondents who said they had put their heating on less said they have often or always felt physically uncomfortable this winter as a result.

The company’s Consumer Insight Tracker also found that an estimated 2.3 million households said they missed or defaulted on a vital payment – such as a mortgage, rent, credit card or bill payment – in the last month. This is in line with the number who missed payments in January 2023, demonstrating that financial difficulty has remained high in early 2023.

Six in ten (59%) people made at least one financial adjustment – such as cutting back on essentials, selling items or dipping into savings – in the last month to cover essential spending. This equates to an estimated 16.5 million households.

This is a significant increase from the half (52%) making financial adjustments this time last year, but lower than the peak of two-thirds (65%) making adjustments in September 2022.

Rocio Concha, Which? Director of Policy and Advocacy, said “It’s hugely worrying that households across the country are forced to go hungry and sit in cold homes as they cannot afford basic essentials this winter.c Which? is calling on the government and essential businesses to do more to support their customers through this extraordinary cost of living crisis.”

“With energy bills due to rise in April, the government must urgently consider postponing its decision to increase the energy price guarantee to £3,000. For some families, who continue to be battered by high inflation, this will offer an important lifeline to stop them falling into financial distress.”