The majority of UK adults expect their personal financial situation to worsen over the next three months, according to the latest LV= Wealth and Wellbeing Monitor.
The quarterly survey of 4,000 UK adults found 57% expect their finances to worsen over the next three months, with a similar number (59%) saying their finances had deteriorated over the past three months already.
Retirees were most likely to say there has been no real change in their finances (40%) compared to just 29% of 35-54 year olds.
Two thirds 67% said their total monthly outgoings have increased over the previous three months while 33% said the amount they are saving has fallen in the last three months.
And while 63% of respondents have seen an increase in their supermarket spend, 33% said they were spending less money on socialising.
Around 9% of UK adults said they are “struggling a lot” and this has increased each quarter over the past year, up from 5% in September 2021.
More than a quarter (27%) said they had seen a significant increase in outgoings, while 40% were worried about money compared to just 28% in September 2021.
Clive Bolton, managing director of protection, savings and retirement, said: “Millions of people are being squeezed financially as rising energy bills, interest rates and inflation reduce their spending power.
“People are now more pessimistic about their finances than at any time since we started the Wealth and Wellbeing research programme in 2020.”