Scottish men are better at saving than women with 36% of men having a savings account compared to 33% of women, according to a survey from Bank of Scotland.24% of women have no savings at all compared with 20% of men.
The survey of over 1,000 people living in Scotland also found that more women (85%) than men (73%) do not to save because they feel they don’t have any money. A small minority of women claimed they are too busy and simply don’t have the time to open a savings account, while men said they didn’t know how to open one.
Not surprisingly, the majority of people have a current account of some sort, with slightly more men having one (92%) than women (89%). ISAs are equally as popular between the sexes (42%) but more prevalent with the over 55s (50%) than 18-24 year olds (29%). Despite the benefits of an IASA Reward account, this was the least popular method of saving with only 3% of men and 2% of women having one.
Saving was the second most important priority for men (21%) and women (18%) after reducing their outgoings which was top priority for both. Out of those who save, men and women have similar thoughts to savings, with 16% of men and 18% of women planning to save between £100 and £1000 in the coming year.
Bank of Scotland commissioned the survey as part of its ‘Autumn Savings’ campaign running between October and December to encourage people to consider their savings.
Flavia Palacios Umana, head of Bank of Scotland savings products, said: “It is no surprise that so many people feel they have no spare money to put towards savings but what it is important to remember is that you do not need a huge amount to start with. As little as £1 is enough to open a Bank of Scotland savings account
