Brits Tighten Belts This Christmas to Avoid a Financial Hangover in The New Year

Survey by Samsung reveals almost a third of households are braced for a tight Christmas due to spiralling living costs

LONDON, UK – 13 December 2021 – With Christmas less than two weeks away, Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd has today released the results of a study which reveals that 30% of people are planning to cut the amount they usually splurge on gifts, food, drink, and parties during the festive season.

Driven by spiralling living costs and higher energy bills – with over half (53%) citing rising gas and electricity costs as a reason to spend less this Christmas – the study found that almost four in 10 adults are worried about household expenditure, with over a third (37%) saying it is ‘getting out of hand’.

And with the cost of feeding and entertaining one guest at Christmas estimated to be £25 on average (excluding gifts and household bills), the financial squeeze is on.

The research has been commissioned by Samsung to lift the lid on the ways in which Brits are making cuts this Christmas, and crucially, what can be done to help – especially as just under a third of people (29%) said they have no idea what steps could be taken in order to reduce or control their energy bills.

Last month, Samsung launched SmartThings Energy, a free service available to download on any Android or iOS smartphone that lets users see exactly how much they’re spending on energy in their home – before receiving their bill. In addition, the platform also enables users to set budgets and reduce energy usage, giving more control.

Commenting on the findings, Teg Dosanjh, Director of Connected Services and Technology, Samsung UK and Ireland said: “Millions of Brits say they’re cutting back on their spending this Christmas due to various pressures, which is a stark warning that more conscious budgeting is likely to become a new way of life in 2022. In addition to the traditional costs around hosting and gifting, rising energy prices and general energy usage is a huge factor of this.

Historically, this is one area we’ve not been able to control, which is emphasised by a third saying they don’t know what steps to take in the right direction – however with free services like SmartThings Energy, we want to show that it is possible for energy data to be more visible, and that your next energy bill doesn’t have to be a nasty surprise.

We hope this level of control will mean people can focus on the things that matter this holiday – spending quality time with loved ones.”

Whilst the obvious costs of hosting a bumper Christmas are known to many households, there are also many invisible costs of hosting, including having the heating on for longer, cooking more than usual or using more electronic devices. Six in 10 (62%) have noticed a spike in their energy bills in the last year, with 14% of people hit with annual bills between £912 and £1,200 for electricity.

Lisa Conway Hughes, Independent financial advisor said: “The nation has a pent-up desire to splurge on Christmas festivities, but household costs are mounting up with rising energy costs, food prices, tax hikes and cuts to credit. Over the last 18 months, one in five people have even missed payments on their energy bills^[1]. But, the good news is that Christmas doesn’t need to be excessively trimmed if people get on track with money management and utilise free services like SmartThings Energy to take back control of their bills.”

But it’s not all doom and gloom as we’re a nation of savvy spenders. Over a quarter of Brits (27%) aren’t planning on making any cuts to their Christmas budgets given they’ve been saving for this moment across the year, and just over a fifth of people (22%) confess to saving money by finding items at lower cost.

Teg added: “Christmas shouldn’t be about compromise. We want people to enjoy time with friends and family without the anxiety of hidden costs in the background. With talk of an energy price cap increase in 2022, it’s encouraging to see that 40% of Brits said one of their New Year’s methods for ‘turning things around financially’ would be having better control over household expenditure. We hope services like SmartThings Energy can make a small difference to helping them achieve this goal, and ultimately, taking the right steps to reduce their household energy consumption.”

SmartThings Energy is a world-first service that will allow UK households to manage their energy usage, with any UK provider, directly from their phones and completely free of charge. Housed on Samsung’s SmartThings platform, and powered by smart energy technology company Chameleon Technology, customers can add their smart meter to see how much energy they’re using, understand how much it’s costing them and even set and track budgets all from their phone.

For further information on SmartThings Energy visit: https://www.samsung.com/uk/smartenergy

or download the free app, available on Android and iOS app stores.

The research for Samsung UK was carried out online by OnePoll throughout 24/11/2021 to 30/11/2021 amongst a panel resulting in 2,000 UK adults responding.

[1] Politics.co.uk