Pubs name for financial institution boycott after Brits advised to chop again on further pints

Ditching three pints a week and spending the cash on overpaying your mortgage could make a big difference – but boozers are already struggling with punters doing Dry January

Pubs are calling for a “boycott” of a bank after it urged Brits to cut back on pints.

Santander said customers should instead spend their beer money on making early mortgage payments. But hospitality bosses branded the campaign “irresponsible” as inns struggle to stay afloat during Dry January.

In a since deleted social media post, Santander said: “How can dry Jan help you start a habit that could save you a massive £13k? Let’s break it down: Average cost of a pint = £4.81. 3 pints a week = £14.43 saved. Over a month? That’s 12 pints, which is £57 back in your pocket.”

It added: “£57 might not sound like a lot but if you used that to overpay on your mortgage each month, you could save a whopping £13,000 in interest over the course of your mortgage and even pay it off two years earlier! It’s a small change that can make a big difference.

“Dry Jan isn’t just about cutting back on booze – it’s a chance to rethink where your money is going each month. So, by saying ‘no’ to a few pints now, you could be buying yourself some extra freedom down the line.”

Pub trade newspaper The Morning Advertiser reported that “many operators are now calling for a boycott of the bank and say they’re considering switching to a new bank”.

Landlord of the Kings Head at Docklow, Herefordshire, Ashley English, wrote on Facebook: “Great then have freedom later in life to go out and enjoy your money at the local… ah supermarket? There’ll be nothing left!”

Andre Smith, of The Penruddocke Arms at Dinton, Wilts, said: “12 pints not drunk means one student out of a part-time job, one mother of three not providing for her children, £10K spent on local suppliers gone, a building that’s been a pub for 400 years at risk for 12 pints. Is it really worth it?”

And Glen Hutchinson, of The Spinners at Cowling in Chorley, Lancs, said: “It’s quite disturbing to think that a bank hasn’t got the intelligence to understand that if people spend less, prices increase, taxes go higher and money becomes shorter, whereas if the opposite happens everything increases.”

UKHospitality chief Kate Nicholls said: “January and February can be tough enough months in hospitality as it is, without unhelpful and irresponsible campaigns like this. The last thing the economy needs right now is a message deterring people from going out.”

And British Institute of Innkeeping CEO Steve Alton said Santander’s message, which also ran on its website, was “poorly judged when many pubs are fighting for their very survival”.

A Santander spokeswoman said: “Many people choose to take part in new year savings initiatives, including Dry January and other no-spend challenges, and use this time to re-evaluate their financial goals.”

She said many people were “unaware of the impact of making relatively small overpayments on their mortgage”.

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