Being laid-back with money will cost you £1,631.16 a year, study finds

Having a very laid-back attitude to money costs you £1,631.16 per year, research has revealed.

Brits who are very savvy with their cash put away £206.09 per month – or £2,473.08 a year, according to a poll of 2,000 adults.

But those who claim they are very laid-back only put away £70.16 per month – or £841.92 a year.

When it comes to spending money on “nice to haves”, savvy people drop £77.52 per month – compared to laid-back people who fork out almost double, at £134.28 a month.

This equates to £930.24 and £1,611.36 a year, respectively – meaning savvy people spend £681.12 a year less on non-essentials compared to those with a more relaxed personality.

Professor Adrian Furnham, an organisational and applied psychologist, outlined four broad character traits which many people fall into when it comes to finances.

Among the personality types are the “Savvy Saver”, “Power Player”, “Hopeless Romantic”, and the “Splash the Casher”.

Following the findings, a new personality quiz has been been created to determine which category you fall into.

Professor Furnham said: “The Splash the Casher is someone who lives for the moment, and could even be labelled as irresponsible with their money – for them, money buys freedom.

“On the other end of the spectrum, Savvy Savers try to avoid compulsive spending, and are proud of their nest egg. To friends, they might boast about their unrivalled bargain-hunting abilities.”

Abigail Yearley, a spokeswoman for TopCashback, which commissioned the research, said: “Everyone has a personality, and everyone has different attitudes and habits when it comes to finances.

“There’s no ideal financial personality type, but our research does show that savviness can pay off in the long run.

“We understand these are difficult times, and many of us are looking at ways we can make our money stretch further.

“No matter what your financial personality type is, we would encourage anyone to seek help if you need it.

“When it comes to being savvy, implementing easy habits, like using cashback sites, will help you to save as you spend. Little changes, such as this, can go a long way.”

The research also found nearly half of Brits (49%) claim to be risk-averse when it comes to investing.

Even if they were given a pay rise or acquired additional regular income, 42% would save the extra money and live the same way as before – while 17% would invest it, and one in six (16%) would spend it on nice things they were previously unable to afford.

There were similar findings when it comes to spending money, with two-thirds (68%) considering themselves cautious.

However, the research revealed adults enjoy forking out on food, with takeaways (33%), and lunch or dinner out (32%), being the most popular “nice to haves”.

The awareness about finances is also highlighted by the acute understanding of just how much money respondents had in their current account.

Overall, a quarter of respondents knew how much was in their current account to the exact penny – although there were varying differences between the different financial personality types.

For example, 37% of Savvy Savers know how much is in their account to the last penny – while only 12% of the Hopeless Romantics, who love to spend money on others, could say the same.

The study, carried out via OnePoll, found financial security (43%), and a freedom from life’s demands (31%), were deemed the main benefits which ample money can provide.

In fact, among those who classed themselves as Savvy Savers, financial security rose to 52% – while, for the Hopeless Romantics, it dipped to just 32%.

Abigail Yearley added: “The findings also show more than a quarter of Brits (27%) aren’t comfortable talking about their finances.

“Whilst money can be a difficult subject, it’s important to not suffer in silence.”