36% dread £50 costs increase: Poll

A £50 rise in monthly household costs would push a third of Britons to financial breaking point, a study has found.

One in five people said they are already living on the brink and a further one in 20 people said that an increase of less than £20 would be their tipping point, MoneySupermarket said.

The comparison website found that 36% of people across its survey believe a rise in monthly outgoings of £50 or less would push them over the edge.

The findings were published a day after energy group SSE said it will increase tariffs by about 9% in a move impacting around five million electricity customers and 3.4 million gas customers, with the bill hikes starting in October.

Mortgage giant Santander also announced plans to raise its standard variable rate (SVR) in October in a move which will see hundreds of thousands of homeowners' mortgage payments increase.

MoneySupermarket said it had found that people have already seen their household outgoings rise by £56 a week on average over the last six months.

Nearly half (44%) of those surveyed said they are relying more on credit to help them get through each month. A quarter of people have relied more on credit cards and 17% have turned to authorised overdrafts to help them meet regular household outgoings, while 13% have relied on handouts from friends and family members.

Around four-fifths of households were estimated to be on some sort of budget and just under a third of people surveyed said food price hikes had been the biggest pull on their purse strings. A quarter of those surveyed said utility bill increases have had the biggest impact on their budgeting.

Tough employment conditions have meant wages have often failed to keep up with high prices and about one in eight (12%) people said they have had to take a pay cut in the last year.

The research was conducted last month among more than 2,000 adults.