With the festive period upon us many have been or will be starting to buy gifts for our loved ones and people in our lives. However, do you ever get the feeling that you have too many people to buy for? or do you feel obliged to buy a gift for someone because they will buy for you? Do you feel that your budget for Christmas presents is getting thinner every year because of how many people you have to buy for? If so, perhaps you have been caught up in a “retail festival” (as named by The Money Saving Expert – Martin Lewis) and have unknowingly lost sight of what the festive period is all about.
For many of us Christmas has become a time of spending and getting into debt, rather than celebrating with the people in our lives. Whilst for many Christmas should be a time of celebration and a joyous occasion, the festive period can cause unhappiness, debt, anxiety and worry due to the pressure of buying for others that we don’t need to buy for. It is now the time to put a stop to these unnecessary worries and buying by saying “NO, this year I am not buying gifts for everyone”.
But why should we do this*?
A poll of more than 2,000 British adults conducted for the Money Advice Trust by YouGov showed an increase in the proportion of people turning to credit to cover the costs of Christmas presents and even food.
Borrowing more – More than a third of people surveyed have already borrowed or plan to borrow to pay for Christmas presents this year. This equates to an estimated 17.3 million people – up 0.4 million on the same time last Christmas. The number of Britons turning to credit to pay for food at Christmas has risen even more steeply to nearly a quarter (23 percent), equating to an estimated 11.5 million people. This represents an increase of 1.1 million on last year.
Pressure to spend – The research also reveals the pressure that people are facing to spend more than they originally planned this Christmas. Almost a quarter of people surveyed said they felt under pressure to spend more, with pressure from children, Black Friday and similar promotions and partners and other relatives mentioned as common factors.
For those of you familiar with Martin Lewis the Money Saving Expert, he sums up the concept perfectly: “”We often buy things we know recipients won’t want, just to tick the box. This tit-for-tat giving means most people end up with tat – cluttering houses, costing money, and filling landfills. It does no one any good. Imagine that I know my mate Noella is hard up. To be generous, I buy her a nice £20 smelly bath bubbles and salts set. Then… she feels obliged to buy me something back. The net financial effect is Noella has spent her money to receive the bath bubbles I gave her. Sometimes the best gift is releasing others from the obligation of having to give to you. It’s time for us to get off this gift-giving treadmill.”
Martin said we should still buy for our spouses and children – but should all agree to cut out ‘the ever extending list of friends, cousins, neighbours and teachers we feel obliged to buy for’.
We will discuss this topic in more detail during the ‘Financial Wellbeing: The pressure of buying at Christmas’ webinar. To view the webinar please use the following link –
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2932526565530908940
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