'Je ne regrette rien' – millions haven't saved and they don't care

Savings Survey

Almost 14 million of us failed to save a single penny in 2008, and one in seven aren't concerned about it, according to research from Alliance & Leicester.

In a survey by the bank, 64 per cent of respondents – equating to around 31 million Britons – said they had managed to put at least some money away during 2008. However, 13.5 million (28 per cent) haven't saved at all this year, and while half of these regret it now, the other half claimed to be unconcerned.

Almost one in three respondents had to use their savings to cover the rising cost of living during 2008, and next year is likely to be even harder.

Of the two-thirds of Brits who have saved in 2008, a fifth said they had been shaken by the financial climate and intend to rebuild their reserves in 2009. Another fifth admitted they were disappointed not to have saved as much as they wanted, and almost 15 per cent spent most of their savings during the year.

But one in 10 Brits plan to start saving for the first time in the new year. According to the research, cutting down on spending is the third most popular New Year's Resolution, behind taking regular exercise and losing weight.