Britons losing thousands a year because of these financial mistakes

Leaving money in current accounts instead of moving cash to savings accounts where it can accrue interest is one of the most easily avoided money habits - yet millions do it

British adults cost themselves thousands of pounds on average across 2025 due to struggles with indecision, uncertainty or simply delaying making choices across money matters.

One of the most notable and costly factors around this is leaving cash sitting in current accounts, which pay no interest, rather than moving it to an easy access savings account, which across much of 2025 were paying beyond 5 per cent.

On average, 6.5m accounts paying no interest held balances of more than £10,000 at the end of each month last year - costing around £9.75bn in lost interest payments, data from consumer research firm CACI shows, analysed by Spring savings app. That equates to more than £1,500 for each account.

While those numbers include accounts with considerably more cash than the average person - over 300,000 accounts with more than £100,000 in them at the end of a month for example - the same principle applies to everyday workers with more modest sums.

A sum of £5,000 would have generated £250 in interest over the course of the year with a 5 per cent return, while in the first half of 2025, many savings accounts were available offering considerably more than that level.

Responding to why they hadn’t moved money to earn interest, almost a third (31 per cent) of people said it was down to habit, leaving money where it landed, while a quarter (26 per cent) suggested they were anxious about not having immediate access to their cash.

Easy access savings accounts typically do not have any restraints on withdrawing money, though you should check the terms associated with specific accounts in case there is a one-day delay or the interest rate is lowered after a certain number of withdrawals, for example. The best rates available right now pay 4.5 per cent for unrestricted easy access.

However, not moving money was far from the only costly issue.

Research from finance charity Money Ready shows more than one in seven people (15 per cent) also lost out on an average of £640 simply through delaying major money-related decisions, such as mortgages or loans.

(Getty Images)

In many cases, that was because of overwhelming choice or lack of clarity over how to get started.

Not switching bank or utilities provider (22 per cent), paying for unused subscriptions or services (20 per cent) and letting vouchers or loyalty points expire (19 per cent) were the next most common reasons for losing out financially.

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Again, though, the biggest culprit was leaving money in low- or no-interest accounts, costing an average of £342 per year, with almost three in ten (28 per cent) of people admitting to doing so.

Someone making bad decisions - or simply not making decisions - in each of the nine categories surveyed could end up costing themselves more than £3,000 over the year.

Leon Ward, CEO of Money Ready, said: “We rely on financial literacy every day, often without realising it. Yet too often, people aren’t taught how the system works. Early and consistent teaching throughout key life stages doesn’t just prevent costly mistakes, it empowers people to build healthy habits, make confident choices, and strengthen their long-term stability.

“This issue is not a personal one, but a systemic one. You learn to drive before getting on the motorway. The same should be the case with finances. Whether it's something small like a voucher expiring or something life-changing like choosing a mortgage, the consequences are huge for individuals and for the whole country. Better education and a fairer system would give Brits more confidence, control, and spending power - which is good for them, and good for our economy.”

Money Ready has launched a financial literacy campaign, entitled the Cost of Not Knowing, to raise awareness of how much people go through emotionally and financially when they are ill-equipped to deal with financial decision-making.