Wave of cost of living concern sweeps across Britain

A wave of concern over the soaring cost of living is sweeping across Britain, reveals fresh figures released today.

Over half of households are worried the cost of living crisis will hit their living standards this year, according to research carried out by high street bank TSB.

Nearly one in three Brits are concerned their finances will deteriorate over the coming year.

However, soaring inflation is already hitting households’ finances, with over eight in 10 people already experiencing a jump in their cost of living.

Inflation has scaled to historically high levels, driven higher by an energy crunch in Europe swelling household energy bills.

Prices are 5.1 per cent higher than they were this time last year, the highest rate of increase in over a decade, according to the Office for National Statistics.

The cost of living is forecast to scale even higher in the coming months, peaking at at least six per cent in April, triggered by the energy regulator, Ofgem, hiking the price cap by around 40 per cent.

The economic think tank the Resolution Foundation estimates the average British household will experience a £1,200 to their yearly bills in 2022.

Inflation is not just limited to energy price rises. Figures published by the British Retail Consortium yesterday show food costs are up 2.4 per cent over the last year, just the second time they have risen in over two years.

Households are having to turn to risky financial products to plug holes in their spending commitments caused by higher prices, TSB found.

Use of buy now pay later services, such as Klarna and Clearpay climbed 59 per cent over the last year.

Mark Curran, customer banking director at TSB, said: “It’s clear that many people are concerned about the impact of bills going up and rising inflation.”