/24-7PressRelease/ - LEEDS, UK, July 06, 2008 - A new study from price comparison website thecomparisons.com has revealed there's little truth in the age-old adage 'look after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves', as Brits shun bargain hunting, despite the UK being in the midst of a credit crisis.
Research conducted by Your Say Pays on behalf of thecomparisons.com examined the lengths that consumers are willing to go to in order to make a cash saving, and it appears the majority of people are suffering bargain apathy - an unwillingness to spend time hunting for a saving.
Of the 1,000 people questioned, nearly a third (29%) wouldn't dedicate any time at all to saving 5 on a 50 purchase, despite the majority (84%) claiming that they'd be looking for more money saving opportunities as the credit crunch bites.
The research also revealed that when it comes to making smaller savings, the cut-off point for bargain hunters is just one hour. The majority of people (29%) admitted they'd spend no more than 60 minutes of their time to save 25 on a 250 purchase ( 62.50 saving), the same amount of time they'd dedicate to saving 50% on a purchase of 25 ( 12.50 saving).
It was only the promise of a big saving - 50% off 125 - that would tempt people to spend more time shopping around, with the majority (28%) saying they'd dedicate four hours to look for this.
Women emerged as the more frugal gender and were prepared to spend twice as much time as men to make both smaller savings (50% off 25) as well as larger savings (50% off 125).
Additional statistics
- Financial products like loans and credit cards are the purchase the majority of people (40%) would spend the most time researching and buying
- Only 15% of people said they'd dedicate the most time to buying and researching a present for their spouse or partner
- Bottom of the list were jewellery and clothes (4% each)
Chris McDonald, director of thecomparisons.com, said: "What we're seeing is real apathy from consumers when it comes to hunting for the best prices and deals, despite continual pressure from every angle telling us we should be tightening our belts and watching what we spend.
"People still seem to be shunning the smaller cost savings that can be made, which is really surprising, especially when so much money is at stake. But as clich d as it sounds, there really is truth in the old adage, 'look after the pennies'.
"For those who think they might be suffering from bargain apathy, a good starting point to reverse the trend is to use a price comparison website, where savvy shoppers can find the best deal on anything from car insurance to utilities and loans in seconds."
Ends
For more information
Call Lucre on 0113 243 1117 and ask for Will.
will@lucrecommunications.com
About Lucre
thecomparisons.com is a new price comparison website which launched in November 2007. It compares prices for a range of areas including vehicle insurance, utilities and loans. The website is continually broadening its offering to other sectors, such as broadband and mortgage comparisons, which it will launch later in the year.
# # #
Read more Press Releases from Will Ockenden:Other Press Release Headlines:
