Britons: It is too easy to borrow money

Children should be taught about credit and debit cards

Nine out of ten people in the UK believe that banks and other finance firms make it too easy to borrow money, according to a new report.

A majority also claim the government is encouraging a debt culture through its student loan system, says the report: Money in the Contemporary Family by Bath University professor Alan Lewis.

There is evidence that this [savings and debt] conflict is reinforced by government policies such as the Student Loan Scheme, and by the perceived willingness of financial institutions to lend money

Professor Alan Lewis

Amongst other findings is a desire for children to be taught about personal finance and credit/debit cards while at school.

The majority of people surveyed - 73% - believed that borrowing money to finance higher education encourages young people to become accustomed to borrowing money.

And more than one third of people find 'making-ends-meet' difficult, with a further 10% struggling constantly.

Savings conflict

And seven out of ten people feel that the government is not doing enough and should do more to protect consumers from getting into debt.

This is despite the fact that the government has been trying to encourage saving, through initiatives such as low cost stakeholder pensions.

Personal finance education should be in the national curriculum

Prof Lewis said: "A fundamental conflict emerges between the traditional savings ethics, which remains strong in British families, and a belief that debt is unavoidable for many.

"There is evidence that this conflict is reinforced by government policies such as the Student Loan Scheme, and by the perceived willingness of financial institutions to lend money."

Debt culture

The report gives an insight into how concerned people are over debt and their attitudes to saving.

According to the survey, the savings ethic is still strong - with 71% of people "saving for a rainy day".

But six in ten people are currently paying back loans or credit agreements - with young people especially struggling to cope with the burden of debt.

And about 60% of people believe that debt is inevitable.

At Home

Financial decision-making is becoming more democratic.

Men no longer make most of the larger financial decisions - and women are more likely to take charge when keeping up with bills is a struggle.

About six in ten married couples share a joint bank account and both contribute to financial decisions. But only 32% of unmarried couples living together organise their financiers in this way.

Lewis suggests that one reason people may choose to live together instead of marrying may be because people would prefer to keep financial independence.

However, couples who are married argue less about money than those who are simply living together.

At School

The report calls on personal finance education to be included within the national curriculum.

Professor Lewis said: "Children may know little about how banks make profits what interest rates are and how 'markets' operate - this coupling of limited financial knowledge and increasing purchasing power among children may prove problematic."

Nearly two thirds of parents have given their children piggy banks and 46% have set up bank accounts for their children to try and encourage financial responsibility.

However, almost one in six parents thought formal education about money matters was insufficient.

In particular, parents would, like schools to teach children about careers, personal finance and understanding the use of credit and debit cards.

According to the survey, you do not need a £1m, £500,000 or £125,000 to transform someone's quality of life - the majority of people would settle for £64,000 or less.