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News: Bonuses miss the home

Nearly a third of British workers received bonuses over the past twelve months but very little was spent on the home per se...

City slickers may have put their bonuses into property but the average British worker either holidayed with it or saved it.

British workers received £24 billion in performance-related bonuses over the last 12 months according to the latest research from Birmingham Midshires.  

Twenty-nine per cent of workers were the lucky recipients of a financial 'pat on the back' over the last 12 months, averaging £1,758 for each bonus beneficiary. Whilst the number of those receiving a bonus has doubled in the past twelve months (14% in 2006), the average bonus received has also decreased from £3,858.

A third (33%) of working men received a bonus over the past twelve months compared to a quarter (24%) of working women. The fairer sex also lost out when it came to the amount of bonus they received with men being paid almost double (£2,130 compared to £1,213).  This disparity is likely to be compounded by the higher proportion of women in part-time work than men (18% versus 8%).

Over a third (39%) of Briton saved all or part of their bonus last year. Other items bonuses were spent on included holidays (12%), property (9%), buying gifts or lending to friends and family (8%) and a little luxury retail therapy (8%).

The top ten ways to blow our bonus:

  • Put into savings
  • Paid for a holiday / weekend break
  • Bought gifts / lent to friends and family
  • Bought luxuries for myself
  • Eating out
  • Made investments e.g. shares
  • Bought a car
  • Bought a new wardrobe
  • Bought a home entertainment system
  • Donated to charity

Jason Robinson, director of savings said, “We all know that it can be extremely tempting to spend a large one-off payment but the research found that over a third of people are squirreling away their bonus and we think this is a good start. It is important to shop around for the best rate when deciding where to put your hard earned cash and choose a competitive savings account.”

Regional findings

  • Londoners were most likely to receive a bonus (33%) whilst Scots were least likely (22%).
  • Lucky Londoners received the highest bonus of any region (£2,770), whilst those in the North of England obtained the least (£1,068).
  • Those in the Midlands and Wales were most likely to save their bonus (50%) whilst people in the North were least likely (28%).
  • Savvy Scots were more likely than any other region to invest their bonus (21%) whilst Londoners were less disposed to put their hard earned perk into the stock market (9%).
  • More than one in ten (11%) Northerners used their bonus to pay off part of their mortgage, whilst Scots were least likely to use their money towards property (4%).
  • Those in the South of England were most likely to lend some or part of their bonus to friends and family, whilst Londoners were least likely (4%).

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