Are households closer to poverty than ever?

A new financial report warns extended cost-of-living pressures including rising energy bills and sustained high interest rates, are dramatically diminishing the financial buffers households across the UK can rely on, putting them closer to the poverty line than ever before. 

The figures show there is a gap of more than £13,000 between the savings people say they need to feel secure and what they actually hold. A new Market Pulse Index, designed to measure overall financial health, indicates that pandemic-era savings have now been depleted, despite households successfully navigating 2025 through a range of adaptive strategies.

The data from Equifax also points to shifting patterns of financial stress, with a rise in higher-income households and homeowners seeking debt relief, and personal insolvencies increasing by 10% in 2025. Structural inequalities persist, including a gender gap in financial resilience among those aged 30 to 45.

Aston spoke to financial inclusion expert Sue Owen-Bailey.

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