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Brits wasting thousands on subscriptions

15th October 2019
Posted by Aston Avery

Almost a third (29%) of Brits spend an average of £120 a year paying for unwanted policies, subscriptions, and memberships that they haven’t cancelled, with online subscription services such as streaming platforms (32%) the most frequently forgotten subscriptions and policies to cancel, closely followed by gym memberships (26%) and magazine subscriptions (20%).

New research finds that millennials are the most forgetful, with 45% of 18 to 34-year olds confessing that they’ve failed to cancel services, at a staggering average cost of £232 over 12 months. This compares to 30% of people aged 35-54 spend an extra £53, and 16% of over 55s only miss out on £6.60 a year.

Typically, forgetfulness (61%), confusing cancellation processes (30%) and laziness (22%) are the reasons we keep these memberships going, with more than a quarter (27%) doing so for more than four months before we finally get round to cancelling – possibly because over two thirds of us (68%) pay for these services through an easily forgettable direct debit.

Aston spoke to Ali Peck, personal finance expert at Marcus by Goldman Sachs to discuss as to how Brits can save money, and the top reasons for not doing so already.