Winter Worry Land – the Nation’s biggest concerns revealed

Not being able to celebrate Christmas with family and friends, and loved ones catching the coronavirus top the Nation’s list of winter worries, according to research³ from GoCompare.  In the shadow of the coronavirus pandemic, over a third of Brits are worried that this 25 December just won’t feel like Christmas.

The survey found that people were more worried (35%) about family and friends catching coronavirus than they were about contracting the virus themselves (32%).  Many people were also concerned about their own mental health and that of their loved ones.  As well as the health issues related to Covid-19, the financial devastation caused by the virus is also a major concern.

Commenting on the research, Lee Griffin CEO and founder of GoCompare Money said, “It has been a term used a lot in 2020 but there’s not getting away from it, we’re in unprecedented times and, I think it’s fair to say that concerns over catching the virus and its financial impact have caused us all to have sleepless nights.  

“If you have money worries because of the pandemic, it’s important to know that there is financial help available.  Firstly, check your entitlement to Government benefits and how to access them.  If you have problems paying bills or repaying loans, get in touch with the relevant organisation asap to make more affordable arrangements.”

Lee Griffin continued, “Shopping-around – whether that’s for groceries, household energy bills, insurances, credit cards or broadband deals – can dramatically shrink your essential outgoings.  Using a comparison site, like GoCompare, makes it easier - allowing you to quickly compare deals for a wide range of products and services.   Even if you think you’re currently getting a good deal from your financial providers, it’s worth shopping around regularly.  Firms constantly review their pricing and savings can run into hundreds of pounds.” 

GoCompare customers could save up to £567 on their energy bills¹, £277 on their car insurance and £107 on their home insurance².

If you are experiencing financial difficulties, don’t ignore the situation – take action:

• Draw up a budget based on your income and outgoings and stick to it.
• If you are still earning and just need to cut the cost of essential services and insurances, shop-around for a better deal.
• If you are facing significant financial difficulties, talk to your mortgage provider or landlord as soon as possible to agree a payment holiday or a new repayment plan.
• Speak to your current insurer and ask them what they can do to help in terms of reducing or deferring premiums.
• Talk to your bank about an agreed overdraft and an interest-free overdraft buffer and check with your credit card, loan or car finance provider to see what help is available in terms of a payment holiday or a new repayment plan.
• The Government has made it easier for people to access benefits and claim sick pay. Check what benefits you could be entitled to.
• Seek free debt advice from the Money Advice Service online, at https://www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk/en

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For further information please contact:

Gordon, Jason or Liz at MAW Communications on 01603 505 845

Keep up-to-date with GoCompare on Twitter; @GoCompare

Notes to editors

¹GoCompare has partnered with Energylinx, part of the GoCompare Group, to help customers switch energy. Between 1 January to 31 March 2020 at least 10% of customers who provided their usage and received a price for switching both gas & electricity could save £567.16.

²GoCompare switch and saving figures based on independent research by Consumer Intelligence between 1 August and 31 August 2020:

• Car insurance: 51% of customers could save up to £277 with GoCompare Car Insurance based on a comparison of 30 companies.
• Home insurance: 51% of customers could save up to £107 on their buildings and contents insurance based on a comparison of 37 companies.

³ An online survey of 2,044 randomly selected Great British adults was executed by Maru/Blue. For comparison purposes, a probability sample of this size has an estimated margin of error (which measures sampling variability) of +/- 2.1%. The results have been weighted by age, gender, region and social grade to match the population, according to Census data. This is to ensure the sample is representative of the entire adult population of Great Britain. Discrepancies in or between totals are due to rounding.

GoCompare

GoCompare is a comparison website that enables people to compare the costs and features of a wide variety of insurance policies, financial products and energy tariffs.

GoCompare does not charge people to use its services, and it does not accept advertising or sponsored listings, so all product comparisons are unbiased. GoCompare makes its money through fees paid by the providers of products that appear on its various comparison services when a customer buys through the site.

When it launched in 2006, it was the first comparison site to focus on displaying policy details rather than just listing prices, with the aim of helping people to make better-informed decisions when buying their insurance. GoCompare has remained dedicated to helping people choose the most appropriate products rather than just the cheapest, and has teamed up with Defaqto, the independent financial researcher, to integrate additional policy information into a number of its insurance comparison services. This allows people to compare up to an extra 30 features of cover.

GoCompare is the only comparison website to be invited to join the British Insurance Brokers’ Association (BIBA) and is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

For more information visit www.gocompare.com and www.gocogroup.com