Take a look
As a Nation, we’re wasting £30.5bn* a year on stuff we don’t need, don’t use or are too busy to sort out, according to new research** commissioned by GoCompare Money.
Almost three quarters (73 per cent) of us admit to wasting money, with unworn clothes, getting stung by avoidable fees and paying over the odds for services and insurance among the everyday things people say they waste their hard-earned cash on.
On average, UK adults estimate that £49.20 of their monthly spending is wasted – £590.40 a year.
The research highlighted that much of the money people fritter away goes on food and beverages – buying more expensive but convenient, ready-prepared or takeout meals and drinks, or simply overbuying groceries which they end up ditching.
| Rank | 20 common money wasters | % |
| 1 | Overbuying food that doesn’t get used/throwing away left-overs | 23 |
| 2 | Buying clothes which are never worn | 20 |
| 3 | Overpaying for bundled TV/phone/cable services | 19 |
| 4 | Buying too many takeaway meals | 16 |
| 5 | Paying for lunch and snacks at work | 15 |
| 6 | Drinking bottled water instead of tap water | 15 |
| 7 | Buying brand named items rather than generic goods | 14 |
| 8 | Drinking takeaway coffee | 13 |
| 9 | Not shopping around for the cheapest gas and electricity tariff | 13 |
| 10 | Buying cigarettes and tobacco | 13 |
| 11 | Spending too much down the pub/in clubs | 12 |
| 12 | Eating too many ready meals | 12 |
| 13 | Shopping in expensive supermarkets and convenience stores | 11 |
| 14 | Buying pre-sliced/grated food | 11 |
| 15 | Paying avoidable credit card interest | 11 |
| 16 | Paying avoidable bank charges or overdraft fees | 10 |
| 17 | Paying avoidable annual credit card fees | 6 |
| 18 | Exceeding limits for mobile phone calls and/or data usage | 6 |
| 19 | Buying vitamins and other supplements | 6 |
| 20 | Not looking for a good deal on home insurance | 5 |
Leave a Comment