One in five Brits working longer to pay for Christmas

• A third feel pressure to spend beyond their means to create fairy-tale Christmas
• One in five re-gift and recycle Christmas presents to cut costs
• One in ten take on credit card and payday loan debt to afford Christmas

Brits are feeling the financial pinch this festive season, with a fifth working longer hours or applying for a second job to help cover costs. A further one in ten people are also applying for a credit card or payday loan to make ends meet, finds new research from UK trade-in site Ziffit.

The research* survey, commissioned by Ziffit, asked 2,000 people across the UK how well they are coping with the financial strain of Christmas.

A third (33%) of those surveyed said they feel pressure to spend beyond their means in order to create the perfect fairy-tale day. More than a quarter are also anxious and worried about making ends meet in the long wait until January payday.

Brits will on average get into £427 in credit card debt this festive season, with one in ten expecting to be paying off their Christmas debt until June 2016. Men are likely to take on £100 more credit card debt than women.

However, UK shoppers are becoming savvier when it comes to cutting costs. This year one in ten will choose to give handmade presents, while one in five admitted to re-gifting or recycling presents. One in ten will also be sourcing their own produce, including growing their own fruit and veg and brewing their own beer.

Women are the more money savvy of the sexes, with ladies twice as likely to spread the cost of present buying throughout the year and picking up bargains in sales.

Unsurprisingly, Londoners are feeling the most strain across the country, with more than a quarter applying for credit cards or payday loans to fund Christmas. One in ten people in the capital have also started a second or third job to make ends meet.

Paul Treanor, eCommerce director at Ziffit said: “It's inspiring to see people are planning creative ways to cut costs over the festive period, from giving handmade presents to growing their own fruit and veg. Amid all the festivities, Christmas can be a very costly time for many, so it's important to stay financially savvy.

“Selling online is another great way to boost the Christmas budget and can go a long way to helping tide finances over in that difficult stretch between December and January paydays."

* The survey by Ziffit.com polled 2040 people across the UK between 1 and 3 December 2015. Full results below.

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Notes to editors

Ziffit.com poll questions and answers:

1. Do you ever take any of the following measures to cut costs?

• Handmade presents - 12%
• Re-gifting presents - 17%
• Give money so your recipient can buy in the sales - 18%
• Set spending limits on presents - 37%
• Pawning goods (selling items) - 5%
• Sourcing your own produce e.g. Brewing/distilling your own alcohol, growing your own vegetables/fruit - 10%
• Buying presents in the January sales for next year - 16%
• Buying presents throughout the year to spread the cost - 34%

2. Have you taken on extra work (started a second job, picked up extra shifts) to cope with the cost of Christmas?

• Yes - 20%
• No - 80%

3. Do you ever feel pressure to spend beyond your means to create the perfect Christmas?

• Yes - 33%
• No - 66%

4. Are you anxious or worried about making ends meet between Christmas and January payday?

• Yes - 25%
• No - 75%

5. Have you/do you plan to take out a credit card or loan (including pay day loans) to help cover the cost of Christmas this year?

• Yes - 13%
• No - 87%

6. How much do you put on credit cards to cover the cost of Christmas?

• Max - £5000
• Min - £1
• Mean - £427

7. How much do you put on credit cards to cover the cost of Christmas?

• Men - £476 (mean)
• Women £370 (mean)

8. Have you/do you plan to take out a credit card or loan (including pay day loans) to help cover the cost of Christmas this year?

• London - 29% (answered yes)
• North East - 20.00%
• Northern Ireland - 19%
• South East - 15%
• North West - 11%
• Scotland - 9%
• West Midlands - 8%
• East/East Anglia - 8%
• Yorkshire and the Humber - 8%
• South West - 8%
• East Midlands - 7%
• Wales - 5%

9. Have you started a second or third job to help pay for Christmas?

• London - 10%
• North East - 8%
• South East - 5%
• West Midlands - 3%
• Scotland - 3%
• North West - 3%
• South West - 3%
• East/East Anglia - 3%
• Wales - 2%
• East Midlands - 1%
• Northern Ireland - 0.00%
• Yorkshire and the Humber - 0.00%

About Ziffit – www.ziffit.com

Ziffit.com is a free and easy to use website to sell unwanted books, CDs, DVDs, Blu-rays and games for cash. Up to half-a-million items a month have been sold on the site since it launched in October 2013, making it one of the largest trade in sites in the UK.

The service is easy to use via its free app (available in the App Store and Google Play) that scans bar codes and instantly offers the price for each item and shows the accumulated total for all items scanned.

Once Ziffit receive and process the items, payment is fast (usually within three days) and made directly into to a bank or PayPal account, there is also the option to donate any proceeds to charity through JustGiving.

Ziffit is a privately owned company run by World of Buzz Ltd.

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