The latest Which? Consumer Insight Tracker found a majority of UK adults (85%) are worried about food prices – up from 83% in February
Three million UK households are being forced to skip meals as the cost of living continues to strain household finances.
The latest Which? Consumer Insight Tracker found a majority of UK adults (85%) are worried about food prices – up from 83% in February.
As a result, two thirds (67%) of people have made at least one adjustment to their shopping or eating habits in the last month to try and save money.
Concerningly, one in ten – equivalent to three million households – are now skipping meals to keep the cost of their weekly shop down.
Which? found eight in ten (83%) UK adults are also worried about fuel prices following the Iran war – up from 71% in February of this year.
Over two thirds (69%) have changed their driving habits to keep costs down, with one in eight saying they had visited friends and family less (13%).
The latest Which? Consumer Insight Tracker took into account household habits in the month to April 10.
During this time, Which? found consumer confidence fell to -62 – the lowest level since the height of the cost of living crisis in 2022.
The consumer champion said the vast majority of UK adults (71%) think the UK economy will worsen over the next 12 months, while fewer than one in ten (9%) think it will improve.
This increase has seen over half (53%) of people – or an estimated 15 million UK households – make adjustments to cover essential spending.
This includes cutting back on essentials (29%), using savings (25%), selling possessions (9%), or borrowing from friends or family (9%).
Which? found 7.7% of UK households missed a house bill, loan, or credit card payment.
The average rate of missed payments over the last three months was 7.5%, up significantly from 5.7% at the end of last year.
Which? says if this trend continues, missed payments will reach levels seen during the peak of the cost-of-living crisis over the next few months.
Rocio Concha, Which? Director of Policy and Advocacy, said: “Our latest research highlights the deepening strain not only on household finances, but also on people’s physical and social wellbeing as cost of living pressures bite.
“Many are already making difficult choices, such as skipping meals. Without meaningful interventions the number of people taking drastic measures is likely to increase.
“We need to see urgent action, as set out in our Cost of Living Manifesto, to address these costs and help restore confidence before even more households are pushed into serious financial difficulty.”
