A THIRD of people have seen their finances worsen in the past three months, according to new research on the effect of the coronavirus, launched by pensions and retirement specialist LV=.

The County Gates-based business says its LV=Health and Wellbeing Monitor will survey 4,000 UK consumers every quarter to log the impact of Covid on earnings, spending and saving.

The research will highlight how the outbreak and lockdown are affecting different age and income groups and their attitudes to saving, spending and wellbeing.

Among the findings of the research were:

n Thirty-two per cent said their finances were worse than three months ago and only 14 per cent were better off. Twenty-two per cent expected their finances to worsen over the next three months and only 14 per cent expected them to improve.

n Twenty per cent had seen their incomes fall, compared with 10 per cent whose income had risen.

n Retirement plans were under threat for many, with 40 per cent of those aged 55-64 saying their finance had worsened in the preiovus three months. Among 35-54 year-olds, 31 per cent had seen their finances worsen.

Clive Bolton, managing director of savings and retirement at LV=, said: “Coronavirus has been a huge shock to the UK and it is sometimes difficult to come to terms with how much our lives have changed over the past six months. Lockdown, stock market crashes, job furloughs and looming redundancies are shaking consumers’ confidence in the future and reshaping their attitudes to savings and spending.

“The LV= Wealth and Wellbeing Monitor will track consumers’ attitudes over the coming months providing an insight into their financial confidence, health and attitudes to spending, saving and wellbeing.

“During the summer, loosening of lockdown restrictions led to an increasing in consumer spending, a reduction in saving and an increase in spending on socialising. Future waves of research will reveal how these trends change, how they are affected by regional lockdowns and just how worried or optimistic people are about the future.

“It will highlight how different age groups, income groups and employment groups are affected by current events and how coronavirus is polarising the personal finances of people in the UK.”