Friday night spending

Ever woken up after a night out expecting to a pull a crisp twenty from your purse, but found only a twenty pence coin? We reveal the real cost of the British drinking culture

One in four of us use our savings to fund Friday nights out, a new government survey reveals. And we aren't a nation of homebodies: around 1.4 million people go out four Fridays a month, spending over £50 each time, adding up to £3.4 billion a year. The phenomenal cost of our passion for partying comes at a time when the UK's £27 billion savings gap - the difference between what we are saving and what we need to save – is growing despite warnings from financial experts.

The survey of over 1000 adults, conducted by NS&I (National Savings and Investments), revealed worrying spending patterns behind our nights out. One in six (16%) spend over £50 per Friday night, while 1%, representing just under half a million people, couldn't (or wouldn't) pin down how much they spend at all. Alarmingly, one in four (24%) people dip into their savings to fund their Friday nights out. One in ten (11%) put it on their credit card, and 4% use their bank overdraft. Only 3% of those surveyed admitted to borrowing money from a friend, family member or partner.

Just one more round
Spending the night at a bar or pub is the most popular choice for Friday night fun, leaving eating out in second place. Although hungry Scots cited food as their greatest expense (45%), nationwide almost half of people surveyed (47%) said alcohol was their biggest Friday night bill. There's a difference between the sexes too: more men than women identified alcohol as their main expense (53% compared to 40%). In fact twice as many men than women spend over £50. The question is, are men subbing women's Friday nights on the town or just drinking more? We'll leave you decide that one yourselves …

The morning after
Expensive Friday nights could leave you regretting more than a hangover. One in four (25%) who spent more than £50 wishes they didn't spend as much, while 16-24 year olds feel the worst, with two thirds (61%) saying they wish they spent less. This isn't surprising as this age group goes out the most on Fridays: 41% goes out four Fridays each month, compared to just one in ten (8%) of those aged 55-64.

Nevertheless the majority of all surveyed – 68% - don't wish they spent less on Friday nights. But while we're splashing out, the amount we're saving as a proportion of our household income has never been lower – a mere 5.7%. In 1980 it was 12.4%. It's good to live in the moment, but not at the expense of your future.

Setting boundaries
If your social spending is making inroads into your savings, you need to be honest with yourself about how much your Friday nights are costing you. Leave your cards at home and set aside a realistic amount of money for the evening. Gill Cattanach, marketing director at National Savings and Investments, suggests halving your Friday night spending: 'Just by cutting back on Friday night spending by half, those people who go out four Fridays and spend around £200 each month could be saving well over £1,000 each year, some of which could pay for a holiday where they could enjoy a drink somewhere far more exotic than their local!'