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Savers rise in number ahead of ISA season

Wednesday 10th March 2010

By Mike Jones

Four out of five consumers last month described themselves as either regular or occasional savers - the highest figure since May 2008, according to Nationwide.

This improvement could be as a result of a combination of factors. As shown recently in the most recent Nationwide Consumer Confidence Index, consumers' confidence in the present and future situation has improved.

Nationwide said that this could have had a positive impact on people's ability to save. In addition, with the end of the tax year getting closer, the "ISA season" is now in full swing and it would not be surprising to see this providing a stronger incentive for people to save.

Andy Hutchinson, Nationwide's Head of Savings said: "As the end of the tax year gets ever closer, we expect to see more and more people open or top up their ISAs before they lose this year's annual ISA allowance forever. There are very few opportunities in life to 'beat the tax man' and one of those opportunities is to take out an ISA, so I encourage eligible savers to use their ISA allowance as soon as possible. We estimate that cash ISAs alone are saving consumers over £680 million in tax over a year, so ISAs can clearly make a substantial saving.

"So although we cannot say for sure, the rise in the total number of regular and occasional savers could be something to do with the fact that this time of year often sees a rise in the number of savers taking out ISAs."

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