Bank of Ireland Christmas Shopping Survey

Bank of Ireland Christmas Shopping Survey shows nearly a quarter of consumers will split their Christmas shopping between shops and online

68% of respondents to the Bank of Ireland Christmas Shopping Survey intend to spend the same amount this year as last
Most people are well organised, with 68% planning to have the majority of their Christmas shopping done in the next two weeks – only 28% plan to leave it until Christmas week
62% of customers plan to spend less than €500 on presents this year – 8% plan to spend more than €1,000 on presents
Female respondents plan to complete their shopping earlier than male respondents, and 65% of those who do not yet know what gifts they plan to purchase are male

Wednesday 26^th November 2014 – With only 29 shopping days left until Christmas, Bank of Ireland today launched the findings of the Bank of Ireland Christmas Shopping Survey.

This survey shows that almost a quarter of respondents (23%) plan to split their Christmas shopping across online sites and stores this year. The survey also shows that the majority of customers (68%) plan to spend about the same amount on Christmas presents in 2014 as they did last year, with 16% planning to spend more. The vast majority of those surveyed have not saved specifically for Christmas and intend to fund their Christmas shopping from their usual income.

73% of women surveyed said that they will do their shopping in November and early December compared with 73% of men who will leave their shopping until early December and the week before Christmas. Of those customers surveyed who do not yet know what gifts they plan to purchase, 65% are male. Men are also more likely to spend big at Christmas, with 74% of male respondents planning to spend more than €1,000 on presents.

The Bank of Ireland Christmas Shopping Survey shows that the top five gifts that customers are planning to purchase for Christmas 2014 are as follows:

Toys, at 17% (67% coming from households with children)
Electronics, at 13% (64% of these coming from households with children)
Clothes/fashion, at 9% (48% of these customers are aged 50+)
Vouchers, at 7% (58% of these customers are aged 50+)
Jewellery, at 6% (75% males vs. 25% females)

23% of respondents plan to split their Christmas shopping across online and in stores this year. 72% of those who plan to shop exclusively online are aged between 18 and 34 years. Amazon and eBay are by far the most popular online shopping sites.

Speaking about the survey results, John O’Beirne, Head of Cards and Loans, Bank of Ireland, reminded customers that they are protected when they use their debit or credit cards this Christmas:

“At this time of gift giving, consumers should remember that they are protected when they use their Bank of Ireland credit or debit card. Purchases made are covered by chargeback rights which protect you in the event of loss or non-receipt of goods or services and in the event of fraudulent activity. And, for larger purchases, Bank of Ireland has a Credit Card Payment Plan that enables you to transfer a credit card purchase over €500 onto a lower rate of 6.9% APR variable.”

John also commented “Irish people’s preference continues to be for using debit and credit cards ahead of cash and cheques. Spend on cards in Ireland last year was over €27.5 billion – up 6.5% in 12 months. ATM withdrawals are down 20% in the past five years, with cheques and paper debits falling 48% in the same time.”*

John also reminded customers that as we come into one of the busiest shopping periods of the year those customers can use the Bank of Ireland mobile and tablet app, along with Banking 365, to keep track of spending, transfer money and pay bills, all while on the go.

Ends