Bank of Ireland survey reveals change in consumer habits during Covid-19

A recent Bank of Ireland survey with over 400 customers demonstrates how they are adapting to life during the Covid-19 public health emergency.

Four in ten (40%) of those surveyed revealed they have stopped using cash, with 46% of people tapping their contactless cards rather than entering a pin, while 8% claim to have stopped using their credit card. Half of respondents (52%) have postponed or cancelled upcoming travel, one in five (18%) have cancelled planned purchases and one in ten (11%) have halted subscriptions. Just under half of respondents (47%) indicated that they expect to become more careful about how much they spend over the next few months. One in three (33%) are working from home and three in ten (30%) have stocked up on groceries in recent weeks.

The top financial concerns are a reduction in salary (28%), with almost one in four (23%) concerned about their savings depleting and one in five (20%) concerned about being able to afford day to day living. Apart from financial worries, customers’ other immediate concerns are looking after elderly relatives (25%) and supporting family members in difficulty (24%). 46% are most concerned about a friend, family member or colleague getting Covid-19, with 22% worried about getting the virus themselves.

Discussing the trends, Shane Quinlan, Head of Financial Wellbeing, Bank of Ireland said: “Customers are starting to move from being primarily concerned about health issues, to increasingly concerned about financial matters, which is understandable in the current environment. What is most revealing about these survey results is how quickly our customers have adapted to the new reality, changing behaviours and prioritising their financial wellbeing by examining their expenditure.

“Nine in ten customers are telling us that they would find a financial health check helpful in the future and we will also continue to expand our range of Covid-19 supports to ease the financial burden on families, businesses and communities across Ireland.”

Bank of Ireland has already introduced a range of Covid-19 supports including;

• Mortgage and personal loan payment breaks for personal customers
• Waiving of contactless fees for the duration of the crisis
• Fast-tracking payments to SME’s
• Donating €1m in emergency funding to communities most affected by Covid-19
• Priority services and phone lines for healthcare workers, over-65’s and carers