Almost half of adults finding it difficult to afford their bills according to new ONS data

New data published today shows that nearly half of UK adults are finding it difficult to afford their bills.

The ONS has released analysis of the proportion of the population that are affected by an increase in their cost of living, and of the characteristics associated with having difficulty affording or being behind on energy, mortgage or rental payments, using data from the Opinions and Lifestyle Survey.

The data shows the proportion of all adults finding it difficult to afford their energy bills, rent or mortgage payments has increased to 45% in September, up from 40% in June.

The data also shows that over half (55%) of disabled adults reported finding it difficult to afford their energy bills, and around a third (36%) found it difficult to afford their rent or mortgage payments compared with 40% and 27% of non-disabled people, respectively.

Around half of those with a personal income of less than £20,000 per year said they found it difficult to afford their energy bills; this proportion decreased as personal income increased, with around a quarter (23%) of those earning £50,000 or more reporting this.

Adults who were renting their home were more likely than those currently paying a mortgage to find it difficult to afford or be behind with their energy bills, rent or mortgage payments.

Around 6 in 10 (60%) renters reported finding it difficult to afford their energy bills compared with around 4 in 10 (43%) of those with a mortgage in the latest pooled period. Around a third (35%) of those who owned their home outright reported finding it difficult to afford their energy bills.

Around 4 in 10 (39%) renters found it difficult to afford their rent payments compared with 23% of mortgagors who found it difficult to pay their mortgage.