Cost of living crisis: UK’s lowest earners still struggling, with 4.7 million behind on bills, says report
Finances for the UK’s lowest income households are continuing to buckle under the pressure of the cost of living crisis, with 7.2 million going without basic necessities and 4.7 million behind on their bills.
Amid soaring inflation, rising energy costs and a squeeze on household finances, it is those on the very lowest incomes that are struggling the most, according to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF).
Three-quarters (75%) of households earning less than £26,570 are going without food or other basic essentials such as toiletries.
People on Universal Credit, private renters and young adults are all seeing “rising and worrying levels of hardship”, the organisation added.
Meanwhile, nine in 10 on Universal Credit are experiencing food insecurity and going without basics.
More than seven million households are going hungry, cutting down meal sizes – or skipping them entirely – or going without showering or adequate clothing.
Some 4.7 million are in arrears with at least one household bill – almost triple the amount seen before the pandemic – and the average level of debt remains above £1,600.
Over three million households have not been able to heat their home since June, because they cannot afford the bills.
With prices continuing to skyrocket, more than half of those on low incomes said they could not afford an unexpected expense of £200.
This has driven 2.9 million households to high-cost credit loans, including with loan sharks, a payday lender, doorstep lender, or pawn shop – and half of those are in arrears.
“Of particular concern is over a third of low-income families with children cutting back on food for their children – this is a last resort and something you’re forced into, not something you choose,” the foundation said.
Some have resorted to cutting pension contributions, cancelling insurance products and taking on debt to pay bills.
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Cost of living crisis bites
‘A very different cost of living crisis’
There is a “grim financial outlook” for young adults in the UK, according to the JRF.
The report said: “18 to 34 year olds are facing a very different cost of living crisis to older adults.
“They have seen some of the largest rises in hardship over the last 12 months, and it shows no sign of slowing down.
“A lack of savings, living in the private rented sector, living in cities, and receiving lower levels of Government support all contribute to a grim financial outlook for the UK’s young adults.”
The JRF has been tracking the impact both the COVID pandemic and the cost of living crisis have had on the financial position of low-income households in the last 12 months.
“Basics have become luxuries for millions of households on low incomes,” it said in its report ‘Going Under and Without’.
“This is all taking place within the context of alarming increases in destitution and deep poverty in the UK in recent years.”
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Who is struggling the most?
Black households, those with disabled members and lone parents were among those seen struggling the most.
The report said: “The proportion of households going without who are from black households or households with mixed ethnicity also remain extremely high.
“The same holds true for families with disabled household members or members with mental health conditions.
“Lone parents and families with children are disproportionately struggling, as are households in cities across the country.
“For many, whether you have savings in the bank to get you through this crisis will be the key determinant of if you will manage.”
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‘Historic’ inflation explained
Urgent support needed
The foundation said the government must fill the gaps left by the Autumn Statement, including with an additional £450 cost of living payment to those who need it most.
The government also needs to “make changes” to Universal Credit so that after deductions it does not drop so low people can’t afford essentials, it added.
It said the way “punishing rate” at which deductions are made from benefits is worsening hardship.
The JRF is also asking the government to unfreeze the local housing allowance and run a large campaign to encourage the take up of benefits.
It concluded that while support packages have “slowed the deterioration of financial positions” for those on the lowest incomes, they have “not been sufficient to stem the tide of rising hardship”.
A workman saved a seven-year-old boy from a burning car in the aftermath of a deadly crash caused by a suicidal ex-pilot, an inquest has heard.
The schoolboy’s rescue came following the collision on the M6, which killed former RAF man Richard Woods and four others, in October last year.
Last week a coroner ruled that Woods, 40, took his own life by deliberately driving his Skoda the wrong way down the motorway while drunk and hitting a Toyota Yaris head-on.
The driver of the Toyota, Jaroslaw Rossa, 42, was also killed, along with his two sons, Filip, 15, and Dominic, seven, and his partner Jade McEnroe, 33.
Cockermouth Coroner’s Court heard on Thursday that Ms McEnroe’s son was also in the car but survived after workman Gavin Walsh came to his rescue at the scene, which was near Tebay services in Cumbria.
In a statement to the inquest, Mr Walsh said he was a passenger in a transit van travelling to Scotland when he witnessed the crash.
He jumped out of the vehicle and used a jack to smash the rear windscreen of the Toyota and pulled the boy out of the burning vehicle.
Mr Walsh said: “We really did try, I can assure everyone we did our best. We only had minimal time.
“I saved a life that day and I hope never to witness anything like that again.”
He added that he has never stopped thinking about the boy, and said: “I hope we will meet again one day and I will give you a massive hug.”
At the time, the family were returning to Glasgow from a trip to Legoland in Windsor, Berkshire.
The inquest heard that Wood, who was travelling at a speed of at least 65mph, would have been charged with manslaughter had he survived.
Recording conclusions of unlawful killing, Cumbria assistant coroner Margaret Taylor said: “I found that Jaroslaw, Jade, Filip and Dominic died as a consequence of the unlawful acts of another driver.”
The inquest heard how Mr Woods, from Cambridgeshire, had served a distinguished 14-year career in the RAF and was a flight instructor for BAE Systems at the time of his death.
Jade McEnroe. Pic: Cumbria Constabulary
Dominic and Filip. Pic: Cumbria Constabulary
In Ms Taylor’s record of inquest, Mr Woods was said to have been experiencing “a number of stressors in his life” and had a “history of harmful use of alcohol”.
Following the crash, he was found to be nearly four times over the legal drink-drive limit and a two-thirds empty bottle of gin was found in his car.
On the day of his death, concerns had been raised over his behaviour at a work conference near Preston in Lancashire.
Mr Woods failed to return to his seat after lunch and was later spotted driving erratically and swerving across three northbound carriageway lanes on the M6.
After pulling onto the hard shoulder, he then proceeded to U-turn and drove southward on lane three.
Filip, Dominic and Jaroslaw Rossa. Pic: Cumbria Constabulary
Detective Sergeant Deborah Story, from Cumbria Police, told the inquest that Mr Woods would have been prosecuted on four counts of manslaughter had he lived.
She said hypothetical charges of murder were considered by detectives but not thought appropriate because of a lack of information that Mr Woods knew the family or anything that provided a link between them.
Ms McEnroe’s parents, Marie McEnroe and George McNellis, told the coroner they thought it was “murder”.
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A statement from the mother of Filip and Dominic, and the ex-wife of Mr Rossa, Kamila, was read out at the inquest.
She said Mr Rossa, known as Jarek, was born in Poland where they became a couple and went on to have three boys.
He loved playing computer games and had “lots of friends”, she said, and worked at the Wagamama restaurant in Silverburn, Glasgow.
She said she was “devastated” over the deaths, adding: “Our lives will never be the same.
“I am heartbroken at the passing of my beloved angels Filip and Dominic.”
Marie McEnroe said her daughter, a spa therapist, had been in a relationship with Mr Rossa for about two-and-a-half years.
She said Jade had been a “brilliant mother” to her only child, was “really happy” with Mr Rossa and it was “lovely chaos” when all the boys were playing together.
Ms McEnroe added: “Life changed forever that day”.
Ms Taylor praised the “selfless acts of bravery” from those in the aftermath of the collision, including Mr Walsh, who she said went towards the burning car “without hesitation for his own safety”.
The coroner added: “Without his swift response, Jade’s child would also have perished.”
Addressing the bereaved family members, she said: “Your loss is unimaginable but you have conducted yourself with dignity and I thank you for that. I wish you strength for the future.”
Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK.
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