Study shows that over half of British students have multiple bank accounts

A new study conducted by www.VoucherCodesPro.co.uk – a UK money saving website – has revealed that the majority of students in the UK are in the possession of more than one bank account, with each student having, on average, an overdraft of £3,781.

The poll conducted by a money-saving website comes as another stage of the continuing research into the financial habits of Britons, in this case in relation to student spending. Representative group of 2,152 students from all over the UK, all in their second year, were asked to take part in the survey.

Respondents were asked to answer how many student bank accounts do they currently have. The results were somewhat surprising – 58% of surveyed students admitted to having more than one student bank account, 35% revealed that they are in possession of only one account, whereas 7% had no student account at all.

Furthermore, respondents who had revealed they own more than one account were asked to disclose the amount of overdraft they had accumulated on all their accounts. It turned out that the average student had managed to get themselves into a sizeable debt of £3,781, researchers discovered.

Another group of respondents, who had previously disclosed that they have no more than one student bank account were asked to give away their financial intentions for the future. Surveyors asked them whether they plan to open another student account over the next year, and 17% of students gave affirmative responses. Moreover, 24% of respondents revealed that they intend to increase their overdraft limit at some point within the next 12 months.

Nick Swan, founder of www.VoucherCodesPro.co.uk, commented that “being a student can obviously be a pricey time, but it is worrying to see the disregard that students seem to have for their finances. Whilst it may seem worth it to rack up a load of debt now, it can certainly impact your future”.

Mr Swan added that he would also “advise students to make sure that they check the small print of accounts and contracts to ensure that they cannot be caught out. Terms and conditions of accounts can dictate that banks can withdraw the overdraft and sell the debt to debt collectors, so you must be wary of that. It could also have a big impact on your future credit rating, tread carefully. There are plenty of other ways to make your own money go further, rather than having to rely on debt. Saving is the number one place to start”.

It is worth noting that it is against most banks’ rules to hold more than one student account. However, in many cases banks do not seem to be meticulous in verifying students’ accounts history. It opens the door to thousands of pounds of debt from overdrafts and credit cards.