170 million fewer presents under trees this year as household bills rise

Brits are bracing themselves for a ‘Tight Christmas’ this year, as new data reveals 80% feel like they have less to spend. Half of Brits (50%) are planning to give fewer gifts – resulting in a whopping potential figure of 170 million* fewer gifts under trees in the UK. When pressed on gift giving, nearly a quarter (24%) have decided to not give gifts to extended family, and 19% are buying fewer gifts for their children.

A new survey, commissioned by Lyca Mobile, reveals decisions around Christmas spending comes as rising bills are forcing Brits to reconsider their buying habits and make cut backs. 59% have faced rising bills from three or more household providers, resulting in extra costs of between £251 and £500 for almost a third (32%) of households this year. When trying to balance their budgets, consumers say they are making cuts to discretionary spending such as eating out in restaurants (50%), getting takeout (45%), and going on holiday (40%) – and the majority (52%) think these changes will become more severe in 2024.

When looking to the future, Brits say their principal cause of concern around rising bills is the uncertainty on price rises (46%), followed by not being able to plan ahead with their finances (32%). When respondents contracted to a “Big Four” mobile network provider were asked specifically on whether they knew if their mobile bill was rising in 2024, four in 10 (40%) said they were unsure if a price hike was being applied to their contract.

Mid-contract price hikes are already impacting a large majority of mobile contract customers, with more than one in three (36%) saying their bills have been hiked this year. This has resulted in 32% of MNO customers surveyed feeling that their mobile provider is “taking them for granted”.

As a result of price hikes, 57% of MNO customers surveyed say they are considering changing mobile providers, even though the majority of respondents have been with their existing provider for more than three years. The principal issue customers have with the hikes is that they feel “opportunistic” (17%) with many others saying they think there are now better contracts available to them (16%), or that price rises have meant they no longer feel they’re getting a good deal (15%). Seven in 10 (70%) say they would like greater transparency from mobile providers on the way in which price rises are calculated.

Richard Schäfer, Lyca Group CEO, says: “As household bills continue to sky-rocket, it is no surprise that the Christmas cheer is quieter this year. With prices rising across the board, mid-contract price rises for mobile phone contracts is an added expense many simply cannot afford. People shouldn’t have to choose between gift-giving to loved ones and paying their mobile phone bills.

We already know that the majority of mobile contract customers are dissatisfied with the value they’re getting from mobile providers. In this day and age there is no reason why a high quality, reliable mobile service needs to cost the earth. UK mobile users deserve a fairer deal, especially in the face of rising bills.”

Lyca Mobile has committed to no mid-contract price rises until at least 2026 for customers on its new Pay Monthly contracts, which start from just £4/month for 5GB of data.