A quarter (24.4%) of Poles say they have no money saved up, while almost a third have less than 5,000 zloty (€1,100) in reserve, according to a new study. Almost 35% say they could survive for only one month living off just their savings.
A survey by the Economic Information Bureau (KRD) finds that 11.5% of Poles have under 1,000 zloty, while a further 16.7% say they had between 1,000 zloty and 5,000 zloty. Almost a third of Poles said they have a buffer of more than 5,000 zloty.
Living off just their savings, 7.5% say they would be able to sustain themselves for one week, 9% for two weeks, and 18% for one month. Another 26% say they have enough for three months, and a further 17% for up to half a year. Just 22% of respondents said they would survive for a year or more.
The study was conducted in late October by IMAS, a Polish research institute, with a sample of 1,000 respondents.
During the pandemic, 52% of respondents say they are not saving up, and two-thirds of that group say that low income is the chief cause. Adam Łącki, head of KRD, commented that “a financial cushion is very important precisely in situations such as a pandemic or a crisis”.
An additional 17% of those not saving during the pandemic say they do not fear for their financial situation, and a further 13% say they do not anticipate that the pandemic will adversely affect their finances. Meanwhile, 9% said they could depend on their family and friends for help.
Among those who are setting aside money, 27% say they managed to save between 100 and 299 zloty each month last year, 16% between 300 and 499 zloty, and 13% between 500 and 999 zloty. A further 13% said they set aside over 1,000 zloty each month.
Ahead of the second wave of the pandemic, 61% of Poles had been cutting back spending. The main causes were perceived price inflation (43%), fear of future inflation (35%) and saving up for worse times (34%).
The most common drop in spending was recorded for eating out (49%), travel (48%) and trips to the cinema, concerts or bowling (almost 30%). The most commonly cited spending increases were on chemicals and cleaning products (44%), pharmaceuticals (37%) and food bought in stores (36%).
“We conducted our research just before the second wave of the pandemic, so when restaurants, hotels and guesthouses, as well as cinemas and theatres, were in operation,” said Łącki.
Over a third of respondents (34.5%) have cancelled or delayed holiday plans to save money, and a fifth have put off home refurbishments. Łącki notes that this is surprising: “during the pandemic, DIY stores were crowded” and “spending time in your own four walls” was widely considered to “have mobilised Poles to renovate them”.
A tenth also said they put off buying a car or organising large celebrations, such as weddings. A further 4% said they decided against buying an apartment or house.
Moreover, 42.3% of Poles said they cut back on smaller spending that they did not deem “necessary” and a third relied more on promotions and price comparisons to seek out the best deals.
Main image credit: Paweł Czerwiński/Unsplash
Maria Wilczek is deputy editor of Notes from Poland. She is a regular writer for The Times, The Economist and Al Jazeera English, and has also featured in Foreign Policy, Politico Europe, The Spectator and Gazeta Wyborcza.
