- More than half of savers haven’t moved any of their savings in the past year (56% – up from 52% six months earlier).
- A third haven’t switched in the past five years (36%). More than a quarter have never switched (27%).
- 43% of savers don’t ever plan to switch their savings.
- Leaving your money where it is could cost £992 a year – and lose you a significant chunk of your spending power after inflation.
Figures from a survey of 2,000 people by Opinium for Hargreaves Lansdown, October 2025
Sarah Coles, head of personal finance, Hargreaves Lansdown
“Savings inertia is particularly dangerous at times like this, when rates are dropping, and high street branch accounts have fallen so far behind inflation. Unfortunately, inertia can be even more powerful in this environment, because people assume rate cuts are the same across the board, so they don’t bother switching.
Over the last few years, savings rates have soared and then fallen, so it’s shocking that throughout it all, a third of people haven’t moved their savings at all over at least the past five years. The whole notion of switching is off the table for millions of people. Almost a quarter of savers have never switched their savings and two fifths don’t have any plans to switch at any point in the future.
The risk is that this cash is still sitting in high street savings accounts, paying an average of 1.15% – some are paying just 1%. With inflation currently at 3.6% it means that every passing month sees the spending power of your savings drop. It’s easy to miss this when you’re seeing interest payments go into the account every month, but you’ll soon see the impact when you come to spend it.
The cost
The high street giants have been far quicker to cut rates than the most competitive on the market, so the gap has opened significantly – with the most competitive offering 4.5% on easy access savings (excluding those limited to small sums, those with huge minimums and those limiting withdrawals), and the average high street account (branch accounts open to everyone) offering just 1.15% on £20,000 of savings. As a result, if you have £20,000 in an average branch-based high street easy access account, inertia is costing you £688 a year*.
The 20% highest earning households in the UK hold an average of £29,898 in savings (HL Savings & Resilience Barometer 2025). The difference between average rates from the high street giants and best on the market would cost them £992 a year**.
How to make your savings work harder
The process starts with working out what your savings are for. Don’t think of it as one big lump sum; break it down according to when you need the money. Then you can build a savings portfolio with each chunk fixed for the period that makes the most sense for you.
You need emergency savings. When you’re working age, you need cash to cover 3-6 months’ worth of essential spending in an easy access savings account or cash ISA, and when you have retired you should be able to cover 1-3 years’ worth.
You also need to consider lump sums you’ll need at specific times over the next 5 years, for everything from big holidays to home improvements, and to lock up each chunk of cash for the period that makes most sense in a fixed rate savings account. If you’re putting money away for 5-10 years or more you should at least consider investing some of it in a stocks and shares ISA, because although investments will rise and fall in the short term, over the longer term they tend to produce more growth than cash.
You will need to shop around for the best possible interest rate over these periods, and the most competitive deals tend to be available from online banks and cash savings platforms. You also need to be honest with yourself when choosing a new account. Some people will be able to keep track of a portfolio of accounts with different banks and have the energy to shop around and open new ones when they expire. Others start with good intentions but get overwhelmed. If there’s a chance that’s you, consider using a savings platform to make it easier to keep an eye on everything in one place and switch between banks without having to complete new paperwork.”
*Return in the average easy access branch-based savings account, assuming a balance of £20,000 averages 1.15%. In one year, that’s £231 interest.
Based on Barclays, Lloyds, HSBC, NatWest, Nationwide, Santander, Halifax, Bank of Scotland, Royal Bank of Scotland, TSB (2 December 2025).
Current best easy access rate available to those with £20,000: 4.5%. In one year, that’s £919.
Difference £688.
**Return in the average easy access branch-based savings account, assuming a balance of £29,898 averages 1.27%. In one year, that’s £382.
Based on Barclays, Lloyds, HSBC, NatWest, Nationwide, Santander, Halifax, Bank of Scotland, Royal Bank of Scotland, TSB (2 December 2025).
Current best easy access rate available to those with £29,898: 4.5%. In one year, that’s £1,374.
Difference £992.
