What's Happening?

Facebook Twitter Youtube Linkedin

NEED HELP? QUESTIONS@FIA.ORG.ZA

become A FIA member TODAY
member login

JustMoney survey: COVID-19 flattens personal finances

ARTICLE BY

  • Mannie Cristaudo

SHARE THIS POST

The coronavirus pandemic has “significantly or very significantly” affected the family earnings of about three quarters of ordinary South Africans who took part in a snapshot survey, and the vast majority of them can only afford an emergency payment of less than R5,000. 

These are just some of the sobering findings in the first edition of a household family finances survey conducted by personal finance website JustMoney. Established over a decade ago, JustMoney provides busy and digitally-savvy South Africans with easy access to financial information, services and products.

JustMoney Business Head Mannie Cristaudo says: “In an effort to understand what our readers have experienced to date during the Coronavirus pandemic, we conducted a survey for the month of April. Nearly 2,000 readers took part, answering 12 key questions.” 

Read the survey here. 

Lockdown financial pressure 

While the larger portion of the group (73%) revealed that their family earnings had been “significantly or very significantly” affected, more than 36% of respondents stated that they would nonetheless not consider a payment holiday on their debt. However, the second largest group, at just under 27%, said that they were definitely considering this.  

One of the most harrowing statistics indicated that over 77% of participants were worried about their financial situation as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic. Just under 20% admitted to being somewhat concerned, and fewer than 6% said it did not concern them. 

The vast majority of respondents, just under 79%, said that they were only able to afford an emergency payment of less than R5,000. Fewer than 10% could afford an emergency payment of up to R10,000. 

Survey participants 

Of the 1986 participants, over 11% of readers work in retail, nearly 9% in government, and just under 8% in construction. However, the majority (43%) selected “other” and many specified that they worked in manufacturing, communications, the informal sector, or were unemployed. 

More than 77% of participants categorised themselves as employees, while the rest said that they were self-employed – such as freelance workers or contractors. Just under half of readers (43%) said they earned under R10,000 each month and barely 10% fell within the top bracket of earning over R40,000 each month. 

Considering these income brackets, just over 68% of participants said they would not be able to survive for more than a month on their savings. Many would struggle to survive a week. 

Managing money matters 

More than half of the participants (53%) said they create a personal budget every month. However, nearly 20% admitted to never having drawn up nor relied on a monthly budget, says Cristaudo. 

Approximately 81% of participants were aware of all of the debit orders that came off their accounts, while the remaining participants were unaware of all their monthly debit orders. In addition, more than 64% of participants regularly reviewed their bank statements. 

The survey also revealed that the majority (44%) only occasionally access their credit reports. Interestingly, there was almost an equal split between those who accessed their reports on a monthly basis and those who did not access them at all. 

“Despite participants being predominantly employees who earn less than R10,000 each month, it is encouraging to note how many are making an effort to stay on top of their finances despite the extremely challenging times,” says Cristaudo. “More than half set out a monthly budget and over 80% monitor their monthly debit orders. It is also reassuring that less than 30% are considering taking a payment holiday. 

“The pandemic is having a harsh impact on many South African households, whose budgets are already stretched to the limit. We will continue to conduct research every quarter to show how ordinary South Africans are coping. 

“More than ever, it is essential to get to grips with your current financial situation, understand where your money goes, draw up a budget and do your best to avoid debt. For advice you can bank on, access the JustMoney website here.” 

Sound  advice that has stood the test of time is: Set aside money to cope with unexpected expenses such as a new set of car tyres or a TV; save enough to cover your income for two to three months; then start putting money into retirement annuities and other investment products.

IMAGES AND CAPTIONS 

1: JustMoney Business Head Mannie Cristaudo.

  1. The coronavirus pandemic has “significantly or very significantly” affected the family earnings of 73% of nearly 2000 participants in a JustMoney survey.
  2. Period of time consumers could live on their savings, according to JustMoney research.

Subscriber Terms and Conditions

  1. APPLICATION OF TERMS
    • These terms and conditions (“Subscriber Terms”) apply to the subscription by any qualifying member of the South African Underwriting Managers Association NPC (“SAUMA”) to the services and benefits offered by FIA Services (Pty) Ltd (“FIA Services”) under the SAUMA affiliation arrangement (“Subscription”).

  2. NATURE OF SUBSCRIPTION
    • A Subscription under this arrangement:
      • does not constitute membership of FIA NPC;
      • does not confer any voting rights or governance participation in FIA NPC; and
      • is governed solely by the contractual relationship between the Subscriber and FIA Services.

  1. ELIGIBILITY
    • To qualify for the Subscription, the applicant must, at the time of application, be a current paid-up member of SAUMA.
    • FIA Services will verify the applicant’s SAUMA membership status with SAUMA prior to activation, and may re-verify such status periodically.
    • If a Subscriber ceases to be a paid-up member of SAUMA, the Subscription will correspondingly be terminated.
    • Applicants are required to authorise FIA Services to confirm their SAUMA membership status with SAUMA as part of the application process.

  1. SERVICES
    • The Subscription entitles the Subscriber to the following benefits:
      • Complimentary access to the FIA CPD Platform;
      • Complimentary access to the FIA Insight Magazine (digital edition);
      • Advertising opportunities on FIA platforms at a discounted rate of 15% (fifteen percent) off the prevailing published rates; and
      • Invitations to attend FIA Technical Webinars annually.
    • FIA Services reserves the right to update, vary or substitute the Services from time to time, provided that the overall value and nature of the benefits remain materially the same.

  1. FEES AND PAYMENT
    • The monthly subscription fee is R260.00 (two hundred and sixty rand) for up to seven registered individuals (Key Individuals and Representatives), and R36.00 (thirty-six rand) per additional registered individual thereafter, excluding VAT.
    • The Subscriber shall provide FIA Services with the required details of each individual to be registered under the Subscription for the purposes of activation and billing.
    • All fees are exclusive of VAT, which shall be charged at the prevailing statutory rate.
    • Subscription fees are reviewed annually in March and may be adjusted with effect from 1 April.
    • Any changes to the Subscription, including but not limited to the number of Representatives and Key Individuals registered under the Subscription, may only be effected once annually during the annual review period in March of each year, with such changes taking effect from 1 April.
    • Subscription fees shall be billed monthly in arrears, unless the Subscriber elects an annual billing cycle at the time of application.
    • The Subscriber shall ensure that all billing information (including contact details, authorised signatories and bank account details) is kept accurate and up to date.
    • Non-payment of subscription fees may result in suspension of access to the Services until such fees are brought up to date.
    • The Subscriber acknowledges and agrees that all subscription fees payable under these Subscriber Terms may be collected by way of debit order, which shall be processed by the holding company, FIA NPC (The Financial Intermediary Association of South Africa), on behalf of FIA Services. Payment to FIA NPC shall be deemed to constitute valid and sufficient discharge of the Subscriber’s payment obligations to FIA Services under these Subscriber Terms.

  1. ONBOARDING
    • Onboarding will be conducted as a Subscription with FIA Services under the SAUMA affiliation arrangement.
    • Onboarding will not confer FIA NPC membership status or any associated rights.
    • Onboarding is conditional on confirmation of the Subscriber’s current SAUMA membership at the time of application

  1. DATA PROTECTION
    • FIA Services will process all personal information in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (POPIA) as set out in our POPIA policies.
    • By subscribing, the Subscriber authorises FIA Services to confirm their SAUMA membership status with SAUMA and to process personal information for the purposes of fulfilling the Subscription.

  1. TERMINATION
    • The Subscriber may terminate the Subscription by giving FIA Services one calendar month’s written notice.
    • FIA Services may terminate the Subscription on one calendar month’s written notice, or immediately if the Subscriber breaches these Subscriber Terms and fails to remedy such breach within 14 (fourteen) days of receiving written notice.
    • Termination of the SAUMA–FIA Services affiliation agreement shall not automatically terminate these Subscriber Terms.
    • Termination by the Subscriber shall not relieve the Subscriber of liability for any subscription fees accrued up to the effective date of termination.
    • FIA Services may suspend or terminate the Subscription with immediate effect in the event of non-payment of fees by the Subscriber.

  1. GENERAL
    • These Subscriber Terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa.
    • Any disputes arising under these Subscriber Terms shall be dealt with in accordance with the dispute resolution provisions contained in the FIA NPC membership terms and conditions, as modified to reflect that the contractual relationship is with FIA Services.
    • Any notices required under these Subscriber Terms may be validly delivered by email to the addresses provided in the Subscriber’s application form, and such notices shall be deemed received on the day of transmission if sent during business hours.
    • The Subscriber may not assign, cede or transfer any of its rights or obligations under these Subscriber Terms without the prior written consent of FIA Services.
    • No variation of these Subscriber Terms shall be of any force or effect unless reduced to writing and signed by both FIA Services and the Subscriber.