Lending generosity quiz

When the time comes to embark on a new project, many of us would consider going to their families for financial support before applying for a personal loan.

Each year UK residents lend around £16.6 billion in total to their family and friends. What role do you play in this country’s unofficial lending economy?

£16.6 billion

Lent between family and friends in the UK in the past year.

If you’ve completed the quiz, you’ve seen how your overall readiness to lend compares to that of the general population. But how does this vary by demographic? Would the average person lend more money to their friend, or their uncle? Click below to see the results broken down.

How much we lend and expect from different people in our lives

As you might expect, people would lend the most to their parents, followed by their siblings, at £2,004 and £1,416 respectively. There’s quite a sharp drop-off after this, however, with extended family members having up to £362 available to them on average. Interestingly, people expect to be lent 75% less than they say they’d be willing to lend. Moral of the story: if you need to borrow money from someone, chances are they’d be more helpful than you think.

	Avg amount we’d lend	Avg amount we’d expect to be lent	% we expect compared to would lend
Parents	£2,004	£830	41%
Siblings	£1,416	£341	24%
Extended family	£362	£92	25%
Friends	£313	£93	30%
Neighbours	£90	£50	56%
Strangers (through a peer-to-peer service)	£134	£43	32%
Average	£720	£242	35%

Would lend
Women Men
Parents £2,015 £1,993
Siblings £1,254 £1,584
Extended family £277 £449
Friends £289 £340
Neighbours £72 £109
Strangers (through a peer-to-peer service) £111 £158
Average £669 £772
On average, men said they would lend 15% more than women did. The biggest difference was for extended family members, who men said they would lend 62% more than women: £449 compared to £277. Both groups would be willing to lend about the same amount to their parents, with women averaging an amount just 1% more than that of men.
Would expect
Women Men
Parents £910 £748
Siblings £353 £329
Extended family £62 £124
Friends £72 £117
Neighbours £29 £73
Strangers (through a peer-to-peer service) £34 £54
Average £243 £241
Women expect to be able to borrow more money from close family members than men do, predicting an amount 22% higher than men did for parents, and 7% higher for siblings. When it came to other relationships, however, men expect more than women do. This difference was largest when borrowing from neighbours, as men said they’d expect more than double the amount women did. Overall the difference between the two genders balances out, with the average response for each gender being £243 for women and £241 for men.

	Women	Men
Parents	£2,015	£1,993
Siblings	£1,254	£1,584
Extended family	£277	£449
Friends	£289	£340
Neighbours	£72	£109
Strangers (through a peer-to-peer service)	£111	£158
Average	£669	£772

	Women	Men
Parents	£910	£748
Siblings	£353	£329
Extended family	£62	£124
Friends	£72	£117
Neighbours	£29	£73
Strangers (through a peer-to-peer service)	£34	£54
Average	£243	£241

Would lend

	Millennials	Gen X	Baby Boomers
Parents	£1,308	£1,650	£683
Siblings	£662	£1,023	£1,234
Extended family	£241	£235	£319
Friends	£203	£318	£258
Neighbours	£87	£67	£78
Strangers (through a peer-to-peer service)	£81	£66	£175
Average	£430	£560	£458

Members of generation X are the most generous, being willing to lend up to £560 on average. This is followed by baby boomers at £458, then millennials at £430. Baby boomers are the only group not to expect the most money from their parents, expecting more from their siblings instead.

Would expect

	Millennials	Gen X	Baby Boomers
Parents	£664	£636	£284
Siblings	£286	£232	£228
Extended family	£103	£79	£36
Friends	£94	£107	£52
Neighbours	£69	£51	£15
Strangers (through a peer-to-peer service)	£56	£53	£7
Average	£212	£193	£104

When it comes to how much we’d expect, the youngest group had the highest average, at £212. Baby boomers expect the least, averaging £104.

Methodology

Based on a a survey of 2,000 British adults commissioned by finder.com and conducted by research provider OnePoll in June 2018.

For all media enquiries, please contact

Matt Mckenna
UK Communications Manager
T: +44 20 8191 8806

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Written by

Chris Lilly

Head of publishing

Chris Lilly is Head of publishing at finder.com. He's a specialist in personal finance, from day-to-day banking to investing to borrowing, and is passionate about helping UK consumers make informed decisions about their money. In his spare time Chris likes forcing his kids to exercise more. See full bio

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Lending generosity quiz

£16.6 billion

Lent between family and friends in the UK in the past year.

General population

Gender differences

Age differences

Methodology

For all media enquiries, please contact

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