- Survey reveals more than 60 per cent of B.C. residents could benefit from saving an additional $1,500 a year

VANCOUVER, July 13 /CNW/ - Saving for the unexpected is the primary reason that Canadians from British Columbia save money (41 per cent), according to a recent Scotiabank study conducted by Harris/Decima assessing the saving patterns of Canadians. Though 79 per cent of B.C. residents have some money saved for the unexpected, more than one-in-five (21 per cent) say they have no rainy day money put aside.

"Almost all B.C. residents, 94 per cent, expressed that they actually feel better when they have a safety net of savings," said Larry Clements, Branch Manager at the North Vancouver Scotiabank branch. "With so many recognizing the financial and emotional benefits of saving, now is the time for them to take action and start putting money aside and achieve the financial security that they are seeking."

The study also found that 61 per cent of B.C. residents feel that saving an additional $1,500 a year would be enough to improve their financial well-being. Additionally, 84 per cent of B.C.'s population would be willing to make changes to their spending habits if they wanted to save more money.

"Obtaining that extra $1,500 - or whatever your savings goal may be - is easier than you might think and need not require making drastic changes to your current spending habits," said Mr. Clements.

Residents of B.C. are already on the road to increase their savings with 28 per cent accumulating their pocket change and depositing the money into a bank account - four per cent more than the national average. Meanwhile 29 per cent of people from B.C. spend their pocket change right away, on par with the national average.

In addition to saving pocket change, Mr. Clements recommends that you can save even more by automatically:

-  Saving every time you pay with your debit card by using a debit card
       that rounds up your purchases to the nearest dollar or five dollars;
    -  Saving every time you pay with your credit card by using a credit
       card that offers cash back for every dollar you spend; and
    -  Saving with every paycheque by having a set amount automatically
       transferred from every pay to a savings or investment account of your
       choice.

Let the Saving Begin, Canada!

Most of the attitudes expressed by B.C. residents are in line with the rest of the nation. Specifically, while 94 per cent of Canadians feel much better when they have a safety net of savings, nearly one third (32 per cent) of Canadians do not have a plan in place to achieve their savings goals and only 55 per cent save on a regular basis.

"Canadians across the country are aware of the importance of saving and it's now time to do something about it - it's time for Canadians, from east to west, to get back to basics and start saving again," remarked Mr. Clements. "Canadians have told us that they are willing to make the small changes necessary to help them save and Scotiabank is committed to helping them make these changes to accomplish their goals - it's time to let the saving begin."

Let the Saving Begin is a Scotiabank program designed to inspire and empower Canadians to get on track with their saving, investing and borrowing habits, without having to make significant changes to their current behaviour.

Built on three simple principles, Let the Saving Begin encourages Canadians to:

-  Save automatically, because it works;
    -  Invest for your future, because no one else will; and
    -  Borrow to get ahead, not fall behind.

Scotiabank is one of North America's premier financial institutions and Canada's most international bank. With close to 68,000 employees, Scotiabank Group and its affiliates serve approximately 14.6 million customers in some 50 countries around the world. Scotiabank offers a diverse range of products and services including personal, commercial, corporate and investment banking. With more than $526 billion in assets (as at April 30, 2010), Scotiabank trades on the Toronto (BNS) and New York Exchanges (BNS). For more information please visit www.scotiabank.com.

The Scotiabank Spring Savings Study was conducted online using Harris/Decima's online panel. A total of 1,006 completed surveys were collected from a random sample of panel members across Canada, of which 125 surveys were completed from British Columbia. The study was conducted from March 26th, 2010 to March 31st, 2010.

This was a standard panel survey among a random sample of Harris/Decima's Canadian panel members. In a fashion similar to a telephone study, email addresses from Harris/Decima's panel were pulled at random, according to population and gender specifications, in order to make the study representative of the Canadian population by region and gender. When contacted to solicit participation, participants had no prior knowledge of the subject matter of the study. Harris/Decima controls access to the study through passwords to ensure that respondents can participate only once. Subsequent to completion of the study, the data was weighted by region, age, and gender.