More than half of Americans wouldn’t pull money from their savings accounts to cover an emergency expense of $1,000 or more, according to a new survey on emergency savings accounts by the financial advice website Bankrate. The survey found that only 44% of respondents would dip into their savings to pay the expense, with 35% saying they would either charge it to a credit card, borrow money from friends or family, or take out a loan.
Roughly two in three respondents (63%) said high inflation is causing them to save less. Forty-five percent also cited rising interest rates. Roughly half of respondents said they add to their emergency savings at least once a month, with 29% saying they add to their savings every paycheck. At the same time, only about a third of respondents say they prioritize both building up their emergency savings and paying off debt, with most of the rest prioritizing one over the other.
