Savings-strapped parents demanding repayments

While parents may find that their savings are being hit by contributing towards expenses for their adult children, the tide is beginning to turn, new research indicates.

A survey from Scottish Widows revealed the number of graduates receiving financial gifts from their parents has fallen from 38 per cent ten years ago to 32 per cent in 2006.

Parents are increasingly expecting their offspring to pay back any money they give them, with 18 per cent of graduates being forced to borrow money off parents last year, compared to nine per cent in 1996.

The total amount of money that the bank of Mum and Dad has lent in the last ten years is £2.1 billion, with the average loan standing at £12,188. The average property deposit for graduate first-time buyers is £16,219.

"It is clear that it is becoming more and more difficult for graduates to get on the property ladder without any assistance and with rising interest rates and house prices they need all the help they can get," commented head of product development and marketing at Scottish Widows Richard Clark.

More than 7.5 million people in the UK say that they only save money for short-term goals, research from Unbiased.co.uk recently found.