National Press, PR and Market Research Specialists

PURSE STRINGS

It's official - women are best at handling the family purse strings, according to new research.

The female of the species are better at budgeting and keeping track of their spending and are also less likely to build up debt on a credit card or through a loan, it emerged.

Fewer women than men also turn a blind eye to their finances and ignore mounting debts, pay bills late or forget to pay them altogether.

And they also make more of an attempt to chip away at debts while men prefer to make minimum payments.

A spokesman for money management website www.lovemoney.com, which carried out the study, said: ''For years, women have been thought of as the big spenders, splashing their cash on clothes and shoes.

''But it seems men are gaining their own reputation when it comes to managing their finances while women are learning how to handle their money.

''As more gadgets become available, guys are spending their hard-earned cash to keep up with their mates in the technology stakes, but it seems many are relying on credit to cover the costs.

''However, it's important to keep track of your spending and what you owe on credit cards or loans so that you don't overspend and end up living off credit.''

The study of 3,000 Brits also revealed blokes have an average debt of #2,176 on their credit cards, compared to just #1,987 which women owe.

A quarter of men even admitted to regularly paying their credit card bills late, or even forgetting them altogether but women are much more organised with just 17 per cent making the same mistake.

Blokes are also more likely to take out a loan, with six out of ten applying for one compared to just five out of ten women.

But researchers found it's not just debt where men fall short as women are generally better at keeping track of their spending.

Twice as many men turn a blind eye to their finances with one in ten guys admitting to burying their head in the sand along with just one in 20 women.

And more than 57 per cent of women know exactly what the family has to spend each month and when bills need to be paid, but just 54 per cent of men said the same.

One in twenty men even admitted they have absolutely no idea about the family finances and always overspend and forget to pay bills.

Ed Bowsher, Head of Consumer Finance at lovemoney.com, added: ''It's sad to see that both sexes are carrying so much debt on their credit cards.

''The best way to reduce your debt is to budget carefully and monitor your spending on a regular basis.''