Friends first for money matters

A quarter of Britons would consult friends over loans, accounts and mortgages, even though they might not know all that much about such important financial matters.

The survey was commissioned by Alliance & Leicester, which is trying to encourage friends to persuade others to open up an account with financial incentives.

But even though Helen Palmer, current accounts manager at the bank believes “there is no better endorsement than that of a friend”, their lack of financial know-how could be more of a hindrance than a help if it comes to debt problems.

Men were found to be more trusting of friends over financial advice, with 28 per cent of them happy to turn to a friend compared to only 19 per cent of women.

However, with many people concerned about repaying debt, half said that they would never borrow from a friend, as failure to repay can often cause relationship problems.