Friday 04 December 2020
Did you know in Guernsey, we usually spend on average per year £3,355 on holidays, £546 looking after our pets and £1,742 per year on air and sea fares?
The findings come in a new report which shows the average household expenditure (excluding income tax, social insurance and workplace pension contributions) in Guernsey was £58,279 in 2018-2019. In real terms (with the effects of price inflation removed) this is 1% lower than 2012-2013. It is estimated that £6,905 of this expenditure would not have been possible in 2020.
15% of average expenditure is money spent off-island, through goods and services ordered online or by phone, or spent while the householder was travelling off the Island.
The findings come in the 
Guernsey Household Expenditure Survey 2018-2019 Report [1Mb], published today by the States of Guernsey alongside the third report of findings from the 2020 Community Survey [2Mb] and the regular annual publications on Household Incomes [2Mb] and Indicators of Poverty [912kb].
The Report also reveals the different types of goods and services Islanders spend their money on. For example, food and non-alcohol drinks make up 9% of the average household expenditure.
Deputy Mark Helyar, Treasury lead for the Policy & Resources Committee said:
"The detailed findings in this survey give us a real insight into the spending habits and pressures on local households. The survey was completed in 2019 and we know this year has been very different, so a model of 2020 expenditure has been included too. Far less money will have been spent on transport or hotel stays, but more money is likely to have been spent on-island rather than while travelling abroad. Nonetheless, knowing what the household spend looks like in 'normal' times is incredibly important to informing our decisions particularly as we prepare for a fiscal review that will look closely at what and how we fund public services, as these services ultimately are paid from those same household budgets."
Helen Walton, Head of Data & Analysis for the States of Guernsey said:
"This survey takes in data from more than 1,000 households, reflecting their spending behaviours from May 2018 to April 2019. Each of them filled out a spending diary and met with us for face-to-face an interview, to give this really robust and detailed information used in the Report. We really appreciate their participation as it enables us to provide invaluable information about the community's cost of living. We've included some additional analysis to ensure the information remains relevant today and the results of the 2020 Community Survey supplement this too."
