Financial Literacy Survey Results 'Disheartening'

The Credit Union National Association's (CUNA) News Now reports that about 41% of adults say they'd give themselves a C, D, or F on financial literacy, according to the 2009 Consumer Financial Literacy Survey. One thousand adults age 18 and older participated in the survey.

Other findings:

• 26% admit to not paying all of their bills on time;
• 32% report that they have no savings; and
• 33% say they do not put any part of their income toward retirement, up from 28% in 2008.

The report indicates that, if the survey results were applied to the general population, it would mean that more than 58 million adults do not pay their bills on time, 72 million have no savings, and more than 74 million do not put any part of their income toward retirement.

"These results are disheartening, but certainly not surprising," says Jim Hanson, vice president of CUNA's center for personal finance department. "We know that financial literacy challenges are significant among all consumer demographic groups, not just among youth or new immigrants. And while there is no shortage of financial education materials available to consumers, the issue has often been about creating demand for financial education.

"In today's economic market, the demand should certainly be there. Educating consumers about wise money management won't happen overnight. It's a marathon, not a sprint," he adds.

The phone survey is conducted annually to gauge Americans' financial literacy. Now in its third year, the survey was commissioned by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling and conducted by Harris Interactive. It tracks results by sex, age, ethnicity, income level, geographic region, and education over the three-year period, when available.

Published May 4, 2009

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