Emergency funds

RazWaz

I'm 20 and have always kept something aside when possible, I hate having an empty bank account, my parents never had anything put away and the stress of dealing with problems was horrible, never want to put myself though that. I tend to keep about 4-6 months worth of rent and bills in my current account at any time which is around £3/4k. That way if something unexpected happens I don't need to worry about bills/rent and if something breaks down it can be replaced quickly.

If my bank balance drops below my ideal savings, I just stop spending money on anything that isn't a bill until it's back to normal. I also got my bank to set me up an interest free overdraft for £1250 that I can use if things get really bad (came in handy when I had several months with no income last year). The trade off is that I get no interest on my balance, but the safety net is worth it for me.

ixia

I did have but decided to us it towards paying off my final debts. i will get it up and running again as soon as it's paid off.

I am trying to encourage my son to put a bit aside he's a student and only has a part time wage but I set up a direct debit to put £10 per month from his wages into his savings account not much but hopefully will steer him in the right direction as he gets older.