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Would you spot £1,000 missing from your account?
Nine out of 10 "finance-phobic" Brits admit they wouldn't...

By Julian Goldsmith

Published: Thursday 22 November 2007

Most Brits are "finance-phobic" and would fail to notice if £1,000 went missing from their bank accounts.

A survey of more than 1,000 consumers found just 14 per cent check their bank statements regularly enough to notice if their accounts have been taken over by fraudsters. And nine out of 10 said they wouldn't be able to tell if £1,000 was taken out of their account.

Calculated at a national level, the survey claims more than £43bn in cash is up for grabs to fraudsters.

The figures make chilling reading coming out as the government admitted 7.25 million citizens' bank account details are languishing on two CDs mislaid by HM Revenue & Customs.

The research found only one in five of us check our bank balance once a month, with 16 per cent afraid to check up on their own finances. The same number said they know more about celebrities or sport than their own bank balance.

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Adults aged between 24 and 34 are the worst offenders for going overdrawn as a result of not knowing the state of their finances. Women are more likely to overspend on food and drink, while men are more likely to overspend on luxury goods.

The survey was sponsored by mobile banking specialist Monilink.

Monilink CEO Alastair Lukies said in a statement: "Considering the recent stories relating to information security and the impending sense at this time of year of the need to manage money better, it's now even more important for consumers to regularly check their finances using the tools provided by their banks. Just checking your accounts once a month when your statement comes through simply isn't enough and it's important that people keep a daily check on what is coming into and going out of their accounts."