MOST Britons are walking “a financial tightrope” a survey reveals.

The average person has savings that would only last 52 days if they couldn’t work.

Even more alarmingly, 36% of people would only have enough savings to last them 11 days, with less than £500 in accessible savings on which to draw.

Now the Yorkshire Building Society, which has its roots in Huddersfield, is urging people to review their arrangements for income protection to assess how they would cope financially if they were taken ill and could not work.

The survey of more than 2,000 adults found that the worst-affected groups were women, with an average 46 days’ worth of savings, divorcees (35 days) and people aged 35 to 40 (39 days).

Nine out of 10 people polled said they had no personal income protection..

Of those, 68% admitted they did not know how they would survive or had unrealistic expectations of how they would continue to meet their daily spending.

The society’s analysis shows that the average monthly outgoings are £1,445 while the average accessible savings are £2,474.

The average person in Yorkshire would have enough savings to last 46 days, the survey said, with average monthly outgoings of £1,288.73 against savings of £1,945.44.

A fifth of people polled in the region said they would rely on state benefits if they couldn’t work while almost 17% said their partner would support them.

Some 145 said they would rely on savings, but 15% admitted they did not know how they would cope.

The findings form part of a report, The Protection Gap: How the UK is Living on the Edge.

A spokeswoman for the Yorkshire said: “In the current economic climate this research paints an extremely alarming picture for those consumers without any protection products.

“Finances for many are already finely balanced, due to the rising cost of living. The research reveals that both state benefits and savings are not viable options for most consumers to rely upon for an adequate length of time.

“It is extremely worrying to see that many Britons are ‘living on the edge’. We urge consumers to take a look at their protection needs in order to assess how they would cope financially if they were taken ill.”