Large majority of readers think people spend far too much at Christmas

Spend! Spend! Spend! But our poll says we spend too much over Christmas.

People will spend almost two weeks’ salary over Christmas on average, according to a survey by Nationwide Building Society.

An average £727 will be spent on presents, preparations and celebrations. One in 12 people plan to spend more than £800 on Christmas gifts for family. On average, people expect to splurge £363 on gifts for relatives.

So in our Facebook poll we asked: “Do you think people spend too much over the festive period?” At the time of writing 180 people had voted with 82% saying yes and just 18% no.