133/0316 September 2003

LONG HOURS FORCE HIGH EARNERS TO LIVE PERSONAL LIVES FROM THE OFFICE

The UK’s high earners are being forced to conduct their personal lives from the office as they struggle to keep up with competing demands on their time, according to the latest Premier People report out today from Lloyds TSB Premier Banking Service.

As they work long hours, fewer than one in five (19 per cent)high earners devote their working day entirely to work according to the monthly report, which profiles the lifestyles, concerns and priorities of the UK’s mass affluent1. Young high earners are most likely to conduct their personal life from the office with just over one in ten (11 per cent)under 34s saying they only did work whilst there. For the over 55s, in comparison, over a quarter (27 per cent) said they just did their work.

With nearly half (48 per cent) of those surveyed working more than 41 hours a week, the report demonstrates that wealthy Brits are having to use office time to do chores such as organise tradesmen, sort out personal finances and even to shop online.

Organising social lives from the office is commonplace, with as many as 40 per cent of respondents saying they phoned or e-mailed friends, over a third organised holidays (34 per cent) and a quarter even did their shopping online (26 per cent). Well over half of those surveyed (57 per cent) also said that they booked doctors’ and dentists’ appointments from work, whilst over a third (37 per cent) organised builders, plumbers or electricians.

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The report also shows that, despite using work time to organise their lives, the service culture still exists in the UK with many Premier People paying to offload their day to day chores. More than two fifths (42 per cent) have paid for a cleaner, one in five (27 per cent) have paid someone to their laundry and more than one in ten (13 per cent) have even paid someone else to do the washing up.

Despite the popularity of gardening as a hobby and people wanting to make the most of their gardens, many high earners’ fingers are not necessarily green. Well over a third of those surveyed (36 per cent) admitted to paying someone else to do the gardening and a further quarter (26 per cent) said they would consider employing a gardener.

Mark Cheshire, Managing Director of Lloyds TSB Premier Banking Service, says: “We have all heard of people taking work home with them but this report suggests that the reverse is now also true. Premier People are compensating for the long hours they spend in the office by using work time for personal admin in order to ‘buy back’ some free time in the evening. Against this backdrop, it is not surprising that the service culture is alive and well in the UK as high earners try to pay their way to more time.”

Martin Lloyd Elliot, chartered psychologist, Eden Medical Centre, Chelsea comments: “The sheer number of hours we work means that time that traditionally would have been spent at home is now spent in the office. The volume and complexity of the tasks expected to be undertaken by successful people means the former boundaries between work and leisure/home time are simply gone. Many of us are now required to multi-task, juggling work objectives with social and personal ones.”

Lloyds TSB Premier Banking Service offers a range of time saving products and services. Customers have access to a dedicated Premier relationship manager who is available, at customers’ convenience, by mobile telephone. The Premier Banking Service can save

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customers time, with a Will writing service and Tax service, as well as benefits such as free comprehensive AA breakdown cover and annual worldwide family travel insurance.

-ends-

Notes to editors:

1Premier People profiles the results of an online survey of 1,000 individuals, classified as having a personal gross income of at least £50k per annum, owning a property worth at least £250k, or holding liquid assets of at least £35k. The sample was taken from the UK population and the survey took place between 2 and 15 July 2003.

In detail, the main features of Lloyds TSB Premier Banking are:

  • Premier share and fund dealing online, for a flat fee trade price of £12.50,in association with comdirect ltd. It provides a share dealing service that is suitable for both serious investors and enthusiasts and allows customers to deal via the telephone or internet in addition to the facility to track share performance free of charge.
  • Premier Will Writing Service provides customers with access to specialist help through the solicitors Irwin Mitchell for £69 (inc VAT) for a single will and £99 (inc VAT) for a mirror will.
  • Premier Tax Service through KPMG for a flat fee of £195 (exc VAT) offers facilities to complete customers’ tax returns and to claim all appropriate entitlements and exemptions and liaise with the Inland Revenue.
  • Premier Banking also offers AA Breakdown Cover providing breakdown assistance 24 hours a day, every day of the year. The cover also includes Relay Plus and Home Start.
  • Premier customers also get 180 day purchase protection on purchases made with both the Premier debit and credit cards.
  • Premier Home Insurance buildings and contents insurance, tailored to suit individual needs for larger and more unusual properties, can be purchased.
  • Investment Planning Service provides access to a dedicated Lloyds TSB Financial Planning Manager as well as a range of Scottish Widows products and services. Further referral to an IFA can be made if required.
  • Premier customers can take advantage of an exclusive range of specially priced Premier Banking products such as personal loans and savings accounts.
  • Customers can also apply for the Lloyds TSB Premier Mastercard, a bespoke black credit card which, amongst other benefits, offers members access to 400 VIP airport lounges worldwide as well as the Premier Personal Assistant, a ‘concierge’ service designed to help you manage every day tasks.
  • Customers also receive valuable discounts from the Premier Banking Home Shopping service and reduced prices on new cars from CarSelect.

For more information:

Catherine Battershill/ Rowena Denham

Lloyds TSB Press Office

Tel: 020 7356 2495/2491