One in three UK adults say they will run out of money in January, a new survey has found.

Higher winter bills and the financial strain from Christmas expenses has been blamed. Personal finance firm Credit Karma found 56% of those who will run out of money will have spent their income by January 20.

The survey interviewed 2,000 UK adults between January 6-9. As dire financial positions start to set in, people will start to turn to alternative sources of funds, such as credit.

Credit Karma said January 19 tends to be the most likely date for those in financial hardship to apply for credit.

Akansha Nath, general manager at Credit Karma, said: “The high cost of Christmas often leaves a sting in the tail of January budgets, as many people have to wait longer to get paid, as well as cope with expensive winter energy bills.

“That’s why now is the time to consider a budget planning tool, to help plan outgoings. If you have taken out credit over Christmas, consider the best ways of paying that off whether it’s consolidating your debt or looking for an advantageous balance transfer offer.”

One in five (21%) of those surveyed said they had applied for credit to help with funds over Christmas. Nearly a third (31%) either already used or plan to apply for credit in January to help manage their Christmas expenses.

The most commonly used credit options were credit cards (22%), buy-now-pay-later schemes (6%), car finance (4%), and personal loans (4%).

According to the survey, 29% of people plan to acquire credit in January to cover essential bills and necessities.

To help manage their finances, some are planning to budget their non-essential expenses over the next 12 months. The survey found that 26% of people plan to avoid socialising, while 47% will refrain from purchasing new technology.