NEWS COPY
A village where the average detached house costs £685,000 is home to Britain’s biggest risk takers, according to new research.
An academic found locals in upmarket Burnham, South Bucks., have the worst balance when it comes to risk and safety - with Exeter at the other end of the scale.
Taking up the middle ground is Watford, Herts., according to a study by behavioural scientist Ivo Vlaev, from Warwick Business School.
Professor Vlaev used Google Trends data to measure what people in the UK search online, and how these internet searches affect their daily behaviours, with regard to taking risk versus playing it safe.
‘Risky’ searches included gambling, danger, horror, adrenaline, start-up, car crash and car accident while ‘safety’ searches were made up of organised, safety, protection, seatbelt, how to, vaccination, safe sex and insurance.
Burnham topped the riskiness table ahead of Hayes, Canterbury, Slough and Dundee.
At the other end of the spectrum was Exeter, followed by Inverness, Poole, Stockport and Oldham.
The research, carried out by Zopa, showed Watford was the town in the ‘sweet-middle spot’ between risk and caution.
While residents showed an interest in riskier behaviours, they balanced this by Googling terms such as vaccination, safety and insurance.
Zopa commissioned the research to highlight its IFISA product, which is designed to help savers who are trapped between choosing to invest in the increasingly risky stock market and the low rates offered by traditional savings products.
While a savings account would be Exeter, a risky stock market investment would be Burnham - with Watford taking the middle-ground as Zopa’s IFISA product.
Professor Ivo Vlaev, leader of research and a professor in behavioural science at Warwick Business School, said: “The easiest and most practical way to investigate human behaviour on a large scale is online, specifically by what people are searching for.
“Our research has provided some interesting results. It showed those in Burnham are the most fearless and will most likely look for high-risk, high-yield gains while Exeter's residents prefer to play it safe.
"The findings revealed residents in Watford hit the perfect middle ground between risk and reward.
“This Risk and Reward Index has shown that individuals living in ‘middle’ risk towns like Watford are likely to engage in risky behaviour and chase rewards but remain cautious.
“These individuals would take the risk of looking for an alternative outside of the mainstream, but would still ensure that they earn a good return."
Zopa has created a personality test to reveal how risk averse Brits are.
Clare Gambardella, chief customer officer at Zopa, added: “This research offers a fascinating insight into how different UK towns balance these two factors.
“As Watford residents know, being in the middle of risk and reward is a good place to be.
“Finding the right balance between the two can be challenging, and many towns in the UK saw vast disparities between the two variables.
“Our IFISA product solves that problem. It offers a great alternative at a time when savers and investors face another challenging year.
ENDS
