A vast majority of Peoples are attempting to manage their finances without a safety net, it has been reported.

Research carried out by Barclays Financial Planning, it reported that some 47 per cent of adults don't have any form of insurance - such as income protection - in place. As such, it was revealed that people are leaving them and their families exposed financially should health issues, job loss or even death strikes them.

The firm points out that such a figure comes despite an average 50% of Britons stating they have worries about their ability to manage their financial outgoings over the course of the next 12 months, with 43 per cent reported to be most worried about the risk of unemployment or their debts - which may have been accrued through credit cards or bad credit loans.

This could mean that should sickness or job loss result in an income shortfall, people could find that their ability to keep up with various outgoings - such as credit cards, home loans, mortgage payments and household bills - comes under great strain.

It was revealed, that overall three-quarters of Brits lack critical illness cover, with just over half (52 per cent) without a life insurance policy.

Also reported by the financial services firm reported that those living in Wales are placing their capacity for money management at risk,some 56 per cent of Brits in Wales lacking any form of cover. On the other hand, residents in the NE England appear to be the most well prepared should anything happen, as 62 per cent of consumers have at least one insurance cover aimed at safeguarding themselves and their family members in case of a personal disaster.

Alison Tattersall, head of customer and proposition for Barclays Financial Planning, said: "When finances are tight it is often responsibilities like protection policies that fall to a lower priority and of course these policies protect outcomes that people dont want to think about. But people must consider the financial consequences of what would happen if they were unable to work, or their dependents situation if they died, it would be far worse than any concerns they currently have over struggling to meet their outgoings."

Furthermore, it was suggested that many consumers could also be placing their finances at risk as 60 per cent of people claim to either have no money saved in a bank account, have less than one month's wage put away or are not sure how much cash has been put away for a rainy day.

Individuals who are looking to invest in any form of insurance policy but feel they have too many commitments may want to consider applying for a cheap personal loan. By doing this, borrowers could find that they are able to merge various spending commitments into a low-cost monthly repayment, freeing up more money to invest in insurance. This may prove to be useful after Fairinvestment some 24 per cent of Britons lack home, travel, life or any kind of insurance, while young people revealed to be particularly likely to lack such forms of cover.