Populus Poll

 Festivals

• Over half (54%) of Saga respondents have been to a festival. Saga respondents most frequently say they have been to a music festival (35%), followed by a cultural festival (17%). 11% have been to a literary festival.
• The main reason Saga respondents give for going to a festival is the overall atmosphere (69%). Next most frequently mentioned are exposure to new experiences (55%) and seeing their favourite artists, writers or experts in person (54%).
• Half (50%) of respondents say they would like to go to a festival in the future; music festivals (32%) and cultural festivals (22%) are the most popular destinations.
• Among those that would like to go to a music festival, but haven’t in the past, poor toilet facilities are the most frequently mentioned (40%) reason for not attending. Next most frequently mentioned (36%) are bad weather and there being too many people (30%) at festivals. Less than a fifth (18%) are put off by availability of drugs or alcohol.
• When thinking about festivals they wanted to go to but hadn’t been to yet, 24% say they would not go because there are too many people.

Care

• Only 3% of Saga respondents say they receive care, 96% say they do not receive any care.
• Among those that do not currently receive care, over half (52%) say that if they did require care, family support would be their first preference. A care or residential home is least (6%) preferred.
• Of those Saga respondents that currently do not require care, less than three in ten (28%) have had a conversation with relatives about how they would like to be cared for in the future, should the need arise.
• Only a quarter (24%) of Saga respondents have had a conversation with an elderly relative about how they may like to be cared for in the future, should the need arise.
• The death of a close family member is most often (64%) seen as the most stressful event Saga respondents have had to deal with. The second most frequently mentioned stressful event is moving home (41%). A quarter (25%) say that they have experienced stress arranging care and less than one in ten (8%) say they have experienced stress due to retirement.

Travel / Motor / Breakdown

• Just over one in ten (12%) Saga respondents are planning on taking a holiday or short break outside of the UK this Easter.
• The most popular destination amongst those going away is Spain (22%), second most popular is France (13%). A fifth of respondents (19%) are going outside of Europe.
• Among those that are going on holiday this Easter, a quarter (26%) plan on driving abroad.
• Two thirds (65%) of Saga respondents have concerns about driving abroad. The most common concern is having an accident (28%), followed by driving on the opposite side of the road (23%) and breaking down (23%).
• Around half or more Saga respondents say they are unsure about what safety equipment is compulsory when driving in Portugal (59%), Italy (56%), Germany (53%), and Spain (49%). Respondents are much less likely (24%) to be unsure about what is compulsory when driving in France.

Investment regrets

• Seven in ten (69%) Saga respondents have invested in shares or funds at some point.
• Half (50%) that have invested in shares or funds have a regret about at least one of their investments.
• The main regret respondents that have invested in shares or funds have is not reviewing investments regularly enough (17%). The next most frequent regret respondents have is not making full use of their personal tax allowances each year (15%).

Contactless payment

• Four in five (82%) Saga respondents have a credit or debit card that has contactless payment.
• Of those that have a contactless card, two thirds (66%) have used it. Only 5% of respondents use their contactless card once or more per day and a fifth (17%) use it less than once a month.
• Half (50%) of respondents with a contactless card say they have used it for shopping in a supermarket. A just over a third (35%) have used their card to pay for food or drink in a restaurant or café.
• Just under half (46%) of Saga respondents do not like the idea of a contactless card, and seven in ten (70%) worry about how secure they are. Only a third (32%) like not having to carry cash with them and a quarter (25%) like not having to remember their PIN.

Scottish Independence

• Four in five (79%) Saga respondents oppose the idea of another Scottish independence referendum held prior to Brexit negotiations being concluded, falling to seven in ten (71%) amongst Scottish respondents.
• Two thirds (67%) say that, if given the chance, they would vote ‘no’ to independence. A similar proportion in Scotland say the same (66%). A fifth of all respondents (18%) say they would vote ‘yes’ to independence, rising to three in ten (28%) among Scottish respondents.

Populus interviewed 9,586 Saga respondents, all aged 50+ online between 21 and 26 March 2017. Data was weighted to be nationally representative. Populus is a member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules; for more information www.populus.co.uk