Is your budget braced for any nasty surprise bills?

LIFE doesn't always go according to plan, and unforeseen expenses can hit anyone at any time.

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Of course, if you're rolling in money, shock payments aren't a problem. But as that's not the case for the majority of people, if the car or the washing machine breaks down, or you get a speeding fine, you have to find the money from somewhere.

That's when you need an emergency fund.

A new survey by the banking app thinkmoney found the average Brit has to fork out for at least two shock bills a year, spending an average of £776 annually on these charges.

The car breaking down (44%) was the most common unforeseen expense, with broken washing machines (37%) coming second and dental work (28%) third.

Needing an emergency plumber or electrician came next (26%), alongside boiler breakdowns (26%) and increasingly expensive vets' bills (25%). Other common financial hits were smashed phone screens (21%), parking fines (20%) and roof leaks (18%).

Some 42% of the 2,000 British adults polled dipped in to savings to meet unforeseen expenses, while 20% put it on a credit card, and one in 10 borrowed cash from friends and family. Just 6% used their overdraft, while 3% either took out a loan, found extra work or used a buy now pay later scheme.

"With the cost of living continuing to bite into budgets, a financial setback is the last thing you need and, as a result, it's easy to bury your head in the sand and hope it won't happen to you," says Vix Leyton, a consumer expert at thinkmoney.