New data from Westpac reveals more than half (55%) of Australian children aged eight to 17 years earn pocket money for doing chores at home, with parents giving an average of $25 per week - close to three times the amount they received as a child1.
The data reinforces the relevance of Westpac's Chores feature within its app, launched earlier this year, which helps kids and their families manage chores and pocket money payments.
The feature allows parents and their children to set up a list of chores. Children are notified when their chore lists are live, and parents can pay pocket money once their child has marked their chores as completed, all within the Westpac app.
"Parents who are balancing a family budget on a daily basis know firsthand how important understanding money is - and are giving their children pocket money to teach responsible spending and saving from an early age," said Chris Brell, Westpac Managing Director Everyday Banking, Consumer.
"On average, children are receiving $25 a week in pocket money, close to three times what their own parents earned when they were young - demonstrating parents are prioritising pocket money to help their children and their financial literacy.
"Our Chores functionality, along with our Westpac app Family Hub, aims to make financial education a practical and engaging part of everyday life for kids. This feature helps children understand the importance of earning money and keep track of their pocket money."
Of the three in four Australian parents giving their children pocket money (74%), three in five do so to teach the value of money (63%) and as an incentive for chores and housework (61%). Nearly half (49%) of Australian parents who give their children pocket money use digital payments.
"The Westpac app has intuitive tools that parents can use with their kids to track saving and spending habits, including our Pocket Money feature and Savings Calculator. By using these tools with their children, parents can foster an open dialogue about money and help kids put safe spending and saving into practice, backed by robust parental controls," continued Brell.
Under-18 Westpac customers with savings goals save an average of just under $1,3002 across various goals, including home (average $250.37), education (average $320.96), and travel (average $107.40).
Additional Westpac tools and services that help parents and their kids stay on top of the money and spend and save safely include:
- Pocket Money: The Pocket Money feature within the Westpac app's Family Hub allows parents to transfer money from their Westpac account to their child's Youth Choice or Bump account as either a one-off payment or recurring transactions.
- Debit Card: Westpac lowered its debit card age limit from 14 to 8 years old for cards linked to a Westpac Choice Youth account to help parents teach their kids about financial responsibility from an early age.
- Parental Controls and Safety Features:
- Payment Limits: For customers under 14, there is a default Daily Payment Limit of $50 and a Weekly Spend Limit of $50 on debit card transactions.
- Account Activity Notifications: Parents of under-14 customers receive Push notifications for certain transactions and savings account activities, including when limits are reached. Notifications are available for Bump and Choice Youth accounts.
- Card Controls: Parents can temporarily lock/unlock a card or report it lost/stolen.
- Online Payment and High-Risk Transaction Blocks: BPAY® and International Money Transfers are blocked online for children under 14. Automatic blocks are in place for under-18 customers on transactions at bars, nightclubs, and for alcohol and tobacco purchases.
