According to uSwitch.com, despite inflation outstripping wages, 31.5 million savers plan to stash an extra £939 this year into ISAs making this almost £1,000 more than they did last year.

Savings are said to go up despite the Bank of England base rate staying at 0.5% since March 2009.

Over four in ten intend to take full advantage of their cash ISA allowance by saving the full £5,640, despite households getting hit with increased costs of living and frozen pay.

Michael Ossei, personal finance expert at uSwitch.com, said: “Whether savers will find an attractive home for it remains to be seen – traditionally this is a time when competition in the cash ISA market hots up, but we are nearing the end of February and only a handful of providers have announced increased rates.

“While savers are up against it, it’s encouraging to see that more are willing to shop around and switch in order to get the best return. Last year we saw a big difference between the best fixed rate deals versus easy access deals, but not anymore.

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“This year there is little difference between the two and with fixed rate deals offering little more than 2% interest, there is scant incentive or reward for locking cash up in this way.”

When it comes to attitudes towards ISA saving, four in ten (40%) consumers believe it’s important to take advantage of the full cash ISA allowance.

As a result, three quarters of Brits are willing to make sacrifices to max out their ISA allowance, with 5% willing to cut back on household essentials, 10% prepared to sacrifice a holiday and a fifth happy to cut out daily luxuries.

One in four would forgo a new car or home improvements in order to save the full amount.

However, while savers are getting savvier, Brits are still set to lose out on £165bn in tax-free savings by not taking full advantage of this year’s cash ISA allowance.

Ossei added: “With rates just bumping along, it’s more important than ever for consumers to find the right ISA or savings plan to suit their needs. Arming yourself with the right information is the first step in winning the best return for your hard-earned cash.”