MILLIONS of British households are being forced to skip meals and cut family visits, new research from Which? has revealed.

The advocacy group’s Consumer Insight Tracker, released today, found consumer confidence had fallen to —62 in the month to April 10, the lowest level since the height of the 2022 cost-of-living crisis.

Seventy-two per cent of adults think the economy will worsen over the next year, while fewer than one in 10 think it will improve.

Which? found 85 per cent of adults are now worried about food prices, up from 83 per cent in February.

One in seven households reported going without some foods, and one in 10 – equivalent to three million households – are now skipping meals to keep costs down.

And 83 per cent of adults are also worried about fuel prices, up from 71 per cent in February.

About one in eight said they had visited friends and family less due to driving costs.

In the month to April 10, over half of households adjusted to cover essential spending, including cutting back on essentials, using savings, or borrowing.

Th number of people missing a house bill, loan or credit card payment rose to 7.7 per cent, up from 5.7 per cent at the end of last year.

Which? policy and advocacy director Rocio Concha said: “Without meaningful interventions, the number of people taking drastic measures is likely to increase.”

Trussell Trust’s Helen Barnard said the figures “sadly reflect what we hear from people using our Trussell community food banks every day.

“Far too many households are having to go without because they don’t have money to cover the essentials,” she said.

“Food banks are providing emergency support, but that shouldn’t be the case.

“We need urgent action before even more people across the country are pushed into hunger and hardship.”