ME Bank surveyed 1,000 Australian drivers and found that one in four of them identified with having bad fuel habits.

People were identified as displaying bad fuel habits if they agreed with at least two of the following statements:

• If my fuel light comes on, I keep driving for a little while before refueling.
• When buying fuel, I don’t fill up my whole fuel tank to reduce the money I must spend in one go.
• I have run out of fuel or have been very close to running out of fuel in the past 12 months.

Across the board, drivers with bad fuel habits reported financial comfort levels that were 15 points lower than drivers with good fuel habits.

They were also 20 per cent less likely to have a rainy-day fund in case of emergency and pay off their credit card balance in full each month.

While 80 per cent of Australians who exhibited good fuel habits indicated that they think long-term about their money, only 62 per cent of people with bad fuel habits could say the same.

Good fuel habits were also more strongly correlated with people who plan their purchases and are unlikely to impulse buy.

Commenting on the findings, ME’s money expert Matthew Read said: “If you’re someone who throws caution to the wind, ignoring your fuel light until it’s almost too late, there’s a pretty strong chance this type of behavior extends to other part of your life, including your money management.”

“Like poor money management, bad fuel habits can be categorised as behaviour with short-term benefits, and relate to sense of control and organisation. In the long run, this type of behaviour can increase overall effort, stress and in some cases may end up costing you more,” Mr Read continued.

In good news, the expert said people can change their habits “with a bit of hard work and persistence”.

“If changing your behaviour can positively influence your financial comfort, then it’s worth a shot.”

He flagged changes as worthy of consideration, including shifting to a long-term mindset, dealing with things head on, and making the effort to shop around.

nestegg recently revealed that owning a car costs the average Australian $7,232 each year.