Londoners are losing more than £500m a year due to poor numeracy and literacy skills, a new report reveals.

A study by Learndirect has shown that poor maths and English levels are seeing people struggle to check bills, calculate tips or figure out the best deals for mobile phone tariffs.

The report revealed that a quarter of Londoners find it difficult to work out best value for money things such as electricity, gas and mobile phone tariffs.

It claims that these lack of skills is seeing the country lose around £1.45bn each year, with Londoners accounting for £523m.

Learndirect has launched the ME-Q Index, which shows how much money people are losing each year due to poor maths and English skills.

The Index showed greater London losing around £74 per head - more than double the national average of £32 per head.

Almost 100,000 people admitted to losing £1,000 last year due to bill miscalculations, adding or taking away VAT or having difficulty working out foreign currency when abroad.

Other results in the study showed 20 per cent of Londoners have over-spent due to incorrectly calculating how much everything would cost.

It also found that one in two Londoners use their fingers to add up and that, on average, the capital's residents have lost £72 in the past year due to poor maths calculations.