What with escalating fuel prices, interest rates still above what we have become used to and fuel and food costs at an all-time high.

There can be few, except the very rich, who have not seen a decline in living standards and whose disposable income has not diminished to critical proportions.

It is not surprising then that thousands more people are turning to car boot sales to seek out goods they now find out of their price range in high-street stores.

The mood at a Sunday morning sale is vibrant and invigorating. An eclectic mix of buyers and sellers out to strike a bargain.

A place where once it might have been joked you could buy everything but the kitchen sink. Except now you often can.

Car boots, of course, only a short time ago were often seen as places where stolen goods were moved.

Thanks to some high-profile police work the villains have been moved on and people can be reasonably comfortable that what they are buying is genuine.

While the credit crunch continues to bite, the make-do-and-mend philosophy and second-hand market will thrive.

Humans can be incredibly ingenious when the chips are down.

Has the credit crunch prompted you to shop at car-boot sales? Vote now in our poll on the right.