Financial experts say we should have a rainy day fund to cover three to six months of expenses. But a new survey is out showing most Americans can’t even pay for a thousand dollar emergency.

The survey by the National Foundation for Consumer Credit found that 64 percent of Americans couldn’t scrape up enough cash to pay for a $1000 emergency expense. While 36 percent said they would tap their savings account to fund the unplanned expense, the rest would have to borrow the money, take out a cash advance on a credit card, or pawn their assets.

The NFCC’s Gail Cunningham says “any option other than taking the money from savings should be a red flag… and there’s no better time than now to protect your financial future.”

Click here for a closer look at the survey, and help in saving money.