One in six people (16%) have savings they’re keeping a secret from their partner, as new research reveals the mixture of reasons why they do this.
The majority of people (43%) say they don’t have any particular reason for keeping it secret, they just haven’t mentioned it, according to figures from a survey of 2,000 people by Opinium for Hargreaves Lansdown. Two in five people (40%) say they’re saving for emergencies, while a third (32%) say they have secret savings just in case their relationship ends (32%).
Roughly a quarter (23%) of people are saving for something they don’t want their partner to know about (23%) and a fifth (20%) have secret savings because they don’t trust their partner with money. Hargreaves Lansdown found those aged between 18 and 34 were more likely to have a secret account, largely because they have separate finances or are worried about splitting.
Higher earners are also more likely to have secret savings. Two in five (40%) higher rate taxpayers have them, compared to one in ten (11%) basic rate taxpayers. Hargreaves Lansdown said this may be because they have more cash available to free up for savings without it affecting the household.
Sarah Coles, head of personal finance, Hargreaves Lansdown: “There are millions of secret savings accounts across the UK, a third of which have been squirrelled away just in case the relationship ends. More than half of people say they’d be alarmed to discover their partner had a secret account. Yet it can make a great deal of sense if savings are built fairly and for the right reasons.”
More than one in five (22%) said they’d be worried what the money was for, if they found their partner had a secret account, while a third (35%) said it would worry them on principle because they had agreed to tell one another about every aspect of their finances.
Sarah Coles added: “If you don’t really have any reason for keeping the savings secret, now may be the time for an honest conversation, so you can make plans together with full knowledge. If you’re saving for emergencies, you don’t have to declare every penny, but there’s nothing to stop you explaining you have a small fund to cover the worst-case scenarios.
“The best solution will differ for each couple. In any case, there’s a fine line between sensible secret savings and something more worrying. Whatever you reason for putting this money aside, if you’re putting it away at the expense of your partner and leaving them struggling with the weight of responsibility for the finances, it can cause all kinds of problems for your joint finances. It means it’s worth thinking about what you’re saving for, how you’re doing it, and whether it’s a good idea.”