Sex, lies and financial adultery

All is not a bed of roses amongst British couples according to personal finance website Fool.co.uk. An online poll of 1,610 readers has unearthed evidence of money mistrust, financial adultery, secret bank accounts and furtive lifeboat funds.

The survey revealed that on the surface, many couples appear open and frank about their finances. Nine out of ten people say their partners know how much they earn, and three out of 5 couples operate joint bank accounts What’s more, the cost of running a typical British household is fairly shared in nearly three-quarters of British homes.

However, all is not well beneath the rose bed. The survey revealed that over one in 18 people have hidden bank accounts, and more than a fifth of Brits have lifeboat funds. Digging deeper, it was discovered that men are marginally more likely to have clandestine savings.

Sadly, financial honesty in relationships does not necessarily improve with age. It was found that 50-year-olds are as likely to secrete money as people half their age. What’s more, it is not always the higher wage earner that is hiding away money. It was found that one in three people who furtively hoard money earn less than their partner.

David Kuo, Head of Personal Finance at Fool.co.uk, says: “It is not entirely surprising that financial mistrust exists amongst couples given that one in 76 marriages end in divorce. But financial adultery may be a symptom of more deep-rooted problems that stem from poor communication between couples.

“Talking openly about money is not easy, especially in a society where people are happier to brag about how much they owe on their credit cards than disclose their

take-home pay. But it is important that couples are as honest about their finances and financial goals as they are about their relationship.

“Today’s couples face a host of challenges. But just because they don’t share their satin bed-sheets with people other than their partner doesn’t mean they shouldn’t share their financial spreadsheets with each other.”