The figures come from a survey of 2,000 people by Opinium for Hargreaves Lansdown.
Secret savings are far more common among younger people, the study found, with more than one in four (27%) people aged 18 to 34 in a relationship holding a secret account. These figures could be explained by more young couples having separate finances or being more likely to be in newer relationships.
Hargreaves Lansdown also found that married people are twice as likely to have secret savings as cohabiting couples (18% compared to 9%).
Higher earners are more likely to have secret savings: two in five (40%) higher rate taxpayers have them, compared to one in 10 (11%) basic rate taxpayers. This may be because they have more cash available to free up for savings without it affecting the household.
When questioned, many people (43%) said they didn’t have any particular reason for keeping their savings secret, they just hadn’t mentioned it. Two in five people (40%) said there were saving for emergencies, while a third (32%) said one reason for secret savings is just in case their relationship ends.
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A quarter (23%) of people were saving for something they didn’t want their partner to know about. A fifth (20%) kept savings secret because they don’t trust their partner with money.
Sarah Coles, head of personal finance at Hargreaves Lansdown – which won Best Lifetime Investment ISA at the YourMoney.com Awards 2024 – said , said: “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.”
Sensible reasons for secret savings
Having a secret account doesn’t necessarily hold any negative connotations. Most commonly, people don’t really have a specific reason for holding this money, they just think it might be a good idea.
Coles said: “Saving for emergencies is another familiar reason for these secret savings – given by two in five people. This is more common among men (43% compared to 37% of women). People may worry that sharing details of their emergency savings may put them under pressure to spend the money, or persuade their partner they need to take less financial care now they have a safety net.
“Having emergency savings is a great idea, and while it makes sense to plan this kind of thing as a couple, as long as you both work towards building a safety net, you don’t necessarily have to tell one another about every penny.”
One in three people said they were saving in case something went wrong in the relationship. Women are more likely than men to be saving just in case the relationship ends (35% compared to 30%). This may reflect the fact that on average they’re more likely to earn less and have more caring responsibilities, which could mean more immediate financial problems in the event of a split.
The risks of secret savings
Coles said: “Then we get into thornier territory, because a quarter of people are saving for something they don’t want their partner to know about. This is more likely among men (27% compared to 19% of women with secret savings). If this is a nice surprise, then there’s no harm in it.
“However, if you’re hiding savings, because you want to prioritise your needs without consultation, it could be more problematic.”
A fifth of those questioned had secret savings at least partly because they didn’t trust their partner with money.
Hargreaves Lansdown asked people whether they’d be worried if they discovered their partner had a secret savings account. More than one in 20 (7%) said it wouldn’t bother them, because they have secret savings of their own, so it’s only fair. Another two in five (40%) said they wouldn’t be concerned because they have agreed to keep at least some of their finances separate. However, more than half (57%) would be alarmed.
Coles said: “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.”