Hiding debt from partners

It is shocking how many people feel so bad about their personal debt that they feel they have to hide the fact from their partners. It has been revealed through a survey that many couples who are married or live together keep secrets about the amount of debt they are in.

The credit report company, Equifax found the figures to be higher than anyone imagined. More than a fifth of the population keep their debts secret from their partners. Some 23% of these have told little white lies about their spending habits or purchases.

The survey surprisingly revealed that men are the worst culprits at keeping schtum about their money problems, and the problem affects a wide range of age groups, but with 40 year olds accounting for a third of them.

Debt in itself can be a very depressing problem and you can feel very isolated. Hiding your debt can make it even more stressful and isolating and may eventually cause problems within the relationship. As the old adage goes, 'a problem shared is a problem halved'. It certainly seems like it could be true in this case.

It can lead to even more problems if a relationship ends. Many people will accuse the partner of being the one who contributed most to the debt. If it was obviously just one party then a 'notice of correction' can be applied to your credit history but if both accuse each other, this conflict could create even more problems.

Not only can these secrets be detrimental to your relationship but your debt could be affecting your partners credit score too. Honesty seems to be the best policy. Working together to clear debt will make it easier in the long run, so take control of your debts and be honest to your partner and yourself.