Spouses ‘hide more than £500bn of credit card debt from partners’

Some people are willing to hide the true extent of the debt they are in with credit card companies from their spouses.

New research by Gocompare.com has found five per cent of people in a relationship have credit card debts of varying amounts that their loved ones have no idea about. The company surveyed 1,200 people and discovered 16 per cent prefer to keep their love life separate from their financial affairs.

Of the five per cent who have hidden credit card debts, 26 per cent admitted to these being worth at least £1,000. And almost one in ten (eight per cent) suggested the amount they owe in this area is more than £5,000.

In total, it means British couples are keeping in excess of £625 million of debt from each other, potentially making it even more difficult to repay.

Matt Sanders, banking and credit card expert at Gocompare.com, said: "Financial independence is very important for some couples so it's understandable that many want to keep their bank accounts and credit cards separate. But hiding credit card debt is another thing. Debt can be a damaging burden to bear and there really is no need to keep it under wraps."

He recommended looking for a credit card that offers zero per cent interest periods for balance transfers. Moving to one of these cards could help people to avoid paying interest on their debt for as long as 28 months.

It seems the UK is a nation with plenty of couples who are not ready to commit to their partners financially. After all, the study found just 40 per cent of people have at least one joint bank account with their husband or wife.

A joint bank account appears to be one way to prove there are no secrets between a couple, as 23 per cent of those who said they have one suggested it is a direct result of them not keeping anything from each other.