British men smuggle £864m worth of shopping past their partners each year and it’s not just high-tech gadgets they’re hiding, but pricey designer gear too, a study reveals today.
- Men hide over Ł864m worth of shopping from partners every year
British men smuggle Ł864m worth of shopping past their partners each year and it’s not just high-tech gadgets they’re hiding, but pricey designer gear too, a study reveals today.
While women tend to regularly hide purchases, men leave them far behind in the lie-buying stakes when it comes to the sheer value of their hidden shopping, says research released today by Norwich Union, the UK’s biggest insurer.
The average male liar-buyer smuggles a whopping Ł336 worth of goods past his partner every year, compared with Ł227 of secret spending for women.
Surprisingly it’s not just high tech gadgets and sports equipment but clothes that men splurge on secretly, with over half the male liar-buyers surveyed (53%) admitting to hiding shopping bags full of expensive designer gear from their partners.
When asked for the reason behind their expensive lie-buying habits, most of the culprits (34%) said they were worried their partners would think their purchases were too expensive.
Rebecca Holmes from Norwich Union said: "Our research shows that the tables have turned. Men have always accused women of spending too much money on shopping, but now it’s the men who are hiding their expensive shopping."
However the research shows that women are far from blameless when it comes to lie-buying. Nearly a third (29%) of all the women surveyed by Norwich Union admitted to lying to their partner about the real price of a purchase by downplaying its true value, while one in five (21%) said they hid their shopping altogether.
And while men hide more expensive items, women do it more often, with one in 10 (10%) admitting to smuggling shopping past their partner at least once a month.
Like men, most of the women surveyed (27%) said their reasons for lie-buying was because their partner thought they spent far too much money on shopping already.
Psychotherapist Christine Webber commented: "It's slightly worrying that so many couples are lying to each other about what they buy. Trust is an important part of a healthy relationship and if people are lying to each other about shopping, goodness knows what other skeletons they're hiding in their closets.
"Money is one of most contentious areas in modern-day relationships, and it's easy to see why. If individuals want to keep their romances intact, they should think twice about lie-buying."
And Norwich Union warns there are more serious implications for liar-buyers concerning their home insurance policies.
Rebecca Holmes added: "If couples are lying to each other about the cost of what they are buying, are they also under-valuing their home contents insurance? If they haven’t told their insurer the true value of their belongings they could lose out in the event of a claim.
"We strongly advise couples to be upfront with each other about their spending in order to avoid bigger financial problems later down the line."
What lie-buyers are likely to hide:
| Male lie-buyers |
Female lie-buyers |
| Clothes 53% | Clothes 88% |
| Electrical equipment and | Shoes 65% |
| Shoes 28% | Handbags 44% |
| Jewellery 27% | Jewellery 31% |
| Sports equipment 22% | Electrical equipment and gadgets 17% |
jrutledge@lexispr.com
elien@lexispr.com
Notes to editors
- Research conducted by ICM, February 2006
- Ł864m based on number of males between 18-64 who admitted to concealing purchases from their partner (14% of 18,400,300 = 2,576,042) multiplied by the average value of the goods they conceal (Ł335.60). About Norwich Union Insurance
- Norwich Union is the UK's largest insurer with a market share of around 14 per cent
- With a focus on insurance for individuals and small businesses, Norwich Union insures:
- One in five households
- One in seven motor vehicles
- Around 800,000 businesses
- Norwich Union products are available through a variety of distribution channels including brokers, corporate partners such as banks and building societies and Norwich Union Direct.
- Aviva, Norwich Union’s parent company, announced its acquisition of the RAC in 2005. The acquisition brings together the RAC's powerful brand and customer base with the expertise of Norwich Union Insurance – a market leader in motor insurance.
- Norwich Union's news releases and a selection of images are available on the Aviva internet press centre at www.aviva.com/media