Scottish Widows: Britons keep quiet about savings accounts

Many people in the UK do not wish to reveal information about their finances.

Britons who have money in savings accounts and other locations are unwilling to tell people about their economic situation.

This is according to research from Scottish Widows, which concluded that finances top the list of topics that people would not be prepared to discuss with others.

Some 43 per cent admitted they would feel uncomfortable speaking about money - which may include credit cards or current accounts - among their friends, while 23 per cent said this was the case with members of their family.

However, the greatest proportion was found to agree with the statement that they would not discuss money with their work colleagues, as 62 per cent revealed this to be true.

Pensions were also among the list of the top ten taboo topics, as 19 per cent would avoid discussing such issues with friends and 33 per cent said the same for work colleagues.

Savings expert Catherine Stewart comments: "We are a nation who simply do not want to discuss our money worries and much of our personal lives are off limit even to our nearest and dearest."

She says this is a "very British trait", especially among older citizens who have been brought up not to comment about money matters.

Despite this, the younger generation seems to be "breaking with tradition", Ms Stewart notes, as they appear much more comfortable talking about finances.

UK residents aged between 18 and 34 were said to be most likely to speak of these matters, while friends and family are the first port of call for advice.

The findings follow a study from HSBC, which revealed 5.1 million under-25s are unaware of the interest rates on their savings.

This prompted the organisation to urge youngsters to learn more about budgeting and HSBC has joined forces with the Personal Finance Education Group to educate primary school pupils about these matters.

By Nate Sawyer