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A Modern Fault: Financial Infidelity

By Janet Langjahr

A spouse wants to be able to spend money without having to account to or justify the expenditure to the other spouse.

How to accomplish it?

Either hidden savings or hidden credit cards.

According to surveys, anywhere from 40% to over 80% of couples have money secrets from each other or lie to each other about spending and/or credit.

According to financial counselors, concealing these financial misdeeds can place a strain on the offender and the marriage.

Sometimes it even drives a spouse to drinking or drugs.

“Financial infidelity” is most often discovered by accident.

According to a survey, 9% of couples felt this misconduct was “grounds” for divorce and 55% agreed it was a “major violation” of the marriage contract.

But in a no-fault state such as Florida, none of that really matters. What does matter is how that misconduct may end up haunting the unwitting spouse.

Some spouses may want to act to take steps to protect themselves from the other spouse’s debt, whether it is debt run up on a joint credit account on which a creditor may collect from either spouse, or marital debt that may have to be answered for in family court.

The easy ounce of prevention: frequent credit reports on the other spouse.

Read more in this CreditCards.com article: Hiding credit card debt - Secret credit cards and hidden debt exact high toll on couples.

Full post as published by Florida Divorce - Child Custody - Domestic Abuse Law on August 23, 2008 (boomark / email).