New Research Reveals Subscription TV Causes Arguments in Budgeting

A money saving website in the UK has research that British couples have five bills that tend to lead to the most arguments. The top two are subscription TV and broadband. The poll also revealed the reasons why couples argue over these bills, with price and choice of packaging being the most common rationale behind it.

A UK money saving website has completed research into the budgeting habits of British couples and how these habits affect their personal lives. Specifically, they were looking at the type of bills couples argued about. The research demonstrated that the most common bill to argue about was “subscription TV” and the most common reason as to why this led to arguments was “price”.

“We felt that, in order to offer a proper discount service, we also needed to know where the need is the highest”, says a spokesperson for www.VoucherCodesPro.co.uk. “To gain a greater understanding of this, we have looked into what causes people to argue in terms of their bills, why they argue about that and what the overall effects of these arguments actually are.”

The research was completed by VoucherCodesPro.co.uk, who are currently performing a study on how Britons manage their finances overall. Some 2,472 adults over the age of 18 were surveyed. Each of these were in cohabitation relationships. This element of the research focused on bill paying and other elements of their finances.

The initial question was “Do you and your partner ever row about bills?”, and some 64% of respondents stated that this was indeed an occurrence in their household. 43% of those who answered yes also stated that they had arguments “every week” in relation to the way the money was being spent.

The next question revealed a list of different services, and respondents were asked to place these in order from most likely to least likely to argue about. This piece revealed that the top five financial gripes that lead to arguments between British couples are:

1. Subscription TV, mentioned in 31% of cases.

2. Broadband, mentioned in 24% of cases.

3. Gas and/or electricity, mentioned in 18% of cases.

4. Credit cards, mentioned in 13% of cases.

5. Mobile telephone contracts, mentioned in 7% of cases.

The survey then went on to ask respondents why they felt these arguments were taking place between them and their partners in relation to the specific bill. 49% of those who answered the survey said that the main reason was “price”. Additionally, 33% stated that “choice of package” was also a significant reason for argument. Additionally, 18% of respondents argued over “share of payments”, indicating that cohabiting couples will often continue to have separate finances.

The final element of the survey asked participants whether the arguments they had over bills had ever led to major relationship issues. 36% revealed that they “question their relationship” as a result. A further 28% revealed that they had “broken up temporarily”.

“Bills are often a strain on your bank balance and relationship, it seems! I am slightly surprised by the number of couples who argue over bills, but it is stressful having to sort everything out and pay on time”, says the spokesperson. “One thing I am not surprised by, however, is that subscription TV is the biggest cause of bill-related arguments. I’m sure quite a few men are wanting sport subscriptions, but their partners will not be too keen on sharing the cost of this!”