People who are married / live with long term partner do you still have a seperate saving accounts ?

maman

That's true Gavin. But when the OP started the thread, many pages back, I don't recall anything about divorce. I think the question was how people choose to handle their finances day to day. Subsequent posts have answered the question from their own experiences and I'm heartened that the 'one pot' posters seem to be in the minority. This ranges from those who just like to handle their money independently to those who, sadly, feel the need to be able to access funds for 'running away'. The latter should get a fair financial settlement eventually but being able to access funds immediately is important too. 

strawb_shortcake

I have what I consider my own money because I've worked hard to blinking hard to save it, I don't however intend on spending it just on myself, it will go towards family holidays as my Husband really isn't fussed about holidays. 
In the event that we were to split then I fully agree none of my comments above are applicable. FWIW we did discuss split pensions on a divorce to which my Husband said he'd never take mine, now obviously divorce changes a person but he is a very proud man and I don't believe he would ask for any of my pension 

Primrose

No, although we both hold ISAs snd premium bonds  in our own names.   

We,ve done things slightly differently for 50+ years in that we hold two joint accounts referred to as no 1 and No 2.    His salary/pension goes into No 1 account and mine goes into No 2.

This  gives us any financial independence we need yet makes the money available to  both of us when the first one dies.  We have the same philosophies  over how money is saved and spent so its never been an issue between us.    I can imagine that widely differing attitudes to money could  be a red alert to many couples in the early stages of a relationship.  

Username03725

Hasn't Martin Lewis himself occasionally pointed out that what works for one couple doesn't have to work for another, and that each partner's financial personality is what matters? If you're both easy come easy go and don't worry about money as long as there's some there to spend, that's fine. If you're both micro-managers who like to track your financial status to the penny that can also work well, and a combined single account can work fine in both cases. Where one is lobbing money about like water and the other likes to be on it, a joint account isn't going to work.

We also fall into the independent finances model with a shared pot of a few k stashed in it for bigger spending, and a rough split on bills and regular spending like shopping out of our own accounts. Never a crossed word on money so far, so it works for us but doesn't have to be right for someone else.

Mrs_Ryan

OH and I have got strictly separate accounts. OH pays all the bills (apart from the Sky/internet. I pay for that as I’m the one who uses it) I pay for the fun stuff (holidays etc). I do have a savings account with a small amount of money in it but OH knows I’ve got it and is fine with it. 

I’ve got tight control of his money as due to his mental health problems he’s ran into problems in the past. The important bills now are always paid, no matter how tight things get (and they’re very tight sometimes) 

He uses his credit card to pay for food/petrol etc- current account is for bills alone- but I’ve now discovered that I can make a Faster Payment to his credit card which shows up immediately which is helpful. I quite often do that if we’re out and he’s stopping for a coffee while I go into a shop. 

oscarward

We opened a joint account when we bought our first property together 33 years ago. But still kept our personal accounts where our salaries were paid into, then transferred an agreed amount each to cover household bills. 

Things we bought for ourselves such as clothes, cars came from our own accounts. Joint activities like holidays/treats/rainy day fund we each contributed equally in to a saving account and we keep an joint isa for big household repairs such as new roof/ windows etc.

Historically I have paid more in , 55/45%, as I was paid more but occasionally I was unemployed so my wife paid more in and we economised on shopping and cancelled / did not renew luxury items like sky tv.

we have financial reviews every few years and are open about our earning/savings. Currently she is retired while I am still employed so ratio is nearer 60/40% but I’m ok with that.

Worked so far for us.

74jax

oscarward said:

We opened a joint account when we bought our first property together 33 years ago. But still kept our personal accounts where our salaries were paid into, then transferred an agreed amount each to cover household bills. 

Things we bought for ourselves such as clothes, cars came from our own accounts. Joint activities like holidays/treats/rainy day fund we each contributed equally in to a saving account and we keep an joint isa for big household repairs such as new roof/ windows etc.

Historically I have paid more in , 55/45%, as I was paid more but occasionally I was unemployed so my wife paid more in and we economised on shopping and cancelled / did not renew luxury items like sky tv.

we have financial reviews every few years and are open about our earning/savings. Currently she is retired while I am still employed so ratio is nearer 60/40% but I’m ok with that.

Worked so far for us.

The op is asking if you kept these separate so that either one of you could use it specifically as a "running away" fund though, not to buy cars etc.
I don't think anyone on has said yes and the op hasn't been back to comment. 

maman

74jax said:

The op is asking if you kept these separate so that either one of you could use it specifically as a "running away" fund though, not to buy cars etc.
I don't think anyone on has said yes and the op hasn't been back to comment. 

I think you'll find that the OP had an 'etc' in there. So, yes, it could be used as a 'running away' account if all went sour but that's not the only possible reason for having separate accounts.

This is obviously a topic of interest to many which is why threads continue long after the OP has  personally lost interest or not got the response they wanted. 

There is an article on the same subject in my newspaper today where they quoted a mse poll as evidence.
 Do you have a joint bank account with your partner? (moneysavingexpert.com)
I'm not surprised that separate accounts were more prevalent in younger age groups as I find 'one pot' an outdated system that may die out (literally) over time.

Madmel

Yes we do. Married 24 years and have always been paid into our own accounts. We have a joint account for household expenses and each pay the same amount per month. I run it as I work fewer hours than DH but discuss things with him.

DH has an expensive hobby (flying) and I like nice wine. As long as he pays his monthly amount into the joint account, it is entirely up to him how he spends his own money. He works hard for it so he deserves to enjoy it. Equally, if I choose to splurge on something, it comes from my account. 

I have recently been added onto one of my father's accounts. He's 86 and concerned that I will have ready access to cash to cover his funeral and tax bills. 

Rambosmum

Yes.

We both gte paid in to separate accounts, we have a joint account we both put money in to which pays for all household expenses (including childcare, child expenses such as swimming lessons and clothes). 

We then have a joint savings account we both put a set amount in each month, and the individual "daily spends" accounts for things like my mobile phone, my car (DH pays his own commuting costs etc), take away coffee, any frivolities etc. if we go out as a family, we split the costs, but there's usually enough in the joint account to cover it anyway. We then have individual savings accounts. I have both long and short term savings accounts, DH has stocks and shares etc. 

We like having a mix of joint and individual responsibilities. In a time where internet shopping is the norm and cash is becoming less used, it still keeps some secrecy with regards to birthday and Christmas gifts etc and stops me getting annoyed at him spending £££ on tech, and him getting annoyed at how much I spend on clothes!