Many Canadian Couples Fall Victim to Arrows of Debt Misfortune This Valentine's Day
While most Canadian acknowledge that their, or their spouse's, current financial situation has not had a negative effect on their relationship, a sizeable portion of married and common-law living Canadians identify relationship issues stemming from money problems.
Debt is not necessarily a catalyst for contempt as a similar one in five (21%) `agree' (5% strongly/16% somewhat) that their current financial situation, in general is affecting their personal relationships, with four in five (79%) `disagreeing' (49% strongly/31% somewhat), although the proportion of those suffering these effects is down compared to last year (27%).
Communicating and being honest about your and your partner's financial and debt situations is a necessity for a healthy relationship, although a small number of Canadians appear to prefer keeping their problems bottled up. Most married or common-law living Canadians `agree' that they are aware of their spouse's current financial situation, including all debts, (92%, down 2 points) while their spouse is aware of their current situation (91%, down 1 point). Despite this, one in ten (11%, no change) `disagree' (4% strongly/7% somewhat) that they discuss financial problems with their spouse or partner, although most (89%, no change) `agree' (59% strongly/30% somewhat) that they do have these discussions.
One double-edged financial solution Canadians often turn to for a variety of reasons is credit. Two in five (40%, down 4 points) `agree' (18% strongly/22% somewhat) that they use credit (like credit cards, lines of credit, overdrafts, etc.) to pay for normal household expenses, although three in five (60%, up 4 points) `disagree' (40% strongly/19% somewhat).
With many services being provided to help Canadians with their debt and credit problems, a sizeable portion still does not know the difference between many of these services. Three in ten (29%, up 1 point from 2013) married and common law-living Canadians `disagree' (11% strongly/18% somewhat) that `they know the difference between a credit counsellor, debt advisor, and trustee in bankruptcy', although most (71%, down 1 point) `agree' (31% strongly/39% somewhat) that they know the difference between these service providers.
Other Highlights
- The lower the income of married or common-law Canadians, the higher the likelihood to believe that their current debt situation has had negative effect on their relationship (26% of those making less than $40,000 annually, 27% of those making between $40,000 to less than $60,000 annually, 19% of those making between $60,000 to less than $100,000, compared to just 10% of those making more than $100,000).
- Parents continue to feel more strain than non-parents when it comes to their relationships (30% vs. 17%) or their health (31% vs. 19%) because of their current financial status.
- Younger (aged 18-34) married and common law Canadians are most likely to say that their current financial situation (35%) and their debt situation (29%) is affecting their current relationship with their spouse or partner (41%), ahead of middle-aged (25%/23%, aged 35-54) and senior Canadians (13%/11%, aged 55+) who are married or living common law.
- Regionally-speaking, relationships in Ontario appear to be the most effected. Married/common-law living Ontarians are most likely to agree that their current financial (25%) or debt (23%) situation has had an effect on their relationships. Respondents from this region are also most likely to cite struggling making minimum credit or debt payments (24%) and to be struggling financially, in general (41%, tied with British Columbians).
These are some of the findings of an Ipsos Reid poll conducted between January 23rd to 28th 2014, on behalf of MNP Ltd. For this survey, a sample of 1,031 married and common law-living Canadians from Ipsos' Canadian online panel was interviewed online. Weighting was then employed to balance demographics to ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll is accurate to within +/- 3.5 percentage points had all married and common law-living Canadians adults been polled. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to coverage error, and measurement error.
For more information on this news release, please contact:
Sean Simpson
Vice President
Ipsos Reid
Public Affairs
416.572.4474
[email protected]
About Ipsos Reid
Ipsos Reid is Canada's market intelligence leader, the country's leading provider of public opinion research, and research partner for loyalty and forecasting and modelling insights. With operations in eight cities, Ipsos Reid employs more than 600 research professionals and support staff in Canada. The company has the biggest network of telephone call centres in the country, as well as the largest pre-recruited household and online panels. Ipsos Reid's marketing research and public affairs practices offer the premier suite of research vehicles in Canada, all of which provide clients with actionable and relevant information. Staffed with seasoned research consultants with extensive industry-specific backgrounds, Ipsos Reid offers syndicated information or custom solutions across key sectors of the Canadian economy, including consumer packaged goods, financial services, automotive, retail, and technology & telecommunications. Ipsos Reid is an Ipsos company, a leading global survey-based market research group.
To learn more, please visit www.ipsos.ca.
About Ipsos
Ipsos is an independent market research company controlled and managed by research professionals. Founded in France in 1975, Ipsos has grown into a worldwide research group with a strong presence in all key markets. In October 2011 Ipsos completed the acquisition of Synovate. The combination forms the world's third largest market research company.
With offices in 85 countries, Ipsos delivers insightful expertise across six research specializations: advertising, customer loyalty, marketing, media, public affairs research, and survey management.
Ipsos researchers assess market potential and interpret market trends. They develop and build brands. They help clients build long-term relationships with their customers. They test advertising and study audience responses to various media and they measure public opinion around the globe.
Ipsos has been listed on the Paris Stock Exchange since 1999 and generated global revenues of e1,789 billion (2.300 billion USD) in 2012.
