Are you a secret hoarder?

We all have that one drawer or box of bits and bobs that we can’t bear to throw away, however a recent study has revealed that things are much worse than that, and we are in fact a nation of secret hoarders.

The study, by Lloyds Bank Home Insurance, found that more than a quarter of us are hoarding a whopping nine or more boxes of sentimental possessions in our homes.

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Among the most commonly hoarded possessions are old birthday cards, children’s artwork, journals and concert tickets. We're all for a bit of sentimentality, but nine boxes worth - really?!

The problem is getting so out of hand that one in seven couples have admitted to arguing about the sheer volume of items their other half clings on to. But not all couples are honest about the things they’re keeping hold of.

The study found that this level of stockpiling is causing ‘secret storage behaviour’, with almost one in five of us keeping sentimental items hidden from our partners. Of the 18 per cent of Brits that hide secret possessions from their other half, more than a quarter admit to secretly keeping letters or cards given to them by an ex. What's more, 17 per cent of people intend to hold on to these past relationship mementos forever.

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41 per cent admit to hiding old photographs, and 23 per cent, slightly less suspiciously but somewhat strangely, hide old baby clothes from their partner.

Another survey this week, by sellhousefast.uk, found that 63 per cent of British homeowners have so many excess belongings that they are forced to seek self-storage to cope with their hoarding habits.

Time to finally have that sort out you've been talking about for the last few years?