Secret Santa is stressful and a waste of money, say UK workers

Appreciate Business Services’ home of Love2shop poll reveals 1 in 4 UK workers find tradition stressful and a waste of money – only 23 per cent actually enjoy it

To some it’s harmless fun and just an annual office tradition but according to new research Secret Santa is a festive burden for many UK workers.

In the study of 1000 UK employees, commissioned by top corporate rewards and incentives specialists, Appreciate, home of Love2shop over a quarter (27 percent) of workers revealed they find Secret Santa a waste of time and money.

Less than one in four (23 percent) workers actually enjoy the tradition, where colleagues buy one another a surprise gift at Christmas, despite thousands of offices up and down the country embracing the festive practice over the coming weeks.

While more women (31 percent) than men (17 per cent) do get into the spirit of Secret Santa, more female workers get stressed (21 percent) over what to buy for their Secret Santa recipient compared to male workers do (12 percent).

Workers in London (25%) are the most stressed regionally by Secret Santa, followed by the North West (21%) and Scottish workers (19%).

The poll also found that the items gifted in the tradition of Secret Santa are rarely something any recipients enjoy, with one in four confessing they don’t in fact use the item once opened and 1 in 5 would simply prefer a gift card.

Almost half of all teachers – 47 per cent – rarely appreciate their Secret Santa items, compared to the national average of 25 per cent.

The study comes as part of Love2shop’s ‘End Gift-typing’ campaign to stamp out lazy, predictable and wasteful gifting.

The gift card and voucher brand, loved by millions in the UK saw an unprecedented 42 per cent spike in sales during the pandemic, is on a mission to get UK consumers giving the gift of choice this Christmas.

A major poll among 10,000 Appreciate Business Services customers found that three quarters of UK employees (76%) said they preferred a gift card or voucher as a corporate gift.

It makes solid financial sense too. HMRC’s Trivial Benefit allowance enables businesses to give employees up to £50 in gift vouchers tax-free.

Frank Creighton, director of business development at Appreciate Business Services, home of Love2shop, said: “Far from being festive party-poopers here at Love2shop, we want UK workers to really love the gifts they get from colleagues. Our poll has revealed Secret Santa can not only be really stressful and yet another task on a long to-do list, but the gifts are often not even enjoyed or appreciated.

He adds: “We’re not saying sack Secret Santa but perhaps simply give the gift of choice with a Love2shop gift card. With over 150 brands and countless fun experiences to pick from even Santa will approve.”