Secret Santa – the luck of the drawer

The festive season is already in full swing and anticipation for the nation’s most popular gifting trend, Secret Santa, is building across the office, friendship groups and families.

To find out just how much the luck associated with Secret Santa is loved or hated across the country, we surveyed 1,000 Brits who have participated in the tradition and it turns out that nearly a third (31%) will take part again this year, with over a third (35%) feeling excited about this year’s gift exchange.

And that’s not all…

Speaking of gifts that missed the mark, we also uncovered the nation’s unluckiest Secret Santa story, proving what can go wrong when thoughtfulness is left off the list!

Meet Rebecca, a 38-year-old from East London, who works in the call centre for the Met Police. As the newest member of her Met Police call centre team, Rebecca unwrapped a gorgeous Kinder chocolate hamper of Christmas Eve – only to freeze. With her severe nut allergy, one bit could have sent her into anaphylactic shock.

After explaining her allergy, Rebecca “instantly knew” who her Secret Santa was as their face dropped.

Though mortified, they offered to replace the gift, but Rebecca swapped it for some face creams and laughed it off.

“It was the perfect gift – just not for me” she said. “We joke about it every year, but it was a real wake-up call to always make my allergy clear. “I’ve been really cautious since, making sure people know I have a nut allergy.”

After such an unlucky Secret Santa experience, we recommend the following top tip for Secret Santa success:

And that’s not all, we’ve also created a Gift Matchmake Quiz to help bring a little extra luck to all those taking part in Secret Santa this festive season.

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