DOI: 10.5255/ukda-sn-858197
title: A Rapid Impact Survey to Monitor the Nature and Prevalence of Economic Abuse in the UK: Aggregate Data, 2024

description: This research was made possible through the generous support of the VISION consortium, which is funded by the UK Prevention Research Partnership (MR/V049879/1), an initiative funded by UK Research and Innovation Councils, the Department of Health and Social Care (England) and the UK devolved administrations, and leading health research charities. 

This dataset was generated as part of Counting the Cost: The Scale and Impact of Economic Abuse in the UK, a landmark study conducted by Surviving Economic Abuse (SEA). The motivation for the study was to address the urgent need for robust evidence on the prevalence, forms, and impacts of economic abuse, a hidden but widespread form of domestic abuse recently recognised in UK law. Economic abuse undermines victim-survivors’ ability to acquire, use, and maintain financial resources, leaving many trapped in unsafe relationships and long-term instability.

The study aimed to quantify the scale of economic abuse among women in the UK, explore the tactics used by perpetrators, and assess the impacts on victim-survivors’ financial security, health, and safety. It also sought to highlight disparities in experiences across different demographic groups, including younger women, disabled women, Black, Asian and other ethnically minoritised women, migrant women, and women with children. By doing so, the research intended to inform public understanding, policy development, and service provision.

Data were collected through a nationally representative online survey of 2,849 adult women in the UK, conducted between 25 October and 1 November 2024. The survey explored experiences of economic abuse by a partner or ex-partner in the preceding 12 months, including behaviours of restriction (e.g. blocking access to bank accounts), exploitation (e.g. coerced debt, theft of money), and sabotage (e.g. damaging property, interfering with employment). Booster samples were included to ensure sufficient representation of women from Black, Asian, and other ethnically minoritised backgrounds. The dataset is weighted to reflect the offline population proportions of women aged 18+ by age, region, social grade, education, working status, and ethnicity.

Key findings include:

1. One in seven UK women (4.1 million) experienced economic abuse in the past year.

2. Marginalised groups were disproportionately affected: nearly one in four disabled women, two in five women aged 18–24, and one in four women in London reported abuse.

3. Black, Asian and other ethnically minoritised women were more than twice as likely as White women to experience economic abuse.

4. The impacts were severe: 72% of victim-survivors reported harm, with many left in debt, homeless, or unable to flee.

5. Awareness of economic abuse increased help-seeking, with nearly six in ten women who recognised the term reaching out for support compared to four in ten who did not.

This dataset provides a unique and nationally representative evidence base on economic abuse in the UK. It captures both the prevalence and diversity of abusive behaviours, as well as their disproportionate impact on marginalised groups. It is intended to support further research, policy development, and interventions aimed at ending economic abuse and ensuring victim-survivors can achieve safety and economic independence