You’re a mean one, Mr. Grinch. Or at least a liar, according to a new poll by our astute older siblings at Consumer Reports. While some of us hem and haw and promise a gift in the future, a full 14 percent of shoppers lie outright when they haven’t bought a gift for someone.

All this stress around the holidays means four out of 10 adults polled struggle to finish getting all those gifts on time. So Consumer Reports wanted to know what they give or say to the people they passed over.

The poll says 41 percent promise they’ll give a person a gift if they didn’t have time to buy one before the holidays, or even hand over a homemade voucher for a personal service (17 percent) while 31 percent just do nothing about it whatsoever. Sorry, no present! Shrug.

Then there are those of you who just flat-out lie, as 14 percent say they mumble something like, “Oh, I mailed it!” or “I left it at home.” Smooth.

Avoidance is also popular, at 12 percent, and another 12 percent just re-gift an unwanted item they’ve got lying around at home. Happy holidays, everyone!

14 percent of shoppers lie when they haven’t bought a gift [Consumer Reports]

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