Spare a thought for isolated, unloved self-made millionaires

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They may have yachts, fancy cars and private jets. But pity the super rich. They are miserable.

A new book claims self-made millionaires have few friends, trust no one with their money and generally feel isolated and largely unloved.

They even suffer pangs of guilt after making a fortune, not least because relatives and old friends can no longer afford to keep up with them.

The study, entitled When You Are Super-rich Who Can You Trust?, claims one in three self-made millionaires lose a quarter of their money within five years of selling a business.

"Most have no idea how to manage their liquid wealth," says author Caroline Garnham, a former head of private client practice at City of London law firm Simmons & Simmons.

"They can be plagued by guilt and disbelief, as well as feeling isolated, lonely and out of their depth."

Garnham has now established a new club for the super rich where they can talk, share problems and even go on holiday together.

Her Virtual Family Office Club already has 800 members with a total wealth of 100 billion ($203 billion). At a recent evening party held at her home, 30 people attended, with a total net worth estimated at 12.8 billion.

Garnham also believes the super rich have been too readily made scapegoats for the financial crash.

"The top 1 per cent of wealthy individuals in Britain pay 30 per cent of the total income tax," she writes in her book.

"It is the rich who drove the British economy out of recession and winched it out of the deepest recession in 100 years."

Garnham said: "They are real people. It is difficult for the rich to get a handle on who they can trust."