New study reveals lost holiday items cost £170 million every year

Recent research  by car hire excess insurance providers, iCarhireinsurance.com  has highlighted that forgotten items left on holiday cost us upwards of £170 million every year. The research surveyed 2,000 holidaymakers from across the UK and Ireland and found that over half (51%) had left something behind when coming back off holiday.

The most commonly forgotten items are: 

• Toiletries: 13% 
• Clothes: 11% 
• Souvenirs: 11% 
• Sun cream: 10% 
• Phone chargers: 10% 

In terms of financial impact, forgotten and lost mobile phones cost holidaymakers the most money. Despite only 3% of people saying they’ve forgotten mobile phones when returning from holiday, the value of lost phones amounts to £69,698,851. This is a full breakdown of the forgotten items that cost holidaymakers the most money: 

1.  Mobile phones: £62,698,851 
2.  Souvenirs: £38,246,940 
3.  Laptops: £37,476,007.40 
4.  Passports: £6,918,518 
5.  Clothes: £4,489,760 
6.  Swimming costumes: £3,167,920.24 
7.  Underwear: £3,141,930.22 
8.  Books: £2,996,367 
9.  Pyjamas: £2,589,346.98 
10.  Children’s toys: £2,229,778 
11.  Sun cream: £2,020,740.42 
12.  Phone chargers: £1,958,844.46 
13.  Prescriptions: £1,436,958 
14.  Toiletries: £937,206.30 

It’s not just items people leave on holiday that cause issues; things left at home during departure often cause problems too. Almost half of holidaymakers say forgetting to pack something has caused them stress before, whilst more than one in ten (11%) had actually missed a flight due to forgotten items. 

Forgetting foreign currency is the thing that would cause most Brits to miss their flight, with 44% saying they’d miss out on their holiday if they forgot their cash. 38% also said they’d stay behind if they forgot their phone. This is more than the percentage of people who said they’d skip their trip if they forgot prescription medicine. Just 30% said they’d stay at home if this was the case. 

Ernesto Suarez, CEO and Founder of iCarhireinsurance.com, said about the research: “Forgetting items at any point on a holiday is a huge pain, but we wanted to see how much this could impact holidaymakers this summer. The results make clear just how much we stand to lose if we aren’t careful with our belongings whilst away. To avoid incurring unnecessary costs, travellers should always have checklists for belongings they’ve packed, and have a last sweep of a hotel room before they leave to prevent any forgotten items.” 

Tags:iCarhireinsurance.com