Parents pay out for damage due to parties

26th July, 2009

The economic downturn has meant that even more householders are becoming reluctant to host house parties. The threat of damage to their property and belongings has meant that of the 2,000 people in the 18 to 24 age year bracket taking part in a recent survey, over 23% said they would not be inviting guests over any time soon.

The cost of replacing household items was a big consideration when purse strings were tight and the increase in home insurance premiums if a claim was made was also a deciding factor.

Almost £16.8 million worth of damage is caused to the homes of parents by their children held house parties.

Unfortunately, one in ten parents were unaware that the parties were taking place and the damage caused by partygoers came to around £1.4 million. Although in most cases the bill for the damage came to less than £100, around 1% of parents were left with a bill of up to £5,000.

Social networking sites were blamed for the latest trend of unwanted guests in their hundreds turning up and trashing properties. Insurers will not always pay out on claims if it can be proved that the homeowner did not take proper steps to care for their property by allowing the party to take place.

A recent survey found that 17,000 parents had had parties in their homes where damage was caused by their children’s friends.

 

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