Parents spend over £2 billion on Christmas gifts
20th December 2011
With Christmas just a matter of days away, children across the country will be looking forward to the arrival of Santa Claus and all the Christmas gifts he will bring.
Unfortunately for mum and dad this could also mean frantically wandering around shops making sure Santa gets what’s on the list; spending a massive £2.4 billion in the process.
The Cost of a Child study from LV found that parents are expected to spend an average of £178 per child on gifts and stocking fillers this year. This is £10 more than parents splashed out on gifts for children last year.
The study found that mums and dads spend the least on very young children.
They will splash out £133 on those aged 0-3 years, compared to children aged between 7 and 11 when parents will spend an average of £220.
Londoners will spend an average of £168 on gifts per child compared to parents in the East of England who will spend the least of £129 per child.
Expensive gifts lure Christmas criminals
Christmas can be an expensive time of year as many rush out to buy the latest gifts, gadgets and toys. Often they will be placed all in a neat pile under the tree, perfectly located for Christmas criminals to take their pick.
Research from insurance firm Aviva found that an average of £1,700 worth of gifts are hidden around the home in the run up to Christmas. It could be advisable to review your home insurance policy to ensure that your newly purchased items are covered in case of theft. Some policies also offer a 10% increase in cover at Christmas.
The research found that criminals take a break at Christmas, but are back to work in the New Year, with expensive tech goods being top of their list. Laptops, tablets, smartphones and gaming devices are the most commonly stolen items after Christmas.
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