Single Britons' £48bn insurance shortfall

Single people are set to have £48bn worth of uninsured possessions by 2021 if current trends continue, research claimed today.

The contents of the average single person's home are worth £19,284, but despite this 33% of people who live on their own fail to take out insurance, according to research commissioned by insurer MoreThan.

The study, carried out by the Centre for Economics and Business Research, showed that in 2001 the country's 6.3 million singletons had uninsured clothes, gadgets and other personal affects worth £38.1bn.

The insurer estimates the total value of uninsured goods owned by single people could soar to £48.2bn by 2021 if, as the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has forecast, the number of single-person households grows to 8.5 million.

David Pitt, head of insurance at MoreThan, said: "Nearly a third of Britons are now living alone, but despite owning more high value items than ever before, this group are not covering their contents against potential loss.

"People are marrying later and with divorce rates on the increase, the problem of single people without adequate insurance could snowball.

"It is estimated that the average disposable income will rise to £30,000 by 2008, which could drive the value of possessions up even further."

The south-east is set to see the biggest increase in single person households with the number of people living alone forecast to soar by 41% between 2001 and 2021, followed by the east of England where a 40% increase in single-person households is expected.