One in four Brits (26%) happily leave their personal belongings unattended while they go for a swim or pick up an ice cream, providing thieves with the perfect opportunity to steal expensive belongings, according to research from Norwich Union. And the insurer says that the typical beach bag contains goods worth an average of £555.

However, only 7% of those surveyed estimated the value of their bag to the correct amount, with nearly two thirds of holidaymakers (64%) undervaluing their beach bag belongings by a whopping 60%.

Young people between 18-24 are the worst offenders when it comes to taking high-value items with them to the beach, with 93% taking a mobile phone and over three quarters carrying a digital camera (80%) and MP3 player (72%).

Dawn McMullan, travel product manager at Norwich Union, said: “Holidaymakers also appear to be severely underestimating the value of their belongings, which means that if they do become a victim of theft, they could find themselves under-insured.”
“We also know that 22% of 18-24 year-olds neglect to take out travel insurance at all, yet our research suggests that these are the holidaymakers most at risk.”