Being drunk at home can prove to be a costly business

Published on Saturday 18 February 2012 01:08

Drunken Britons typically cause nearly £500 of damage to their homes after mishaps.

Some 5.8 per cent of UK adults have made an insurance claim for a fire, flood or breakage after a booze-fuelled incident, according to a study by More Than Home Insurance.

Middle-class professionals in the 35-54 age group with homes worth an average of £242,673 were the worst offenders.

Four out of ten respondents who admitted to regularly getting drunk at home were in this age bracket, a higher proportion than any other age group.

Regular mishaps included breaking valuables while drunk, causing a fire by falling asleep while cooking or leaving candles used as “mood lighting” burning, and flooding the house by leaving taps on. Total damage costs averaged £461.47.

More Than said: “The dangers of drink-driving are well documented, but the perils of being drunk in the home are not.”

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46

DavidfromNewMills

Tuesday, February 28, 2012 at 07:24 PM

#46, chaswin. In case the Suffolk wassock hadn't realised, his #41 and #43 are simply copy and pastings of his #39. Pardon? If he has no original ideas, perhaps his F2S chums could help him out in his hour of such obvious need. Has he yet grasped the meaning of "whingeing" or "intelligent"?

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45

Charles11

Tuesday, February 28, 2012 at 02:32 PM

So why does the peasant repeat himself?

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44

DavidfromNewMills

Monday, February 27, 2012 at 08:18 PM

#43, chaswin. Such a pity that the intelligence of parrots doesn't quite match their ability to mimic. Pieces of eight! Pieces of eight!

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43

Charles11

Monday, February 27, 2012 at 02:02 PM

How can you 'sympathise with those whose livelihoods or neighbourhoods have been adversly affected' when you are delighted with the smoking ban in pubs that affected their livelihoods?

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42

DavidfromNewMills

Sunday, February 26, 2012 at 06:05 PM

#41, chaswin. Perhaps cheerless charlie could try absorbing my #40. I'll gladly help him out if he's not familiar with some of the big words contained therein, like "whingeing" or "intelligent", for example.

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41

Charles11

Sunday, February 26, 2012 at 05:53 PM

How can you 'sympathise with those whose livelihoods or neighbourhoods have been adversly affected' when you are delighted with the smoking ban in pubs that affected their livelihoods?

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40

DavidfromNewMills

Sunday, February 26, 2012 at 03:25 PM

#39, chaswin. Quite easy to understand for the moderately intelligent. The smoker's having lost his privileges should be no justification for sitting sulking at home childishly whingeing about the fact, or indulging in boorish, inconsiderate behaviour in the vicinity of pubs or elsewhere. Charlie should note that slightly changing the wording of his oft repeated question is not going to elicit a substantivally different answer from myself.

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39

Charles11

Sunday, February 26, 2012 at 12:44 PM

How can you 'sympathise with those whose livelihoods or neighbourhoods have been adversly affected' when you are delighted with the smoking ban in pubs that affected their livelihoods?

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38

DavidfromNewMills

Saturday, February 25, 2012 at 08:47 PM

#37, chaswin. I can certainly sympathise with those whose livelihoods or neighbourhoods have been adversly affected by those smokers who feel unable to visit a pub without a cigarette dangling from their lip andor are the source of detritus and mindless noise for those in their vicinity. Will they ever improve the habits of a lifetime?

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37

Charles11

Saturday, February 25, 2012 at 07:41 PM

How can the peasant have 'Lots' of sympathy for the publicans that have been made bankrupt, all the staff made unemployed and the people who had the homes devalued when he welcomed the smoking ban in pubs?

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36

DavidfromNewMills

Saturday, February 25, 2012 at 12:58 PM

#35, chaswin. Lots. Oh, but how can I persuade sulking smokers to swallolw their pride and a few drinks, and support their local hostelries in a quiet, tidy ,considerate fashion, so as not to devalue adjacent properties? Come on charlot, why not give it a try?

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35

Charles11

Friday, February 24, 2012 at 03:00 PM

Has the peasant no sympathy for the publicans that have been made bankrupt, all the staff made unemployed and the people who had the homes devalued?

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34

DavidfromNewMills

Thursday, February 23, 2012 at 07:29 PM

#33, chaswin. I would happily confirm that I'm quite relaxed about the introduction of statutory smoking restrictions ( there is no universal ban). Chas. will be pleased to know that I supprt the industry by visiting various hostelries, but not scattering detritus either in or outside them, nor making loud noises to upset the neighbours. Nor do I get sloshed at home as a bad example to young children or adolescents. So what's his scorecard then? By the way, what means "Instead of keep repeating"? Did the schools in Suffolk teach him nothing?

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33

Charles11

Thursday, February 23, 2012 at 03:15 PM

Instead of keep repeating how pleased you are with the smoking ban give a bit of thought to the thousands of pubs and clubs that have closed, publicans that have been made bankrupt, over 150,000 staff being made unemployed, more noise for people living near pubs and more kids drinking on a regular basis.

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32

DavidfromNewMills

Thursday, February 23, 2012 at 01:06 PM

#31, chaswin.. Instead of repeating the same old moans, charlie might consider some of my suggestions above as a solution to his perceived problems. Here in Pleasantville it's a pleasant, sunny day, so why not toddle down to the pubs of sunny Suffolk, and perhaps even sit outside, quietly puffing away, as he recalls halcyon fug filled days, and refraining from scatteering detritus around. He could even take the grandchildren along, and buy them a coke or a fruit juice. He may be interested to discover that "breath" is a noun, and "breathe" is a verb. Cheers!

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