Students’ £1.7bn uninsured

Students in the UK keep more than £3.3bn of possessions in their digs with more than £1.7bn of it uninsured, according to new research from bank Santander.

The average student keeps £2,076 worth of goods in their student digs but just over half - around £1,100 worth - of these are not covered by insurance.

Almost every single student (99.8%) said they have a mobile at university with an average value of £152.13, while 94% of students own a laptop or an iPad, at an average value of £515.41.

Four in five students (79%) are not fully covered, and one in three (30%) have no cover for these possessions at all. On average only 47% of possessions are insured by students.

Check policy

Helen Bierton, Head of Santander Current Accounts, said: "Students take an increasing number of mobile phones, laptops and other gadgets to university which can be very expensive, yet a large proportion of them still don't take adequate precautions by ensuring their possessions are insured.

“Many assume that they are covered by their parents' home insurance when they move away to university but this isn't always the case and therefore students should check to see exactly what cover they may have.”