• Almost one in three (29 per cent) Brits admit to forgetting where they  parked their car
• A tenth of Brits have had to pay for additional parking after failing to locate their vehicle, spending a collective £126 million in extra charges
• Male drivers spend longer on average looking for their lost vehicles than women
• The supermarket is the most common place to lose a car  
   

New research1 from Direct Line Car Insurance reveals that over 14 million (29 per cent) Brits suffer from car amnesia, admitting they forgot where they parked their vehicle in the last 12 months. On average we spend 25 minutes looking for our vehicles, with male drivers searching the longest (32 minutes) in comparison to their female counterparts (20 minutes)2.  Over the course of a lifetime this means that forgetful Brits can spend almost three days trying to find their misplaced motors3. 

During the course of the last 12 months, on average Brits have lost their car four times. Unsurprisingly, the most common place to lose your vehicle is the supermarket (34 per cent), followed by multi storey car parks (14 per cent) and out of town shopping centre car parks (11 per cent).

According to the research, it’s not just frustration that drivers encounter when they lose their vehicle. Just over a tenth (11 per cent) of Brits have been forced to pay additional parking charges as a result of not being able to locate their car, with the average cost amounting to over £22. As a result, we collectively spend over £126 million a year through suffering car amnesia4. 

Sadly, the punishment does not just stop at fines either, six per cent of forgetful drivers have had their vehicle towed or clamped after failing to find it.   

Rob Miles, director of motor at Direct Line commented: “The fast pace and busy nature of everyday life often means that when it comes to driving, many drivers often park in a hurry and forget to take note of where they’ve left their car. A simple way to fix this is to take a photograph of the car’s location, that way it’s easy to see the zone or level when you return back. 

“Forgetting where you’ve left your vehicle is not only a recipe for increased stress levels but it could mean you have to pay out extra parking charges or, worse still, find the car has been clamped or towed away.”
  
         ENDS

For further information, please contact:

Antonia Green
Citigate Dewe Rogerson
Tel: 0207 282 2967
Email: [email protected]

Chloe French 
PR Manager 
Direct Line Group 
Tel: 01651 831 715
Email: [email protected]

Notes to editors:

1 Research conducted by Opinium amongst 2,000 UK between 3rd and 6th June 2016.  14 million figure based on 29 per cent of Brits losing their vehicle. 29 per cent of 50,909,000 UK drivers = 14,559,974 

2 Based on the response of the 419 people in the sample who had forgotten where they parked more than once over the past 12 months, the average maximum time spent searching for their vehicle was 24.6 minutes

3 Assuming the average adult drives for 60 years between the ages of 17 and 77. The average adult loses their car 3.7 times a year, equating to 221 times in a lifetime. Consumer omnibus research estimated that people spend 17.8 minutes searching for lost cars. This amounts to a total of 3,924 minutes – or 65.4 hours – equal to two days and 17 hours.

4 £126 million figure based on average charge cost (£22.26) multiplied by the total number of people that have been charged extra parking fees 11% of 50,909,000= £126,355,122.

Direct Line

Started in 1985, Direct Line became the first UK insurance company to use the telephone as its main channel of communication. It provides motor, home, travel and pet insurance cover direct to customers by phone or on-line. 
Direct Line general insurance policies are underwritten by U K Insurance Limited, Registered office: The Wharf, Neville Street, Leeds LS1 4AZ. Registered in England and Wales No 1179980. U K Insurance Limited is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority. 
Direct Line and UK Insurance limited are both part of Direct Line Insurance Group plc.
Customers can find out more about Direct Line products or get a quote by calling 0345 300 7838 or visiting www.directline.com

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