• This year, 17 million Brits plan on buying items on Black Friday and Cyber Monday
• Nearly 30 million items will be purchased on Black Friday and Cyber Monday – with Brits spending around £700 each
• But the last two years have seen £100,000 worth of claims for broken TVs made in the immediate aftermath of Black Friday
• Direct Line is reminding people of Red Saturday, the day after Black Friday when consumers should check their contents cover, risking their new items being under / uninsured

This Black Friday Brits are set to spend £12 billion on 30 million items, reveals new research from Direct Line Home Insurance¹. Following last year’s November lockdown, over 17 million Brits (33 per cent) plan to buy something in the Black Friday sales, spending around £700 per person on nearly two big ticket items each.

Electrical items lead the spending, with 4.7 million people set to buy a new laptop or computer (nine per cent). Over four million people plan to buy new phones (eight per cent) and TVs (eight per cent).

Men are planning to spend more on electricals than women this year (37 per cent vs 29 per cent). Overall, young people lead the bargain hunters, with over half (55 per cent) of 18–34-year-olds planning on shopping the sales, compared to just 15 per cent of over 55s.

Table one: The most common items Brits are planning on buying on Black Friday/Cyber Monday

Source: Direct Line Home Insurance 2021

With Brits adding significant purchases to their contents this year, Direct Line is using Red Saturday to remind consumers of the need to have contents insurance cover in place to avoid the risk of being underinsured or potentially paying for items twice.

Claims data² found that consumers need to be careful with their new purchases. Claims worth more than £100,000 have been made over the past two years alone for TVs the weekend immediately after Black Friday.

Nearly a fifth (19 per cent) of Brits, some 10 million people, have had an issue with a phone within six months of buying it, with damage outside the home (seven per cent), inside the home (six per cent) and it being broken beyond repair (six per cent) the most common issues. Other items that have developed faults in the first six months of ownership include laptops (16 per cent), small electrical items (15 per cent), large electrical goods (14 per cent) and tablets (14 per cent).

Dan Simson, Head of Direct Line Home Insurance, said: “Black Friday has become one of the major shopping events of the year in the UK. Last year, most shops were shut during the November lockdown so we expect shoppers will be out in force again this year. It’s really important shoppers remember to protect their purchases, in case of damage, theft or accident, otherwise they may risk having to buy them again. That’s why we created Red Saturday at Direct Line, the day after Black Friday, to remind people to check they have contents insurance as we know so many could potentially be under insured.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors

¹        Research conducted by Opinium among a nationally representative sample of 2,000 adults between 5^th-9^th November 2021

²        Analysis of Direct Line Group home insurance claims for electronic items damaged in the weeks surrounding Black Friday in 2019 and 2020.

For further information please contact:

Chelsey Wheeler
PR manager – Direct Line  

Tel: 01651 832 095

Email: [email protected]

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 online.

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.