Hiding in plain sight: 6.8m residents living unofficially in UK homes

There are 6.8 million (14 per cent) UK residents living unofficially in other people's homes, according to research from Direct Line home insurance. The study also found that a further 7.1 million (14 per cent) people in the UK are currently registered under the wrong address with banks, insurers, local councils, the DVLA and other key organisations.
 
This widespread use of incorrect personal information raises concerns that the validity of home insurance policies may be compromised and that sensitive financial information could be misplaced.
 
Jenny Trueman, home insurance manager at Direct Line said: "There are many reasons why someone may have not updated all their details. The most common cause is moving home which can be stressful and extremely time consuming. Changing address details is one of those administrative tasks that is frequently put-off or forgotten. However, the consequences of using the wrong address are far worse than a few lost letters - people risk being fined by the DVLA, losing highly sensitive financial information from their bank and invalidating their home insurance."
 
Amongst the 7.1 million Britons who admit key organisations hold old or incorrect address details for them, doctors and dentists were the most frequently cited. 3.2 million (6 per cent) people admit that their doctor or dentist does not have their current address and a similar number - 2.8 million (6 per cent) say the address on their driving license is wrong. Around 2.4 million (5 per cent) are also listed under the wrong address with their bank.

Service/organisation that holds an old or incorrect address - % of people that say their address is wrong

Doctor, dentist, other medical 6%
Driving license 6%
Bank / other financial services 5%
Mobile phone 5%
Electoral register (to vote) 4%
Online shopping (billing address) 4%
Council tax 3%
Car insurance 3%
Inland revenue 3%
Rent/mortgage 2%
Employer 2%
Gym 2%
Other 1%

Source: Direct Line Home Insurance
 
Of the 6.8 million ‘unofficial' residents across the UK, half (3.3 million) live in rented accommodation but are not listed on the tenancy agreement. The remaining 3.5 million live with someone who owns the home, for example friends and family, but have not registered themselves as a resident.
 
The research suggests that for the vast majority, this life as an unofficial resident is by no means temporary. When asked how long they had been living unofficially in someone else's home, the most common response, cited by 31 per cent was more than eight years. 16 per cent said they had resided unofficially for four to seven years, 23 per cent for one to three years and 19 per cent for seven to 12 months. Only 11 per cent said they had been living that way for less than six months.
 
Direct Line asked those who admitted being registered at the wrong home address, which details they were still using and the most popular response, as stated by 44 per cent was their parent's address.  Predictably this was slightly higher for those aged 18-34 years (at 54 per cent). However, 38 per cent of those aged 35-54 still use their parent's address for key registrations.   Details of a previous property (34 per cent) and an ex partner's address (11 per cent) were also cited, closely followed by a university address (9 per cent) and previous employer's address details (7 per cent).
 
Trueman concludes: "Our research highlights that an alarming number of people in the UK are living in other people's home in an unofficial capacity.  On the one hand, it's very generous of the registered residents to allow these people to live with them, but it's important to understand the implications of these arrangements, particularly in terms of home insurance as their possessions may not be covered and the validity of the policy itself may also be affected."
 
Direct Line's research showed that 18 per cent of men in the UK are unofficial residents, compared to just 10 per cent of women. This unofficial living arrangement is also more prevalent amongst those aged 18 - 34 (30 per cent) than other age groups.

For more information, visit directline.com.