Gym kit and guitars need proper protection warns AXA

As children head back to school over the next week, parents are being advised by insurance giant AXA, to count the cost of their children's schoolbags and make sure they protect their possessions away from home.

Loss, damage and theft

According to the company's research nearly 30% of children have lost or broken at least one item from their schoolbag with sports kit topping the list, closely followed by pencil cases then dinner money, mobile phones and trainers or football boots.

Up to twenty per cent of schoolchildren have had at least one item from their school bag stolen either at or on the way to and from school leaving parents forking out an average of £163 to replace lost, broken or stolen items. Perhaps surprisingly, the most stolen item on the journey to or from school is a musical instrument.

Counting the cost

The average cost of a secondary school child's school bag comes to £244.50 based on average contents regularly taken to school including:

Mobile phone valued at £50
Trainers/football boots valued at £40
Sports kit (tracksuit, shorts and t-shirt) valued at £70
Reading book valued at £7
Text books x 3 valued at £20
Pencil case and contents valued at £25
Dinner money (weekly) valued at £10
The bag itself with an average value of £22.50

The value of schoolbags increases further when you consider other items carried by many such as iPods, electronic games or musical instruments, which are often one of the most valuable items taken to and from school.

A third of children (32%) play a musical instrument with the average cost of the instrument being £128 - although some can cost thousands of pounds. The most popular instrument is the guitar followed by the recorder.

Steve Hardy, Managing Director of AXA Direct says: "We all know children can be expensive, but it's surprising just how much a schoolbag and its contents can add up to. And as children increase their interest in using gadgets such as iPods, mobile phones and electronic games, so too will the value of their schoolbag and unfortunately the appeal to thieves go up. Despite this, only about 50% of people actually have insurance that will cover these items outside of the home.

"AXA customers can, with personal possessions cover added to their home insurance, protect for loss, damage and theft of schoolbags, even musical instruments borrowed from school for personal use. So if the worst should happen, parents won't be faced with yet another hefty bill."