Parents fork out to keep kids entertained in the car

With school holidays fast approaching, Post Office Car Insurance calculates that parents could end up spending almost £800 on the latest in-car entertainment to keep their children occupied during long car journeys this summer.

DVD players, iPods and story CD's are just some of the items parents could end up having to pay out for to ensure their car journeys are quiet and stress free. However, this can add up to more than £500 for one child and can rise to as much as £781.59 for two children. And this is before any money has been spent on the actual day out or holiday activities.

Post Office head of car insurance, Richard Pennant-Jones, said: "Setting off on holiday or day trips out is an exciting time, but the cost to keep kids entertained on long car journeys can mean expensive items are at risk from being left unattended in the car. We are urging parents to keep their belongings safe this summer and out of sight from opportunistic thieves. This includes even short periods of time such as stops at service stations.

"In hot weather it can be tempting to leave windows open when you're away from the car, but people should be aware that this can invalidate cover on their car insurance policy. To ensure you are protected, windows, doors and the car boot must be locked at all times, and all valuables should be concealed in the glove box or boot.

"We recommend that everyone checks their home contents and car insurance policies before they set off this summer to be clear what personal possessions are covered automatically and whether extra covered is needed. By taking time to do these simple checks you could end up saving yourself money in the long run."