Teenage Parties Cause £93million[1]of Destruction

LONDON, December 28, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

• One in five (19%) teenagers have hidden party damage from their parents
• A third (32%) of teenagers have told 'party porkies' to their parents

Over half (56%) of teenagers have seen their home or a friend's home damaged as a result of hosting a party according to new research from Allianz Your Cover Insurance.

Less than half (49%) of parents knew about their teenager's party destruction and one in five (19%) of the teenagers polled confessed they had covered up damage by enlisting friends to help or they hid it themselves.

Teenagers who came clean about party damage revealed the most common forms were:

• General rubbish and mess (21%)
• Carpets stained or burned by cigarettes (20%)
• Broken ornaments (13%)
• Broken furniture (11%)
• Trampled gardens and plants (10%)

Teenage 'party porkies' also stretched to a third (32%) confessing they had lied to their parents about partying; one in 10 said they were not going to a party but did attend, 6% had secretly held a party and a further 6% played down the number of guests who'd attended.

Jon Lott of Allianz Your Cover Insurance said, "Our research reveals the average cost for repairing or replacing items damaged at a teenage party is £108 according to parents, while teenagers estimated the costs at £90. Repairing the cost of party damage is an expense that people can well do without at this time of year in particular."

Although one in five (22%) parents trust their teenager to be responsible and not cause damage, the same amount (23%) worry about how their child's friends will behave. Over a quarter (29%) of mums and dads divulged they wouldn't trust their teenage children to host a party at all. These parents may be wise as nearly half of teenagers (42%) revealed that they too fear a party could get out of control, with their top fear being uninvited guests turning up (35%).

Teenagers consider a party to be out of control if:

• Furniture is broken (50%)
• Ornaments are broken (46%)
• Carpets or furniture are burned by cigarettes (46%)
• If drugs were brought into the house (43%)
• If an ambulance is called (41%).

One in three teenagers (31%) revealed they would advertise a party on a social networking site with one in ten (10%) using it as a way to organise their social lives. This news may alarm parents as 32% consider social networking sites to be dangerous, particularly if their son or daughter's profile is not secure or if they have a lot of online contacts able to view their details.

Jon Lott continued, "We would urge parents to talk to their teenage children and set clear boundaries for parties to ensure that any festive celebrations do not compromise the safety and security of their home."  

Allianz Your Cover has the following advice for parents whose teenagers are hosting a party at their home:  

1. Agree on how many friends your teenager can invite and what time the party will end
2. Give your neighbours plenty of notice about the party - they are more likely to be understanding if they are forewarned
3. Remove as many items as possible out of the room where the party is being held
4. Lock away, hide or give to someone else to look after, items which could be easily damaged or stolen
5. If you are leaving the house, ensure teenagers have contact numbers that they can call you on if needed.

To learn more about Allianz Your Cover's home insurance offering, please visit:

http://www.yourcoverinsurance.co.uk/

Notes to Editors:

A survey of 1,000 parents of teenagers and 1,000 teenagers was carried out in October 2012 by 72 Point on behalf of Allianz Your Cover Insurance.

^[1]There are 4,603,300 teenagers in the UK according to the ONS Mid-2009 Population Estimates: United Kingdom; estimated resident population by single year of age and sex. 18.67% of teenagers polled admitted to hiding party damage. The average cost of damage caused by parties is £107.96 which brings the total to £92,784,722.43.

About Allianz Your Cover Insurance

Your Cover is a new breed of insurance product, offering cover that customers select to precisely match their own lifestyle and circumstances. Using an easy to use 'Quote and Buy' website, Your Cover makes it simple to design, obtain a quote and manage your insurance online.

The result of two years' research involving thousands of insurance buyers, Your Cover is a product from Allianz Insurance plc, which is a part of the global Allianz Group.

To find more out about Allianz Your Cover Insurance visit http://www.yourcoverinsurance.co.uk or follow us on Twitter @YourCoverUK or visit our Facebook Page.

About Allianz

Allianz Your Cover Insurance is part of Allianz Insurance, one of the largest general insurers in the UK and part of the Allianz SE Group, one of the leading integrated financial services providers worldwide and the largest property and casualty insurer in the world.  With approximately 142,000 employees worldwide, the Allianz Group serves approximately 78 million customers in more than 70 countries.

The mission of Allianz Insurance is to be the outstanding competitor in our chosen markets by delivering products and services that out clients recommend, being a great company to work for and achieving the best combination of profit and growth.