Clutter 'would fill 11 Wembleys'

14/06/2011

By Paul McGurk

Clutter that would fill the equivalent of 11 Wembley Stadiums, is being hoarded in British households, according to a new report.

Sports equipment and unused clothes are said to be among the most common items of the mammoth 47.5 million cubic litres of clutter taking up space in people's homes, according to the insurer LV=.

The firm reports that this material amounts to £50 billion, with valuables such as jewellery sharing shelf space with power tools and audio equipment in the nation's sheds, spare rooms and lofts.

As much as 10 per cent of householders are stockpiling more than £1,000 of stored possessions, while more than a third say they have never totalled what these goods are worth.

Around 22 per cent of people are even holding items for friends, family, partners and ex's.

One in 12 parents frequently have to ask older children to remove their possessions, while a fifth say their children were into their 30s before clearing their clutter.

A spokesperson for LV= said: "This is despite the fact that the majority of standard home insurance policies do not provide cover for other people's belongings, whether they are relatives or friends, that are being stored."