Travel
The misery of the recession is forcing millions of Brits to leave the country - that's the finding of new research* from InsureandGo (www.insureandgo.com), the leading travel insurance provider. It found that an incredible 3.3 million Britons have recently been or intend to go travelling abroad specifically to escape the misery of the UK recession.
Of the 8.9 million people who have recently been travelling abroad for a month or more - or plan to do so soon** - a massive one in three (37%) said their reason for going was to escape the current doom and gloom in the UK.
The poor state of the job market is also a key factor in convincing people to move to foreign shores for a spell of time, with 5% of travellers, around 450,000 people, saying that being made redundant or being fired from work is responsible. Four per cent, over 340,000 people, have been spurred into travelling because they have resigned from their job, around half of whom did so as a result of a pay cut. Another four per cent have been or are going travelling because they think it will be easier to find work abroad.
Graduates are also going abroad to escape poor job prospects in the UK. Almost one in three (28%) of the students intending to take a year off after university to go travelling are doing so because they say they can't find a job.
Perry Wilson, founder of InsureandGo, said: "People's disposable income might have shrunk, but it appears that the seemingly constant flow of bad news in the UK is encouraging a lot of people to pay for a plane ticket and get away to foreign shores for a while. And who can blame them? Taking some time off is a great thing to do to escape the grind of everyday life, whether you are taking a career break or whether you're a graduate embarking on a gap year.
"The joy of travelling can soon become a misery though if you are not properly prepared, so travellers need to ensure they take reasonable precautions, such as reading about their destinations in advance and making sure they have adequate travel insurance."
Other reasons cited for going travelling include having personal problems, which 6% of those going travelling claim is their main reason for doing so, and taking a year off before university, cited by 3% of travellers.
InsureandGo's backpacking policies offer a range of benefits such as a 24-hour worldwide emergency medical helpline, available 365 days a year, and automatically cover a wide range of adventure sports and activities including bungee jumping, white water rafting and jet skiing.
-Ends-
Notes to editors * Research was conducted online by independent research company TNS between 18th-29th June 2009. 1203 GB adults aged 16-34 were interviewed. ** Defined as travel for one month or more in the past six months or planned to take place in the next year.
About InsureandGo InsureandGo (www.insureandgo.com) was established in 2000 and has grown rapidly to become the UK's largest direct travel insurance specialist. Over two million holidaymakers a year choose to cover their travels with its low cost, high value policies.
All InsureandGo policies cover children under 18 for free and include over 40 adventure sports, while its annual policies include winter sports automatically.
For further information please contact Peter Marcus on 0207 282 2815 or email: [email protected], or Ian Morris on 0207 282 1037 or email: [email protected].
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Travel
UK doom and gloom forces one in three Brits to go travelling
The misery of the recession is forcing millions of Brits to leave the country - that's the finding of new research* from InsureandGo (www.insureandgo.com), the leading travel insurance provider. It found that an incredible 3.3 million Britons have recently been or intend to go travelling abroad specifically to escape the misery of the UK recession.
Of the 8.9 million people who have recently been travelling abroad for a month or more - or plan to do so soon** - a massive one in three (37%) said their reason for going was to escape the current doom and gloom in the UK.
The poor state of the job market is also a key factor in convincing people to move to foreign shores for a spell of time, with 5% of travellers, around 450,000 people, saying that being made redundant or being fired from work is responsible. Four per cent, over 340,000 people, have been spurred into travelling because they have resigned from their job, around half of whom did so as a result of a pay cut. Another four per cent have been or are going travelling because they think it will be easier to find work abroad.
Graduates are also going abroad to escape poor job prospects in the UK. Almost one in three (28%) of the students intending to take a year off after university to go travelling are doing so because they say they can't find a job.
Perry Wilson, founder of InsureandGo, said: "People's disposable income might have shrunk, but it appears that the seemingly constant flow of bad news in the UK is encouraging a lot of people to pay for a plane ticket and get away to foreign shores for a while. And who can blame them? Taking some time off is a great thing to do to escape the grind of everyday life, whether you are taking a career break or whether you're a graduate embarking on a gap year.
"The joy of travelling can soon become a misery though if you are not properly prepared, so travellers need to ensure they take reasonable precautions, such as reading about their destinations in advance and making sure they have adequate travel insurance."
Other reasons cited for going travelling include having personal problems, which 6% of those going travelling claim is their main reason for doing so, and taking a year off before university, cited by 3% of travellers.
InsureandGo's backpacking policies offer a range of benefits such as a 24-hour worldwide emergency medical helpline, available 365 days a year, and automatically cover a wide range of adventure sports and activities including bungee jumping, white water rafting and jet skiing.
-Ends-
Notes to editors * Research was conducted online by independent research company TNS between 18th-29th June 2009. 1203 GB adults aged 16-34 were interviewed. ** Defined as travel for one month or more in the past six months or planned to take place in the next year.
About InsureandGo InsureandGo (www.insureandgo.com) was established in 2000 and has grown rapidly to become the UK's largest direct travel insurance specialist. Over two million holidaymakers a year choose to cover their travels with its low cost, high value policies.
All InsureandGo policies cover children under 18 for free and include over 40 adventure sports, while its annual policies include winter sports automatically.
For further information please contact Peter Marcus on 0207 282 2815 or email: [email protected], or Ian Morris on 0207 282 1037 or email: [email protected].
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