Parents bail out financially irresponsible travellers

14/04/2011

Almost a third of those who opt to take a gap year have to be saved financially by their parents, the Daily Mail reports.

The survey, which was carried out by the Post Office Travel Insurance, found that around 29 per cent of travellers turned to their parents for help after running into financial difficulty.

Responses were received from 1,024 gap year travellers from the past five years. The Post Office’s survey also found approximately one in five gap year travellers ran out of money in just the first three months of being away from home, with the average bail out from parents being £772.

In addition to the financial aid received from parents many of these travellers also had access to other resources including bank loans, student loans, credit cards and overdrafts.

The survey revealed that travellers were spending on average £3,736 on their trip. However, 12 per cent spent more than £8,000.

Those who had to rely on their parents said that they spent far more than they had anticipated on their travels, splashing out on entertainment was the primary cause of their financial woes.

Many of those travellers, who take out a student loan to fund their university studies following their trip, add an additional burden onto their already instable finances.

A Post Office spokesman told the Daily Mail: “These findings show that people don’t always take adequate steps when preparing for such a big trip away and as a result often end up in financial trouble.

“Doing your research in advance can really help with budgeting and mean you can enjoy your holiday with peace of mind.”

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