Aviva study reveals average cost of UK and abroad hen and stag dos

People attending someone else’s stag or hen do typically face paying £779 in the UK or £1,208 if they go abroad, a survey indicates.

Men tend to spend more on average than women, research carried out by Censuswide indicates.

The study, commissioned by insurer Aviva, found that men spend £920 on average while women typically pay £652 for stag or hen celebrations in the UK.

If the celebrations are abroad, men spend £1,256 on average while women spend £1,158 typically.

Around a third (32%) of people surveyed said they have declined a stag or hen invitation and in four-fifths (79%) of cases this was due to the expense involved.

Some people in this group said they gave a different excuse to their host because they did not want to admit this was due to the cost.

Aviva found that half (50%) of guests have always taken out travel insurance when joining a stag or hen break overseas and just 22% have done the same in the UK.

The research, based on a survey of around 1,000 adults across the UK who have attended stag or hen weekends that were not their own, was carried out for Aviva by Censuswide Research in May 2023.

Research on the cost of stag and hen parties showed men tend to spend more on average than women

The insurer warned that not having cover could leave guests exposed to cancellation costs, outlays for lost items, or even medical bills abroad if something goes wrong.

It is therefore urging people to think twice before cutting back on cover.

Kelly Whittington, speciality claims director at Aviva, said: “There comes a point in life where stag and hen weekends seem to come thick and fast.

“It’s great to celebrate with the bride or groom to-be, but it can also be a costly time, particularly if there are a number of weddings on the horizon.

“While we understand the desire to save, if people are looking to cut costs, we’d strongly recommend that travel insurance isn’t the place to skimp, especially if they are going abroad.

“Travel cover can provide peace of mind in case of delays, cancellations, thefts or medical expenses overseas. The vast majority of trips go without a hitch, but we’re there to help in case the unexpected happens, so people can enjoy the big day.”

Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) research recently found some signs of some people reducing their insurance cover as a way to ease general living cost pressures, which could leave them worse off or in difficulty if something goes wrong.

Among people who had insurance and protection policies last spring, 8% had cancelled one or more policies and 7% had reduced their level of cover, specifically to save money due to rising living costs, in the six months to January this year.

Some did both – meaning that an estimated 6.2 million adults (13%) who had policies in May 2022 had cancelled or reduced their cover by January 2023.

Here is the average cost per person of a stag or hen event in the UK followed by the average cost abroad, according to Aviva. People who have attended stag or hen weekends that were not their own were asked to select how much they had spent on each category, to give the average cost per person:

Accommodation,

Hen – £151

Stag – £228

Food and drink

Hen – £112

Stag – £200

Transport

Hen – £85

Stag – £184

Gifts

Hen – £99

Stag – £157