Mums spend £1,589 replacing items lost by their kids

Mums spend £1,589 replacing items lost by their kids before the age of ten – and nearly two days in total looking for them, according to a study.

Researchers found the average youngster misplaces a total of 483 belongings between the ages of three and ten – with hats, jumpers and cuddly toys among the most commonly lost items.

And 62 per cent of possessions which go missing, such as coats, school uniform items and books, are NEVER found again.

But this might not surprise mothers who revealed some of the strange places they’ve discovered lost items – such as in fridges, in tumble dryers and in one instance, on the roof of a car.

The research of 1,000 mums with children aged three to ten was commissioned by Neatlynamed, manufacturers of labels for children’s clothing and belongings.

Fiona Mills from Neatlynamed said: “We commissioned this research to show just how difficult it can be to keep track of children’s belongings.

“Mums might not realise how many items will go missing during their kid’s formative years so it’s really interesting to see the figures for this.

“As mums prepare for going back to school over the coming weeks these findings also make you wonder just where all the items lost disappear to.”

School or nursery is the place children tend to lose things most often – followed by when playing inside at home.

And around half of mothers said they have known their little ones to lose items within just 20 minutes of getting them for the first time.

Four in ten admit they’ve had to replace the same item repeatedly and 47 per cent of kids have even lost items belonging to their mother.

Just 16 per cent believe their little ones really appreciate the value of their belongings.

While a third of mums admit their child doesn’t think about the possibility of losing things they own.

Although 55 per cent admit their kids find mislaying items traumatic.

However, six in ten mums said losing items as a child helps them to appreciate the value of things later in life.

Three quarters put name labels on their youngster’s belongings to prevent them being lost.

And 64 per cent of those polled said items initially lost and subsequently found had name labels on them.

Fiona Mills at Neatlynamed added: “Parents will be spending a lot of money over the coming weeks buying school uniforms, bags, water bottles and stationery and we want to help make sure lost items can be returned more easily.

“Whether your child is starting school for the first time or you are an experienced ‘school mum’ it is worrying to read the value of items being lost by children.

“However, this research reassures parents that adding a name label to items increases the chance of lost belongings making their way home.”