Spending on outside spaces skyrockets

Homeowners are set to spend £7.6bn on garden furniture this year, according to new research from Sainsbury’s Bank.

The news comes as Brits start socialising and entertaining in gardens once more, with 71% saying their outside space is more important to them now than it was before the coronavirus pandemic.

But despite the average homeowner planning to spend £597 kitting out their outdoor space this year – a

£294 uplift from previous years, equating to £3.7bn in the UK – more than one in three (36%) wrongly assume their home insurance covers garden items.

This expected garden spending spree is supported by data from

Argos, which sold four times as many items of garden furniture in the first quarter of 2021 versus the same period in 2020.

While garden maintenance items were the top-selling products at

Argos within the garden category in the first quarter of 2020, garden entertaining items dominated the top selling Argos products in 2021, with sales of patio heaters increasing 10-fold as families prepare to entertain outdoors this May and into summer.

Pots and plants top the planned purchases with 49% looking to add colour to their gardens.

A further 9% are looking for a summer house or outside building, potentially as a home office with flexible working set to stay for many.

Jason King, customer director at Sainsbury’s Bank, said: “Homeowners are pretty good at estimating the value of their household items when they look at their insurance policies, but it’s surprising to see so many are not considering their garden items as part of this.

“Not all home insurance policies are the same, so it’s important to check and shop around for the right cover.”

Plants are the top planned purchase

A new BBQ is high on the list