88 means bad luck in UK
Thirteen is traditionally held to be the most unlucky number but when it comes to owning a house it seems that number 88 is the one the brings bad luck.
Nearly one in four homeowners would be put off buying a house numbered 13, but new research suggests that the number people really need to avoid is 88 followed by 80, 68, 91, and 96.
Indeed number 13 is only the sixth unluckiest number and only half as likely as number 88 to be the target for burglars, the research from AXA home insurance shows.
Number 88 has now been the unluckiest house number of two years in a row and is also the only number to feature in the top ten for two years in a row.
There is a strong weighting towards higher rather than lower house numbers and further data shows that those living in a semi detached house are most likely to be the victims of a break in.
However, those with big number houses should take comfort from the fact that those living at 70 or 99 were most likely to have won money on the lottery.
Meanwhile those with a purple front door might want to consider a change of colour scheme as statistics reveal houses with a purple door to be the top target for thieves.
‘As an insurer it is always interesting to look at trends relating to burglaries or other risks. We do monitor all sorts of statistics but at the moment have no plans to start weighting premiums according to the number on your door,’ said James Barclay, home insurance underwriting manager at AXA.
‘We suggest that everyone, no matter what number they live at, takes the time to check they are not creating their own bad luck through poor security or bad maintenance around the home. Many claims we see are not so much bad luck as bad risk management by the home owner,’ he added.