Music Collections Going for a Song!

    HORSHAM, ENGLAND, December 07, 2008 /24-7PressRelease/ -- UK music fans are suffering from 'MCD' (music collection deficit), and are undervaluing their collections by as much as 36.5 billion* according to a new report from MORE THAN Home Insurance.

Undervalued collections are not the only concerning results uncovered by the report. With music fans ditching traditional formats like CDs and Vinyl in favour of digital downloads, over two thirds of Brits (68%) admit to having unsatisfactory back up precautions in place. This puts them at risk of losing an average of 441 worth of tunes through hard drive failure. Additionally, just 2% of music fans keep a detailed log of all their music in case of loss or damage, making rebuilding a collection impossible in most cases.

Other key findings from the report include:
Music Collection Deficit Facts:
• Brits estimate the value of their CD and vinyl collections at just 1,118. That's less than half of the true figure of 2,396 representing a shortfall of 1,278
• A huge 80% of Brits admit they have never considered the worth of their music collections
• Only 4% of Brits correctly identify their CD rack contents as being worth over 2,000

The worst sufferers of MCD:
• Men in Newcastle are identified as the most music mad and have the biggest collections, and therefore have the most to lose - their collections are worth 2,868
• Belfast residents, with collections valued at an average of 2,077, are the most modest when it comes to valuing their collections - believing them to be worth just 507. That's an MCD of 310%

Battle of the genres:
• Indie lovers can take pride in being the nation's ultimate music fans with CD collections worth an average of 2,913 - almost 1,000 more than the average Pop fans' collection ( 2,030)
• UK Jazz aficionados are hot on the heels of the Indie kids in second place ( 2,883), narrowly beating the nation's Rock revelers into third place ( 2,750)

The report also identified that almost two thirds of Brits (60%) admit to having no idea if they own anything that may be highly collectible or valuable. To encourage people to dust down those boxes of vinyl in the loft, and help identify any big money items lying undiscovered, MORE THAN has identified the top 5 'hidden treasures' and how to spot the little anomalies that could increase their value by hundreds of pounds.*

o The Beatles - White Album: Copies with a black inner sleeve, complete with the original poster and prints, and with a serial number between 0010000 and 0000011, could be worth between 600 - 1200
o David Bowie - The Man Who Fell To Earth: Copies from the initial withdrawn pressing, featuring Bowie wearing a dress on the cover, can be worth up to 450
o Jimi Hendrix - Band Of Gypsies: The original pressing featuring the 'puppet' cover image can fetch in excess of 120
o The Rolling Stones - The Rolling Stones: A mono copy, with a red Decca logo and including a 2 minute 52 second version of 'Tell Me' could be worth between 600 and 1200
o The Sex Pistols - Never Mind The B*llocks... Here's The Sex Pistols: Copies with a pink rear sleeve with no track listing and including the original accompanying poster, could be worth in excess of 600

Commenting on the research findings, Pete Markey from MORE THAN said:
"We know how much time, effort and money people invest in building a music collection, so at MORE THAN we want to encourage our customers to protect that investment. We advise people to sift through their CDs, even those forgotten boxes of vinyl in the loft, and create an inventory just in case the worst should happen. Who knows, perhaps in the process we'll be able to help people unearth some real 'cash in the attic'.

"Over the years we noticed an increase in the number of people wanting cover for their digital downloads, so from January 2009 our customers will enjoy 2,500 digital download cover as standard, so even the biggest music fans can have peace of mind."

For more information on MORE THAN Contents Insurance or for a quote log on to www.morethan.com or call 0800 316 6796.

For further press information please contact:
Nick Dear
MORE THAN Press Office
020 7337 5602
[email protected]
Carmel McCarthy
MORE THAN Press Office
0207 7337 5405
[email protected]

Notes to Editors:
Research conducted amongst 1000 UK adults by Fly Research (November 2008)

1. Calculations are based on an average value of 10 per CD and vinyl album and 7 per downloaded album, and are based on a UK adult population of 28,538,000 (NOS stats, September 2008)

2. List derived in collaboration with Record Collector Magazine. All valuations are estimates based on mint condition examples

About MORE THAN:
MORE THAN is the direct financial services arm of RSA. It offers motor, home, pet, life and travel insurance by phone and via the internet. It also offers van, shop, office, business car, hotels, property, club and contractor insurance direct to small businesses.

In December 2006 MORE THAN, together with its parent company RSA, became the first insurer in the UK to be carbon neutral. The company has cut its carbon footprint by over half since 2000 and has offset the remainder by purchasing voluntary carbon offsets.

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