New research from Aviva UK Health reveals that the British sense of humour, our favourite TV shows and even our much maligned cuisine rank among the top 10 things people would miss most if they moved overseas.
The findings come from Aviva’s annual “semi-gration” study that tracks the UK population’s appetite and motivations for moving abroad. Aviva conducts the research on an annual basis to understand the challenges customers face when moving abroad.
This year’s research clearly shows that relationships are what Brits would miss most if they moved abroad, with 74%1 saying that their main worry would be leaving their friends and family behind.
The survey also suggests that British culture holds a special place in many people’s hearts, with just over two in five (43%) confessing they would miss their favourite TV shows such as Eastenders and Coronation Street. The British sense of humour also ranks highly with (39%) saying that they’d miss our wit. And, nearly two in five (38%) people admit that they would be left longing for British food and drink.
But sentiment aside, moving overseas also has more practical implications. Just over a third of people (34%) say that they’d miss the NHS if they moved abroad – an increase of nine percentage points on Aviva’s 2010 figures. More than one in four (27%) of people admit that they don’t know enough about health benefits in different countries. Moreover, nearly one in five (17%) do not know where they’d get support and advice on basic needs such as health.
Teresa Rogers, business lead for international PMI at Aviva said: “Moving abroad doesn’t come without its worries and it’s not surprising to see the NHS on the list of things people would miss. In the UK we take it for granted that we can access health advice and speak to a doctor in our own language – but this isn’t guaranteed abroad.
“While we can’t help improve the quality of TV abroad, taking out appropriate international health insurance for example, can help eliminate a number of the health-related concerns identified in our research. We can put people in touch with specialist multi-lingual support services, arrange treatment on their behalf, give them access to 24-hour support from a physician and take care of their medical bills, leaving them to dream about roast dinners rather than worrying about their health.”
The top 10 things people would miss about the UK as identified by Aviva’s research are:
- Friends and family (74%)
- TV (43%)
- Sense of humour (39%)
- Food and drink (38%)
- NHS (34%)
- English language (34%)
- Own town/city (29%)
- Own house (26%)
- Sport (15%)
- Nightlife (10%)
Source : Aviva
