Hungry gulls strike again, leaving Britons £172 million out of pocket Look away, lunch is gone

Britons are losing an estimated £171.9 million ($232 million) worth of food each year to seagulls, says new research highlighting the scale of the birds’ notorious food-snatching habits, Independent reports.

A survey of 2,000 UK adults commissioned by Compare the Market found that 71% had either had food stolen by a seagull or experienced an attempted theft.

Researchers estimated the total cost at £171,889,518 by combining the proportion of adults targeted, the average number of incidents reported over the previous 12 months and the average value of food involved, calculated at £5.50 per incident.

Fish and chips topped the list of foods targeted, with 72% of respondents saying their traditional takeaway had been stolen or subjected to an attempted theft. Sandwiches followed at 21%, while ice cream accounted for 20%.

The findings have prompted Compare the Market to launch what it describes as the UK’s first “Gull Guarantee” at Peter’s Fish Factory in Margate. From August 28 afternoon, customers whose fish and chips are stolen by a gull can have their meal replaced free of charge, with the company providing £1,000 to cover the cost while funds last.

“We’ve all been there – you sit down with your chips, look away for two seconds and suddenly your lunch has grown wings,” said Charlie Evans, money expert at Compare the Market.

“Seagulls have long had a reputation for stealing right out of hands, so we wanted to find out just how much this cheeky seaside crime is costing Britons. It turns out seagulls aren’t just stealing our food - they’re making a meal of our money too.”

The survey found that 76% of Britons have changed where or how they eat outdoors to protect their food, while 32% have abandoned, dropped or sacrificed a meal altogether.

More than four in 10 respondents said they had hidden their food from view, while 31% said they had eaten faster to avoid being targeted.

Among those attacked, 69% said it had happened more than once, while 82% had witnessed someone else falling victim to a seagull food raid.

By Vafa Guliyeva