REVEALED: £289.79 is the average price for an apology gift for an affair
It’s not always easy saying sorry, and it seems many of us are choosing to do so with gifts. But what is the price of an apology?
A recent survey, conducted by jewellery retailer F.Hinds, has revealed that forgetting an important date such as an anniversary of birthday is the most common reason for people to buy an apology gift, with more than a third (35.6%) having done this. Not giving a partner enough attention (23.5%) and a cheating/affair (20.1%) came second and third respectively.
Lying, staying out all night, not doing a household chore and having to work away from home are all considered the least worthy of an apology gift, with an average of only 2.7% saying they would buy a gift to apologise for these behaviours.
When it comes to who is more generous after the event, men are 10% more likely than women to purchase a gift for cheating (25% vs 15%). However, it seems women are almost twice as likely as men to buy a gift to apologise for not giving their partner enough attention (30.4% vs 16.9%).
While flowers are the most common gift to apologise with overall (25%), here is a breakdown of the most common gifts per mistake and average spend:
| Cheating/affair | Jewellery | £289.79 |
| Forgetting a birthday/anniversary | Jewellery | £82.64 |
| Staying out all night | Flowers | £18.42 |
| Not Doing a Household Chore | Chocolates | £8.67 |
| Not coming home when you said you would | Chocolates | £6.93 |
Overall, the average cost of a gift bought to apologise to a partner is £46.71. However, women are more likely to splash the cash when they’re in the wrong spending an average of £61.26, compared to men who only spend £32.76.
Those aged between 25-34 spend the most on average to apologise to their partners, with 14% spending up to £100 per incident and 10% spending up to £150 per incident. In contrast, 55-64s are least likely to reach into their pocket to apologise, with over a quarter (25.3%) spending just £1-£10 apologising to their partner.
Those in Belfast are the most likely to forget an important date, such as an anniversary or birthday, with 75% admitting to buying a gift to apologise for doing so. Almost half of Liverpudlians (48.5%) are most likely to buy a gift to apologise for cheating.
