UK home to an estimated 5.6 million bad neighbours as most important neighbourly traits revealed
- An estimated 5.6 million people (one in 10) in the UK don’t like their neighbours
- Being quiet and peaceful voted the most important trait of a good neighbour
- Residents in South East England least likely to like their neighbours
A new study has found that one in 10 UK residents don’t like their neighbours, meaning the country could be home to an estimated 5.6 million bad neighbours nationwide.[1][2]
The findings come from the latest survey by Go.Compare home insurance, which surveyed residents on how they feel about their neighbours and what they think makes a good neighbour. Now, the comparison site is sharing the factors that were voted most important to help the nation get along with its neighbours better.
Overall, being quiet and peaceful was found to be the most important trait of a good neighbour – this was the most-picked factor by those in the survey at 59%. Being friendly and chatty was a close second, chosen by just over half of (56%) of respondents. The study also found that 61%[3] of UK residents who know their neighbours talk to them once per week or more, indicating a potential link between frequent chats and a positive relationship.
Just under half (46%) selected collecting deliveries on your behalf when you’re out, followed by not complaining unnecessarily/being tolerant (39%) and respecting shared/designated parking spaces (32%). Similar percentages selected respecting garden boundaries (31%) and taking out/bringing in bins for you (29%).
The results also revealed that younger residents are less likely to have a good relationship with their neighbours. Just under half (46%) of those aged 24 or younger in the study claimed to like their neighbours, a number which rose to 61% of those aged 55+.
Residents in South West England were found to be the most likely to get along with their neighbours, with around six in 10 (61%) respondents said they like them. They’re closely followed by people in Yorkshire and The Humber and the West Midlands - 59% of both region’s residents said they like their neighbours.
While those in the South West were the most likely to like their neighbours, residents in the South East were the least likely to like their neighbours. Half of those in this region reported liking their neighbours, noticeably lower than the proportion reported in the South West.
Nathan Blackler, home insurance spokesperson at Go.Compare, said: “Getting along with your neighbours can be such a huge factor in maintaining a happy household, so it’s a shame to see that a significant portion of us don’t like who we live next door to. Based on our findings, not being too noisy, chatting regularly and carrying out small favours for neighbours can be all to help to keep the peace.
“While a lot of factors can impact your home insurance, luckily, there’s no direct link between unfriendly neighbours and premiums. However, anti-social behaviour can have an indirect impact on prices, as insurers often look at crime rates when determining the cost of your cover.
“Because of this, we’d always recommend residents to consider crime rates, and other location-based factors like flood risk, into account when choosing a home. As well as having an impact on your safety and wellbeing, they could leave you with higher insurance costs than you had budgeted for.”
More statistics can be found on Go.Compare’s website.
ENDS
Contact Information
Alex McCormick
Notes to editors
[1] Sourced from a survey conducted by Censuswide on behalf of Go.Compare, among a sample of 2,000 UK Nationally Representative Consumers aged 18+. The data was collected between 08 January 2026 to 12 January 2026.
Censuswide abides by and employs members of the Market Research Society and follows the MRS code of conduct and ESOMAR principles. Censuswide is also a member of the British Polling Council.
[2] 10.25% of adults don’t like their neighbours based on the above survey. The number of adults (aged 18+) in the UK is 55,022,253 (ONS). 10.25% of 55,022,253 is 5,639,781.
[3] Based on the above survey, with ‘Every day’, ‘Less than every day, more than once a week’, ‘Once a week’ responses combined.
For further information please contact:
Front Door Communications at go.compare@fdcomms.co.uk
Keep up to date with Go.Compare on Twitter: @GoCompare or you can call 02920 020360
About Go.Compare
Go.Compare is a comparison website that enables people to compare the costs and features of a wide variety of insurance policies, financial products and energy tariffs.
It does not charge people to use its services and does not accept advertising or sponsored listings, so all product comparisons are unbiased. Go.Compare makes its money through fees paid by the providers of products that appear on its various comparison services when a customer buys through the site.
When it launched in 2006, it was the first comparison site to focus on displaying policy details rather than just listing prices, with the aim of helping people to make better-informed decisions when buying their insurance. It is this approach to comparing products that secured the company an invitation to join the British Insurance Brokers’ Association (BIBA) in 2008, and it is still the only comparison site to be a member of this organisation.
Go.Compare has remained dedicated to helping people choose the most appropriate products rather than just the cheapest and works with Defaqto, the independent financial researcher, to integrate additional policy information into a number of its insurance comparison services. This allows people to compare up to an extra 30 features of cover.
Go.Compare is part of Future Plc and is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
More information can be found here www.gocompare.com or here https://www.futureplc.com/brands/.