How much the tooth fairy pays out in Yorkshire... and why she's giving children here a raw deal

The tooth fairy leaves an average of £3.34 per tooth nationally, putting estimates of the size of the tooth fairy industry at a whopping £450m - but the north/south divide is real.

Youngsters in Yorkshire and the Humber can expect to get an average of £2.97 per tooth, compared to £4.84 in Greater London.

The difference is laid stark when you consider a full set of lost milk teeth, with young Londoners cashing in a massive £98.60, compared to £59.40 in Yorkshire - which is less than the national average at £66.80

Nationally, children are getting less money from the tooth fairy than their parents did - £3.34 compared to £5.76 - and the banking group has warned that at if the current trend of dwindling pay-outs continues, the tooth fairy won’t be giving anything by 2060.

To add to the gloom, 18 per cent of parents say they were never visited by the tooth fairy when they were children.

Six-year-old Theo Royle, from Stanningley in Leeds, has so far lost two of his milk teeth and received £2 per tooth. He has a third tooth now wobbling and he intends on putting any money received as a result towards a computer game.

He said: “My mum said that if you don’t believe in the tooth fairy then she won’t come, so I definitely believe. I’m not really sure where the tooth fairy gets the money from for the teeth though, I think she must sell other teeth she’s taken.”

His mum Jocelyn, 29 said she thinks it’s important for children to believe in the tooth fairy for as long as possible.

“I think Theo is hoping the tooth fairy might be more generous for the next tooth he loses as it’s one of his front ones,” Mrs Royle said. “I think she’s already fairly generous though, certainly more generous than we thought she’d be.

“Like with money he might get for birthdays, we always encourage Theo to think about how he might want to use his tooth fairy money, how he can put it towards something he’s saving up for.”

The survey also revealed what children spend their tooth fairy money on, with a third using it to buy sweets, and almost two thirds saving the money.

And in a shock to human to tooth fairy relations, children say they stop believing in the money-giver by their eighth birthday - and 92 per cent who don’t believe take the cash anyway.

Head of Savings at Halifax, Giles Martin, said: “Kids shouldn’t bank on the tooth fairy forever. These surprising results show the going rate is getting lower. At this rate, they’ll be worthless 40 years from now, paving the way for the extinction of the tooth fairy as soon as 2060.

“The good news is that two thirds of children save the money they get from the tooth fairy, either in a piggy bank or a savings account. Just like regular pocket money, it’s a great opportunity to get kids into the savings habit from a young age."