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A survey of 3,000 adults has revealed that a significant 22% are preparing to make use of the bank holiday weekend by attempting some DIY tasks. The most common tasks to take place include decorating and fixing any leaks. The poll shows that 31% plan to spruce up their homes with a fresh coat of paint, while 17% aim to revamp their fences over the Bank Holiday.
Many Brits also plan to power wash their patios, put up some shelves, or deal with a blocked gutter. However, a worrying 40% confess they lack confidence in their DIY abilities. As a result, there’s a concern among Brits that their home improvement endeavours could go disastrously wrong, with many having suffered some DIY mishaps in the past. The most common mishaps took place when fixing leaky taps or toilet flushes. While some have even messed up bleeding a radiator or depressurising a boiler.
Ahead of the bank holiday weekend, new insights released by Ding, a home repairs service from Homeserve, show Britons might want to think twice before picking up their tools.
The study indicates that the primary cause of DIY disasters is simply a lack of knowledge but it comes at a price. With the research suggesting rectifying a DIY disaster costs Brits an average of £106. London has been crowned England’s DIY disaster capital, with the average local botching around four DIY attempts in the past year, costing them £162 to mend the damage.
Ding has recently kicked off its Toolbox Amnesty campaign across leading DIY stores in London, encouraging residents to abandon their DIY plans this weekend and enlist help from a professional instead.
Chris Houghton pointed out: “With so much being spent fixing botched jobs, it’s clear that our efforts don’t always lead to good results.”
He cautioned that while saving money can make DIY seem more appealing, it can be just as costly: “We all love the idea of saving money by doing it ourselves – but as our research shows, DIY can quickly turn into a very expensive mistake.”
He urges Brits to put down their tools and leave it to the professionals adding Brits should use the long weekend to give themselves “a well-earned break to relax.”
Ding is a new membership service from Homeserve, making it easy to get in touch with reliable engineers for your plumbing, heating, or electrical nightmares. The company is extending three months of complimentary service to those who share snapshots of their DIY disasters on Instagram.
The statistics all discovered 22% of Brits have had to seek out experts to rectify their DIY mishaps, with repercussions ranging from minor aesthetic damage to severe leaks and electrical failures.
Houghton added, “Our Toolbox Amnesty is designed to take the pressure off, and if you send us a picture of a previous DIY mishap, you could win three months free cover.”
TOP 10 MOST BOTCHED DIY JOBS:
- Fixing a leaky tap
- Fixing the toilet flush
- Decorating (painting, wallpapering)
- Unclogging a toilet
- Fixing broken furniture
- Building flatpack furniture
- Putting up shelves
- Unclogging a blocked sink
- Hanging curtains or blinds
- Bleeding the radiator
