Millions of Brits are terrified of making a DIY blunder this Bank Holiday – with average disaster costing £106 to fix
NEARLY five million Brits fear their DIY efforts will go pear-shaped this Bank Holiday - with £512 million potentially needed to put things right after an amateur cock up.
A poll of 3,000 adults found 22 per cent plan to roll up their sleeves for some home improvements over the long weekend, but a worrying 41 per cent admit they've got zero confidence in their skills.
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And when things go wrong, it costs an average of £106 a pop to fix a DIY disaster, according to the research.
The top flops include fixing leaky taps (15 per cent), toilet flushes (13 per cent), and decorating mishaps (12 per cent).
While others have botched bleeding a radiator (10 per cent) or mucked up repressurising a boiler (six per cent).
It also found London takes the crown as England's DIY disaster capital, with the average person in the city fluffing four attempts in the past year, splashing out £162 to sort the damage.
The research was commissioned by Ding, which visited major DIY stores in London to launch its Toolbox Amnesty, urging Brits to down tools over the bank holiday weekend, and leave it to a trusted network of experts.
Chris Houghton from the home repairs service, which is offering three months free for those sharing a picture of their DIY mishap on Instagram, said: '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.
'With so much being spent fixing botched jobs, it's clear that our efforts don't always lead to good results.
'That's why this bank holiday we're urging the nation to down tools and leave it to our expert engineers, giving them a well-earned break to relax."
The biggest reason behind DIY disasters is a lack of know-how, cited by 31 per cent who have had a DIY faux pas.
As a result, 22 per cent had to call in a pro to fix their mess according to the OnePoll.com data.
Others caused cosmetic damage (18 per cent), sprung a leak (13 per cent) – and five per cent even caused an electrical outage.
When it comes to Bank Holiday plans, painting the home (31 per cent) and sprucing up fences (17 per cent) are top of the DIY to-do list.
While many are gearing up to pressure wash patios (13 per cent), put up shelves (13 per cent), or tackle a blocked gutter (13 per cent).
Chris Houghton from Ding 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.'
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