Brits spend more than £4,000-a-year outsourcing tasks and services such as cleaning the house, getting their tyres changed – and getting their nails done.
The study of 2,000 adults found blow dries (42 per cent), takeaway coffees (49 per cent) and washing the car (37 per cent) were other popular tasks they chose to splash out on.
The highest number of households splash the cash on takeaways
But while 58 per cent believe they don’t have the skills to do these things themselves, a third said a lack of time led to them paying others to do it instead.
While 24 per cent simply don’t want to do the task.
Andrew Clayton, from Capital One UK, and is launching a series of tutorials to help Brits cut back on their spending and outgoings.
He said: “There are so many ways to cut down costs but sometimes habits can be hard to shift which is apparent with these research findings.
“As part of our mission to do ‘One Good Thing’, we’ve teamed up with a group of savvy spenders to launch our ‘Save Per View TV’ content series.
“It sees four thrifty content creators lifting the lid on simple skills that could help to save people up to £1,600-a-year – from delicious ‘fake-away’ recipes, to handy DIY hacks and energy-boosting home workouts.”
The study also found 45 per cent are concerned about how much they spend on different services, with this worry increasing for 67 per cent since inflation began to rise.
And 73 per cent have noticed a considerable rise in how much everything costs, with three in 10 claiming this has had a significant impact on their everyday life.
While financial worries are a weekly thing for 20 per cent, with another 28 per cent admitting they have it on their minds daily.
As a result, 30 per cent have reined in their spending, but four in 10 said this has had a negative impact on their wellbeing.
And despite trying to cut back on their spending, 24 per cent weren’t successful.
However, it has encouraged 63 per cent to start doing some of the things themselves rather than paying someone else to do them.
House maintenance (44 per cent), beauty treatments (36 per cent) and decorating (28 per cent) are among the things they have started doing themselves.
While for those who haven’t yet started to take on certain jobs themselves, home DIY tasks (32 per cent), decorating (29 per cent), and basic car maintenance (27 per cent) were the things they’d most like to do.
The study, carried out via OnePoll, found two thirds are keen to ‘DIY’ to help save them money while 44 per cent reckon it will be more satisfying to do it themselves.
And 32 per cent are simply eager to learn a new skill.
Financial advisor and host of the ‘Mr MoneyJar Show’ podcast, Timi Merriman-Johnson, is working with Capital One to share his top tips for navigating the cost-of-living crisis.
Timi Merriman-Johnson said: “During tough economic times, it’s all about adapting and living as well as possible.
“We all know that outsourcing things is easier, but there are lots of benefits to reap from occasionally doing these tasks yourself.
“Becoming more conscious of your spending and applying little tweaks here and there – such as buying own-brand items, turning the thermostat down by a few degrees and upskilling daily tasks – will help to keep costs down and will add up over time.
“It’s also good practice to check-in with your money more frequently so you can keep on top of expenditure, lessen money worries and tweak your budget to reflect recent spending.”
Brits’ yearly spending habits:
- Gym memberships – £501.35
- Basic car maintenance – £438.34
- Petcare – £423.97
- Household decorating – £421.34
- Household plumbing – £409.82
- Dry cleaning – £399.72
- Beauty Treatments – £397.45
- Takeaways (food and drink) – £375.71
- Household/garden maintenance – £370.27
- Repairing clothes – £353.11
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