D.I...WHY? New research hammers home the true cost of DIY

Half of us (48%) confess to believing we are good or very good at DIY despite a third (33%) having admitted that they have suffered a DIY disaster.

A quarter of fearful Brits (27%) revealed that they wouldn’t even dream of taking on a large DIY project themselves. However, of those who say they are terrible at DIY, 39% are still giving it a go with one fifth of Handy Andy’s (17%) splashing out up to £500 to fix the error of their ways.

People in Leeds (45%), Bristol (43%) and Manchester (42%) are the most prone to a mishap according to the survey.

Time is money

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Overall, 40% of DIY projects were underestimated in terms of cost, and 46% were underestimated in terms of time. Despite this, three quarters of people (76%) believe they saved money doing it themselves. Meanwhile eight out of ten Brits would happily take on another significant DIY project, while 19% are putting their spanner to bed.

The survey, from money saving experts Voucherbox.co.uk has found that those with experience of kitchen renovations give a different tale as over a third (35%) report it costing over £4,000. More than 1 in 10 (13%) cost over £10,000 and 6% over £20,000.

Building on a budget

35% of Brits prioritise redecorating and set aside an average £500 for the task while 15% are getting their green fingers at the ready to tackle gardening, with a budget of up to £1,000.

Of those who had recently re-decorated, almost three in ten (28%) stated it cost more than they anticipated, almost the same amount who believe they may have lost money by not hiring a tradesperson (29%). Whilst the majority (48%) took an average of 2 weeks to complete the re-decorating, 36% reported that it took longer than first expected.

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Marco Piu, Voucherbox general manager, said: “Spring is a popular time to dust off those tools and start putting planned DIY projects into action. The survey revealed re-decorating is on the agenda for the majority of Brits, which makes it the perfect time to hunt for online deals.

“The survey also revealed several unfortunate incidents which are often the result of inexperience. DIY merchant blogs and social channels provide a great source of expert tips and best practice that will hopefully keep you from making a costly mistake.”

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