Queue jumping tops list of things that irk Brits, study finds

BMW drivers ignoring their indicators, getting locked out and ‘jobsworths’ are among the things that bring us to boiling point, according to a recent survey.

The study of 2,000 adults revealed other infuriating issues are having no heating, people eating loudly and queue jumpers.

For four in 10, ‘people who think rules don’t apply to them’ will send their blood pressure rising, and 27 per cent get irked by drivers not stopping at zebra crossings.

Another one in three (33 per cent) feel the red mist descending when they are sent from pillar to post on automated company customer service lines.

A spokesperson from heating experts Andrews Boiler Hire, which commissioned the study, said: “We found there’s plenty that gets Brits hot under the collar.

“In fact, reading the survey results seems to suggest we’re a nation ready to blow up at any moment.

“The state of the world over the last 18 months has left many feeling grumpier than normal it would seem, and more easily irritated by small things.”

The study also found nearly a fifth (16 per cent) of adults get wound up when their phone claims to be connected to 4G or 3G – but nothing loads.

And 24 per cent feel like turning the air blue themselves when they encounter someone who seems to swear ‘every other word’.

Nearly half of adults (47 per cent) admit they are easily irritated, with being among the general public considered the most annoying place to be.

However, 53 per cent readily admit that they can get annoyed by things that are, in hindsight, not worth getting vexed about.

A fifth (18 per cent) have succumbed to road rage after getting irritated on the streets, while a quarter have made a ‘rude gesture’ at someone.

Nearly four in 10 have snapped at someone unnecessarily, and 12 per cent have even launched their phone across the room in frustration.

And while 50 per cent feel their friends, family and colleagues all moan too much – just 11 per cent don’t feel ‘at all’ like they spend too much time complaining.

However, more than a fifth admit they feel in a better mood if they’ve had a good rant about something that was annoying them.

And 22 per cent even describe a feeling of ‘relief’ after blowing off some steam, according to the OnePoll.com data.

Nearly half (46 per cent) admit they can’t go a single day without something winding them up – and 55 per cent get frustrated when they see others not being as green as they should be.

An Andrews Boiler Hire spokesperson added: “The things that wind us up tend to be the things that affect us personally – like being cut up in traffic, or someone jumping a queue ahead of us.

“So, in a way, it’s nice to see people taking a more planetary view when it comes to being irritated – at those who don’t live as green as they could.

“And to the third of adults who have intervened when they’ve seen someone acting in a non-green way, like throwing litter on the floor – we salute you!”

 

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1.Which of the following fills you with a sense of rage?
	%	n
BMW drivers not using their indicators	17%	347
British weather	11% ↓	227
Colleagues talking loudly in an open plan office	11% ↓	216
Delayed/cancelled trains	20%	393
Drilling at 8am on a Saturday	19%	387
Drivers who don’t stop at zebra crossings	27% ↑	538
Getting locked out of your house	13% ↓	268
Getting splashed by a bus	18%	358
Having a smashed phone screen	11% ↓	218
Having to go through lots of options and being kept on hold when calling companies	33% ↑	656
Having to wait for your car heaters to start working	8% ↓	162
Hay fever	10% ↓	192
Hearing ‘unidentified item in bagging area’ when using a self-service checkout	17%	349
Hidden fees	28% ↑	557
Jobsworths	24% ↑	479
Lazy people	24% ↑	475
Middle lane drivers	19%	376
Missing your train	14% ↓	280
Parking tickets	19%	370
Paying tax	13% ↓	266
Paying to withdraw cash	26% ↑	512
People eating loudly/sloppily	24% ↑	483
People not listening to you	23% ↑	460
People on electric scooters	15% ↓	306
People pushing into a queue	44% ↑	875
People slagging others off behind their back	22% ↑	449
People spoiling TV shows	13% ↓	255
People thinking rules don’t apply to them	40% ↑	794
People who can’t spell	12% ↓	239
People who don’t know the difference between there, their, and they’re	16% ↓	317
People who eat with their mouth open	26% ↑	518
People who seem to get lucky all the time	10% ↓	201
People who swear	14% ↓	286
People who swear after every other word	24% ↑	486
People who take up two seats on a train	22% ↑	432
People who use ‘cool/slang’	10% ↓	200
Petrol prices	21% ↑	417
Pointless meetings at work	17%	348
Realising the outfit you’ve picked out is dirty or needs ironing	10% ↓	209
Rudeness in general	43% ↑	851
Running out of mobile data	8% ↓	161
Shallowness/ignorance	28% ↑	553
Smokers being allowed to take multiple breaks a day at work	19%	376
Someone who doesn’t say please/thank you	33% ↑	656
Splashing your favourite top/jeans with something	12% ↓	235
The fight to get your bag from baggage reclaim after a flight	10% ↓	195
The price of parking	22% ↑	438
Traffic jams	23% ↑	453
When cyclists don’t us the cycle lane	21% ↑	429
When Uber prices are higher than normal	7% ↓	132
When you peel a banana only to find it has gone off	8% ↓	155
When your phone says it’s connected to Wi-Fi or 4G but nothing works	16% ↓	328
Your mobile phone battery dying	12% ↓	239
None of the above	3% ↓	62
N/A – nothing fills me with rage/nothing in particular	6% ↓	119
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 2000
2.To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement? ‘I am easily irritated’
	%	n
Strongly agree	13% ↓	263
Somewhat agree	34% ↑	688
Neither agree nor disagree	26% ↑	513
Somewhat disagree	20%	397
Strongly disagree	7% ↓	139
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 2000
3.Where do you get annoyed most frequently?
	%	n
At home	17% ↓	333
At work	18% ↓	350
In a public place	32% ↑	631
Other	0% ↓	8
Not sure/ Nowhere in particular	34% ↑	678
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 2000
4.How many times do you get annoyed by something in an average day? (Please include little snaps or irritations etc.) Choose best match
	%	n
0	10% ↑	199
1	17% ↑	332
2	18% ↑	363
3	11% ↑	225
4	8%	165
5	8%	165
6	6% ↓	123
7	2% ↓	37
8	1% ↓	17
9	0% ↓	1
10+	3% ↓	69
Not sure	15% ↑	304
Average	3.0 ↑
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 2000
5.To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement? ‘I can get annoyed over things which in hindsight seem trivial or not worth getting annoyed about’
	%	n
Strongly agree	15% ↓	305
Somewhat agree	39% ↑	779
Neither agree nor disagree	28% ↑	569
Somewhat disagree	12% ↓	231
Strongly disagree	6% ↓	116
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 2000
6.What have you done in haste because your temper got the better of you or you were inconvenienced? (Please tick all that apply)
	%	n
Given up on whatever I was trying to do	30% ↑	595
Got ‘road rage’	18%	362
Handed your notice in at work	10% ↓	205
Made a rude gesture at someone	25% ↑	496
Made someone cry	11% ↓	210
Sent a text or made a call you regretted	17%	349
Shouted at someone	30% ↑	604
Snapped at someone unnecessarily	38% ↑	764
Stormed out of a meeting	10% ↓	208
Taken an expensive taxi rather than waiting for a train/bus that was late	10% ↓	205
Thrown your phone	12% ↓	234
Other	0% ↓	6
N/A- nothing in particular/ I have never let my temper get the better of me	26% ↑	520
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 2000
7.Do you feel like your friends/family/colleagues moan/complain too much?
	%	n
Definitely	14% ↓	281
Somewhat	36% ↑	719
Not really	42% ↑	843
Not at all	8% ↓	157
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 2000
8.Do you feel like you moan/complain too much?
	%	n
Definitely	12% ↓	248
Somewhat	34% ↑	672
Not really	37% ↑	741
Not at all	11% ↓	224
N/A – I don’t moan/ complain	6% ↓	115
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 2000
9.How many times a week do you have a moan/ complain about something? Choose best match
	%	n
0	2% ↓	47
1-5	35% ↑	659
6-10	17% ↑	315
11-15	8% ↑	159
16-20	6%	118
21-25	3% ↓	65
26-30	5% ↓	86
31-35	4% ↓	71
36-40	2% ↓	40
41-45	1% ↓	11
46-50	1% ↓	11
51-75	0% ↓	4
76-100	0% ↓	7
101+	1% ↓	25
Not sure	14% ↑	267
Average	12.9 ↑
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 1885
10.How many times a day do you moan/complain to a friend, partner or colleague about something that’s annoyed you? Choose best match
	%	n
0	10% ↑	186
1	19% ↑	364
2	16% ↑	295
3	11% ↑	208
4	7%	126
5	8%	148
6	4% ↓	74
7	2% ↓	37
8	1% ↓	20
9	0% ↓	6
10+	2% ↓	41
N/A – I don’t do this	6% ↓	115
Not sure	14% ↑	265
Average	5.6 ↑
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 1885
11.How do you feel after you’ve had a good moan/complain about something? Choose best match
	%	n
Annoyed	12% ↓	234
Free	11% ↓	200
Frustrated	13% ↓	238
Happy	11% ↓	212
In a better mood	21% ↑	403
Irritated	12% ↓	230
Lighter	25% ↑	464
Relaxed	14%	264
Relieved	22% ↑	422
Renewed	12% ↓	217
Stressed	13% ↓	236
Other	1% ↓	12
N/A- no particular feeling	25% ↑	477
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 1885
12.Have you ever been told off by friends or family for repeatedly moaning/complaining about the same thing that annoys you?
	%	n
Yes	33%	623
No	57% ↑	1067
Not sure	10% ↓	195
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 1885
13.Have you ever told off a friend or family member for repeatedly moaning/ complaining about something, despite doing it yourself?
	%	n
Yes	36% ↑	677
No	54% ↑	1011
Not sure	10% ↓	197
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 1885
14.To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement? ‘I can’t go a single day without something annoying me.’
	%	n
Strongly agree	16% ↓	318
Somewhat agree	30% ↑	598
Neither agree nor disagree	26% ↑	514
Somewhat disagree	16% ↓	326
Strongly disagree	12% ↓	244
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 2000
15.Is being green important to you? E.g. doing your bit for the environment, recycling, saving energy etc
	%	n
Very important	34% ↑	675
Somewhat important	49% ↑	984
Not really important	12% ↓	231
Not at all important	6% ↓	110
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 2000
16.To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement? ‘I find myself getting more annoyed about people not being as ‘green’ as they should be’
	%	n
Strongly agree	19%	307
Somewhat agree	36% ↑	600
Neither agree nor disagree	28% ↑	464
Somewhat disagree	13% ↓	212
Strongly disagree	5% ↓	76
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 1659
17.Have you ever confronted someone when witnessing them do something bad for the environment? E.g. throwing a bit of rubbish on the floor, leaving lights on etc
	%	n
Yes	34%	682
No	56% ↑	1125
Not sure	10% ↓	193
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 2000
18.Which of the following statements do you agree with?
	%	n
I actively search for products that have less impact on the environment	29%	579
I wish my workplace would take being green more seriously	22% ↓	445
It annoys me when people don’t do as much as they could for the environment	40% ↑	800
It’s important to me that my workplace take being green seriously	27% ↓	534
None of the above	32%	641
(c) One Poll 2021; Total sample; Unweighted; base n = 2000