Dark mornings, having a cold face and trying to unlock your phone with your gloves on: Brits rank the 25 things they hate most about winter
Winter can be a romantic time in Britain: imagine crackling fires and walks in the frost-strewn countryside.
But there’s plenty to hate about the colder months, as a recent poll shows.
The research were trying to discover ‘the worst things about winter in Britain’ – according to the British. And ‘Dark Mornings’ was revealed as the biggest winter grumble, topping the list of 25 with 49 percent of the vote.
‘Slipping on the ice’ earned the silver medal with 44 percent, while the bronze went to ‘having a cold face’ with 41 percent.
Other common winter complaints were ‘having a runny nose’ (fourth, 38 percent); ‘heating costs’ (fifth, 34 percent); and ‘defrosting the car’ in sixth place with ‘cold hands’ (32 percent).
A recent survey found that ‘Dark Mornings’ are the thing Brits hate most about winter
Brits are comfort-loving creatures when the temperatures drop and the nights fall, the research shows.
That’s because many said they hated getting out of a warm bed into a cold house in the morning (seventh, 31 percent).
This was followed in the rankings by chapped lips (eighth, 25 percent); sweating under multiple layers (ninth, 24 percent); and having wet feet (tenth, 23 percent).
The all-too-common feeling of your umbrella blowing inside out was also a winter annoyance (11th, 22 percent), as was trying to unlock a phone while wearing gloves.
This finished in 14th place with broken boilers and a vitamin D deficiency (17 percent).
And one in six Brits (16 percent) said they hated winter travel disruptions, ranking 15th in heated wars with colleagues over the temperature in the office.
While one in ten (10 percent) said they hated glasses, a car battery being dead or text messages asking ‘is it snowing where you are?’ – all in joint 18th.
Many said they hated getting out of a warm bed in the morning when the house was cold (seventh)
‘Slipping on ice’ won the silver medal, with 44 percent of the votes
The survey among 2,000 Britons, commissioned by the post officealso revealed the country’s feelings about winter as a whole.
Overall, 81 percent of voters said they hated the season.
While more than half (56 percent) went so far as to say this was one of the worst things about living in Britain.
Nearly nine in ten said they had considered seeking out winter sun between November and February.
Where?
Canary Islands (43 percent); Maldives (36 percent); Barbados (31 percent); Dubai (28 percent) and Miami (27 percent) were the most popular destinations in the poll.
But despite the country’s desire to get away in winter, the research found that people are more likely to forget travel insurance for winter sun holidays than for summer trips.
Say it’s not snow: ‘Defrosting the car’ tied for sixth place
The all-too-common phenomenon of your umbrella blowing inside out has been highlighted as a common winter irritation
Of those who had a policy, one in six said they had no idea what it covers.
And of those who didn’t get coverage, 24 percent said it was because it was too expensive, and 15 percent said they were happy to take a chance and save money.
Yet it turned out that more than one in seven have had something happen to them on holiday, after which they discovered that they were not covered by travel insurance.
The Post Office is urging winter sun setters to ‘ensure they have travel insurance and read their policies carefully to avoid unnecessary charges, which can be extremely costly’.
Paul Paddock, Head of Travel and Protection at the Post Office, added: ‘Winter weather could lead to flight cancellations, so consider travel disruption cover. Or if you plan to bring Christmas presents, research gadget coverage and baggage coverage limits.
‘There’s also family travel insurance if it’s something everyone can enjoy – or specific travel insurance packages for a cruise trip if this is your holiday of choice.
‘Not everything is included as standard, so be sure to check the conditions.’