Life is two-thirds hard work, reveals study

BRITONS do not officially wind down until 7.47pm, new research reveals.

A study into the lifestyles and working hours of 2,000 people found life is officially two-thirds hard work with more than 10 hours of the average person’s 15-hour day dedicated to the long slog of work and a never-ending to-do list.

Results showed the typical eight-hour work day is topped up with a minimum of two hours of administraton, errands and personal chores to keep modern life ticking over – with people admitting they don’t stop until just before 8pm.

And, while we do get seven hours at home awake most days – less than half that time is spent actually relaxing or enjoying our homes.

A spokesman for security specialist Yale, which commissioned the research, said: “They say a man’s home is his castle but it seems, for many, wedon’tgettospendasmuch time there as we would like. Work and socialising means we spendalargechunkofourtime away from home, with holidays only adding to this further.

“Eventhetimewedogetto spend at home is often taken up with chores and life admin rather than relaxing.

“But, while the time our property spends empty is time we aren’t getting to enjoy it, it can also create a security issue with your home more open to crime when no-one is there.”

Our busy schedule, full social calendars and need for a holiday means increasingly little time spent at home – in fact the average UK property is left empty for 36 nights a year.

The result, the study says, is that 38 per cent feel they do not have enough time to enjoy their home or where they live.

The majority of these absences from home are likely to be during the summer, with 41 per cent saying they spend more time away from home during this time than during the rest of the year.

And that leads one in five to think their home is likely to be less secure or more susceptible to break-ins in summer.

Despite this, many fail to take the security of their home seriously with one in 10 admitting they have lost a key in the past year. Three in 10 have gone out and left a window open while another 18 per cent have left a door unlocked.

More than one in 10 even admitted they have gone out at leastonceinthepastyearand left a door wide open.

And the average Briton has left the garage door open once in the past three months.