The British are internationally acclaimed for being polite, forming queues, sipping tea, and for becoming paralytically drunk at every possible opportunity.
Little surprise, then, that new research has shown that the nation that gave the world Winston Churchill, William Shakespeare and Horatio Nelson has blown £4.46 billion on random purchases while under the influence of booze.
This is according to price comparison site Finder. It says that nearly half of British adults who drink regularly – around 15 million people – have admitted they’ve bought stuff online while sozzled.
The report surveyed 2000 adults and revealed that the average spontaneous spend was £291.07. That’s no mean figure. It’s the average cost of one year’s home insurance, a Dyson hairdryer, a decent kayak or, more likely, 60 bottles of Prosecco.
Finder also found that men are more likely than women to buy while boozed up, spending £364.72 (18 bottles of Jack Daniels) against £213.41 for the fairer sex.
When it comes to age groups, millennials were most likely to shop while drunk (59.29%), while 51.7% of Gen Xrs do so, and just 31.36% of Baby Boomers.
Amazingly, the items most popularly bought by boozed-up Brits are food (22.87% of respondents), followed by clothes and accessories (13.8%), gambling (10.44%) and cigarettes (8.51%).
“No one likes that morning-after-the-night-before regret, especially when checking your bank balance,” Finder UK chief executive Jon Ostler said.
“Those seemingly insignificant purchases can really add up over time. There are cash-saving tips you can implement to avoid shopping through beer goggles.”
“When you’re out for drinks, it’s useful to set yourself a cash budget and leave your cards at home to limit your expenditure. Download an online shopping stopper in order to save purchases for later with a sober mind.”
What does it all mean? No idea. We’ll tell you at closing time.
