healthmedicinet

”But it’s really disheartening that by far the biggest bugbear for Brits
today is the feeling of being under pressure to buy something.

”There’s something to be said for the good old-fashioned values of listening
to people and treating them as individuals – and not being pounced on for
the purpose of fulfilling sales targets and ultimately satisfying corporate
shareholders.”

The study also showed our cars – and driving in general – exasperate many of
us.

Common bugbears while behind the wheel include getting stuck in traffic,
pot-holes in the road, middle-lane huggers and parkers taking up two spaces.

Financial niggles include receiving credit card offers through the post, banks
phoning to check personal details or offer ridiculous loans and automatic
direct debits.

Nearly half the respondents said they have actively stopped going to certain
places because they’ve felt pressurised in the past to buy something.

Modern technology, while a convenience for many, can also test the patience of
the calmest Brits.

Shutting the computer down before saving work, predictive text on the mobile
phone and someone ringing but losing reception straightaway are common
irritants.

One fifth of Brits admit they get annoyed if they read a book and find
spelling errors, while 15 per cent hate the fact they have to shave.

Losing the remote control, breaking a nail, missing the train and being duped
by a sales person also appear on the top 50 list of bugbears.

The study also revealed the average person feels annoyed by something out of
their control up to seven times a day.

While most people don’t even get three hours into their normal day before an
outside influence ruins their routine and puts them in a mood.

Ms Stothard added: ”For many Brits, their bugbears cause a short-term
annoyance or inconvenience.

”Most are unavoidable and we have a little moan before showing true British
spirit and getting on with the rest of our day.

”But out of our top 50 bugbears, two out of the top three in our list, are
avoidable.

”And people are understandably voting with their feet to avoid places where
they feel pressurised by sales people.”

TOP 50 BUG-BEARS

1. Pressure selling – people continuously trying to sell you something you
don’t want and haven’t asked about

2. Spam emails

3. Pushy sales people

4. Foreign call centres

5. Being put on hold

6. Dog mess on the pavement

7. Pot holes in the road

8. PPI texts

9. Drivers who take up two spaces

10. Getting stuck behind really slow drivers

11. Queuing

12. Really slow people in front of you at the till

13. Rude customers or clients at work

14. Getting stuck in traffic

15. Having to stand on the train when you’ve paid loads for a ticket

16. Having to pay to use public lavatories

17. You unload the washing to find a tissue has covered everything

18. Credit card offers through the post

19. Bird mess on the car

20. Middle lane drivers

21. You put on a couple of pounds in weight when you think you’ve been good

22. Cars not stopping for you at a zebra crossing

23. Your delivery gets lost in the post

24. You hang the washing on the line only for it to rains

25. Spelling errors in books

26. Round robin emails that aren’t relevant to you

27. Having to shave

28. Having to find a pound for the supermarket trolley

29. Banks phoning you to offer you a credit card / loan / overdraft

30. Being miss-sold something

31. You close the computer or the computer crashes and you’ve forgotten to
save your work

32. Predictive text

33. Being duped by a sales person

34. Self-serve tills

35. Your partner leaving crumbs / mess on the kitchen side

36. Delayed trains

37. Getting a paper cut

38. Calling companies complaints lines

39. You miss the train by a couple of minutes

40. Realising you’ve left your phone at home

41. Banks phoning you to check your personal details

42. Losing the remote control

43. You forget to put the bins out on rubbish collection day

44. Your shopping bag breaks and you lose your goods all over the floor

45. The milk has gone off

46. Breaking a nail

47. Dishes being stacked on the draining board

48. Automatic direct debits

49. Keypad tones

50. Someone rings you and they lose reception straight away