A poll of 2,000 people who have moved home has revealed the most common disasters likely to cause them stress and sleepless nights.
Happy Beds commissioned the research as part of its Moving Home campaign.
- Half of homeowners have experienced a ‘fail’ on moving day, according to the study.
- Thirty-one per cent have proudly brought a piece of furniture to their new front door – only to find it wouldn’t fit through it.
- One in 10 have even lost the keys to their new property before they arrived at their new home.
- As a result of the worry, one in eight prospective movers suffered a sleepless night ahead of their move.
- Half of movers grab fewer than five hours of kip in preparation.
- One in 10 believe trying to nod off in their new, unfamiliar home is the most stressful part of the entire moving process.
- And it will take an average of four nights before new homeowners get a proper restful night’s kip in their new digs.
The moving disasters continue, with a third of respondents finding pieces of furniture broken in transit once they reach the other side. Twenty-four per cent also discovered too late that the previous owners of their home hadn’t totally finished moving out. Packing up the old house was revealed as the single-worst part of moving home, followed by the stress leading up to moving day itself.
One in three also can’t stand the admin involved with changing addresses on forms and setting up new bills. Unsurprisingly, wardrobes were nominated the single worst item to move from one house to another, followed by sofas and delicate items like vases or mirrors.
The average Brit has moved home five times in their life so far, according to the
OnePoll.com research. Many Brits will be sleep-deprived and completely stressed out by the time that first box is loaded into the van, so finding ways to take the pressure off and reduce the possibility of catastrophe are vital.
Delegating tasks to supportive friends and family is an effective way of helping moves go smoothly. The secret to minimising stress when moving home is to make the process as straightforward as possible, from beginning to end.
TOP 20 MOST COMMON MOVING FAILS
1. Damaged furniture
2. Scratched walls
3. Not being able to fit an item through the door
4. Not being able to manoeuvre furniture up/down the stairs
5. Not being able to manoeuvre furniture around a corner
6. Boxes breaking and the contents spilling out everywhere
7. The previous residents hadn't totally moved out or left things behind
8. The house wasn't ready
9. Not having everything packed up in time
10. Delicate possessions breaking
11. Removal van showing up late
12. Lost boxes
13. Feeling ill on the big day
14. Friends who were meant to help cancelled last minute
15. Losing keys
16. Car/van breaking down
17. Problems picking up a rental van
18. Removal van getting completely lost
19. Keys breaking in the door
20. I got lost and couldn't find the house
However, occasionally accidents do happen – so even if a beloved heirloom gets smashed, try not to lose too much sleep over it.
