Business is booming for UK tradesmen due to Britain’s do-it-yourself attitude, according to a new survey.

Commissioned by Swinton Commercial, a business insurance broker, the snap-shot study took a sample of 100 tradesmen and women from across the UK, and found that out of all trades, it was plumbers who reported having to fix the highest number of DIY disasters in the home and workplace, with 20% saying that fixing dodgy DIY attempts often accounted for as much as 84% of their workloads.

The study showed that 100% of those surveyed felt that most amateur DIY attempts resulted from people believing it would be cheaper to do the jobs themselves rather than hiring a professional, thinking skilled plumbing jobs were easy (42.9%), or because they worried they would get ripped-off by rogue traders (42%).

Over 25% of plumbers said they were regularly called out to fix DIY mishaps at businesses, while 100% said that over ambitious DIY-ers were guilty of putting themselves and others at risk.

50% of UK plumbers said they thought it was a growing trend.

Botched DIY jobs reported by UK plumbers, included:
• A waitress in a cafe attempted to repair a commercial boiler using a bread knife and scissors. The unit was still live at the time.
• An unsecured bath where overflows were running into the ceiling void. Lead pipes had been left and fudged into the copper pipes, with boxing made from MDF absorbing water
• A basin tap fitted without a sealing washer, causing a large water leak, which ran through the ceiling in the hallway.

Alastair Denness, national business development manager at Swinton Commercial, said: “The results of the study are troubling showing that UK plumbers are seeing a growing trend in people undertaking technically demanding and potentially dangerous DIY jobs in order to cut costs.

“Although these jobs might be good news for UK plumbers, businesses need to be aware that cutting costs by attempting to do the job of a professional is a false economy, often costing a lot more than it would to pay a professional to do the job in the first place.

“Business owners also need to remember that failed DIY attempts can put you and employees at serious risk, and result in insurance claims when disaster strikes, leading to increased business insurance premiums. We, therefore, advise supporting your local tradesmen to provide a professional service which could save you and your business a lot more money in the long run.”

Read more at http://www.hpmmag.com/news/botched-diy-jobs-account-80-business