NEWS COPY
A reserved Brit’s idea of being a ‘risk taker’ involves not locking your car, internet shopping after one glass too many and not bothering to use sun tan lotion.
A study, carried out among 2,000 Brits, also found that many see sitting in first class with a standard ticket and booking a holiday before you have the money to pay for it as ‘edgy’.
It also revealed that one in six Brits think eating something past its sell-by date is among the ultimate risks someone can take.
Other risks include standing over the yellow line on a tube station platform and driving with the petrol light on.
A spokesman for, spread betting company, Spread Co, which commissioned the study, said: “It’s interesting to see what a typically reserved person considers to be a risk.
“Risk after all is completely relative. While one person might not think twice about playing the markets to the tune of thousands, another feels like they’re chancing it by ignoring the petrol warning light.
“That’s why we carried out this study – we wanted to see what the reserved Brit considers to be risky.”
However, to some, it seems parking in front of a driveway, opening a cupboard or box that says ‘do not open’ and turning up to a gig without a ticket are among the ways to get this excitement.
Driving at 40mph in a ‘30’ zone, arguing with a policeman and climbing a tree were the less common risks that Brits are taking.
The research revealed more than two thirds of Brits said their lives really do need more excitement.
“It is interesting to see that many of the answers, rather than being ‘boring’, are classic cases of risk management — as the results of the survey show, many people would consider not wearing a seatbelt or exceeding speed limits as ‘risky’.
However, in the trading world, these precautions are tantamount to risk management: they can’t necessarily stop a car crash but they will at least keep you in one piece!”
And friends, relatives and colleagues would agree with four in ten having been told how ‘boring’ they were by people who knew them.
But most believe it’s their social lives that are in need of a spruce up more than anything, while over one fifth of those surveyed thinks it’s their professional life that needs a bit more spice, despite four in ten Brits declaring that they never been late for work. In fact, 45 per cent have confessed to never being spontaneous.
However, when it comes to their relationship almost one in three Brits have been risky enough to be a bit sneaky behind their partner’s back. They’ve bought items and hid them away from their partner, gone on a shopping spree on the joint account and one in seven has gone as far as cheating on them.
Many of these sneaky Brits have been caught out by their partner but two thirds have managed to get away with it…so far.
Risks, no matter how big or small, have got in the way of many relationships with 37 per cent of people having an argument or a disagreement with their partner because of a risk.
And 43 per cent have said that risks have cost them money in the past, so it could be a case of ‘once bitten, twice shy’ for many Brits.
Spread Co’s spokesman added: “Traders at the stock market, for example, are frequently confronted with the situation to step outside their comfort zone in order to increase their profit. We therefore encourage people to take calculated risks rather than careless risks, especially when money is involved.”
THE TOP 25 RISKIEST RISKS
1. Not locking your car
2. Driving through a red light
3. Leaving windows open in your house when nobody’s home
4. Booking a holiday before having the money to pay for it
5. Driving with the petrol light on or with little petrol
6. Not bothering to use sun tan lotion
7. Using the phone while driving
8. Not paying for parking when you’ll be a few minutes
9. Crossing the road with the ‘red man’ is lit up
10. Driving through a light on amber
11. Not paying bills on time
12. Getting the last tube or train home
13. Buying something frivolous that would take you into your overdraft
14. Sitting in first class when you haven’t paid for it
15. Not crossing the road at a crossing
16. Overfilling your hand luggage
17. Parking in front of a driveway
18. Standing over the yellow line on a tube station platform
19. Eating something past its sell by date
20. Eating, drinking or smoking behind the wheel
21. Opening something that says “do not open”
22. Sitting in a reserved seat on a train
23. Being the last passenger to board the plane
24. Internet shopping after drinking
25. Turning up to an event without a ticket
ENDS
