When it comes to the most common pests in British homes, two thirds of people living in the UK have encountered spiders in their house, according to a new survey by pest control specialists, Fantastic Services.
The survey by the pest control company showed that 65% of us live with arachnids in our home followed by flies (58%), moths (44%), wasps (40%) and ants (28%).
Whilst those living in East of England are most likely to see spiders in their home (74%) the number falls to less than a half among Londoners (46%) but where homes in London generally have more mice – making mice in London a proportionately common pest (14%).
61% of Brits say they would be comfortable getting rid of a pest in their home themselves with 31% of the population dealing with the pests humanely and 30% of people admitting they would kill themselves – with males being noticeably more likely than females to say they would kill the pest themselves (38% vs 22%).
A further 22% of people would put traps or poison down, and another 21% would call a pest control company.
There are, however, 15% who would get their partner to deal with the situation instead of themselves, which falls to 4% in the case of males, and increases to 25% among females.
Despite many feeling they would be comfortable dealing with pests at home themselves, 15% of people say they know about pests in their home at the moment but they avoid doing anything about it, and 19% of people have ignored pest problem at home before.
Co-Founder of Fantastic Services, Rune Sovndahl, says ‘Pest control in Britain is a huge problem and a service that is growing rapidly. With more people, spending more time at home over the past 18 months there’s more waste being created which is attracting a greater variety of pests. From spider control and cockroach control to bed bugs and woodworm treatment – the number of pests living in our homes in rising exponentially’.
Among those who have experience with pests in their home, a third have been bitten or stung before (33%) and a quarter have seen their outdoor garden plants eaten by pests (24%). A further 14% say their clothes have been damaged by pests before, while 10% say their food have been eaten, and 9% have seen their property being damaged by pests (e.g. walls or carpets).
Having pests at home is very unpleasant, about two in eight (38%) saying that is it one of their worst fears, and a quarter (27%) saying they would want to move out when discovering a pest at home.
Young people aged 18-34 are especially likely to want to move out in case they have pests at home (45%), compared to those aged 35-54 (30%) or above 55 (12%).
Even though only 5% of UK adults have seen a rat, and 1% have seen snake in their current home, these two are the pests that people are most afraid of.
About two in five fear rats the most (38%), and a third fear snakes the most (32%). A quarter of people are most afraid of spiders (25%), which are also the most common pests that people see in their homes, and a further fifth of people fear cockroaches the most (19%). Women are almost twice as likely to be afraid of spiders than men (32% vs 18%), as well as of mice (13% vs 7%).
Having a pest problem at home is causing a social issue for some, with a third (33%) of UK adults saying they would be embarrassed to admit this to their friends or family. This is especially true for the youngest age group, where half of them (49%) would feel embarrassed about it, compared to 36% of those aged 35-54, and 19% of those aged 55 and above. When thinking of whether or not they have pests at the moment, over half (53%) believe they have pests at the moment that they don’t know about, and about half of people (46%) think that their parents’ generation had more pests in their homes than they do now.
Pest control specialist Kameliya Ilieva, says, ‘It’s amazing how many people don’t realise they are living with pests. We always advise anyone moving into a new home to ensure their new accommodation has been thoroughly checked and protected against pests in advance; to save more serious pest control problems occurring latter down the line. It’s always a good idea to have skirting boards and lofts checked, adding the appropriate foam insulating to block potential pest passageways etc. You’ll be amazed at the places pest can make their way into!’
