Homeowners spend an estimated £539m a year employing tradespeople to fix DIY jobs that have gone wrong, research has found.
The new research from Direct Line business insurance revealed that on average it costs homeowners £919 to get a professional tradesperson to fix or finish their botched DIY attempts.
A total of 85% of tradespeople believe the surge in people taking on ambitious DIY projects is due to the rise of ‘do it yourself’ videos on social media platforms like YouTube, Instagram and TikTok. Over half, 57%, of homeowners who have attempted DIY claim they were influenced by media or social media channels to take on the task.
One in five homeowners who have attempted DIY admit to having been only partially successful. Of those who failed in their efforts, 22% had to call in a professional to fix the job and 9% reported they made the thing they were trying to fix much worse. Almost half, 47%, admitted that their DIY project failed because they lacked the necessary skills to complete it, while 40% said it was a larger job than they had anticipated.
A total of 90% of tradespeople surveyed say they have noticed a rise in calls from people who need help from a professional to fix or finish a botched DIY project. A further 50% said that they get called to the rescue at least twice a week, averaging almost 100 a year.
Home improvement projects are incredibly popular with 82% of homeowners taking on DIY in the last two years, the research found. The most popular DIY home renovation tasks include stripping paint and painting, 55%, putting up fittings, 42%, landscaping / fencing, 38%, wallpaper stripping / papering, 31%, and plumbing, 25%.
Jonny McHugh, head of small business insurance at Direct Line, said: “The popularity of social media, especially DIY content and home improvement tutorials, has resulted in a false sense of DIY confidence amongst some homeowners.
“Tradespeople take years to learn their craft and while something may look easy on social media, it is often far from it. Anyone taking on DIY should consider the limit of their skills and whether it would be better to call in the professionals to ensure the job is done properly and with the right tools in the first place.”