New research from an online HR consultancy has revealed the attitudes Britons have towards their occupations and jobs. The study found that whilst a fifth of Britons ‘love’ their position, 31% felt ‘unhappy’ and just 1 in 10 landed their ‘dream job’.

As part of ongoing research into the working habits and attitudes of Britons, an online HR Consultancy, http://www.Reabur.com, conducted a study of 1,271 Britons in full time employment in a bid to discover if they were happy in their current role and if they managed to land their dream job.

The research, conducted by http://www.Reabur.com, initially asked the respondents how they felt about their current job, to which almost a third, 31%, admitted that they were ‘unhappy’ in work, whilst a further 7% went a step further and cited that they ‘hated’ their current job.

In contrast, more than a fifth, 22%, of those who took part in the study claimed to ‘love’ their current job and a further 12% stated  that they felt ‘impartial’ towards their current role. Just over a quarter, 26%, of the respondents felt ‘happy’ in their current career.

In a bid to investigate the matter further, the 31% of respondents who admitted to feeling ‘unhappy’ in their current job were asked to elaborate further.  The study found that of the total respondents that felt ‘unhappy’ in their job, 29% said it was because the role wasn’t ‘challenging’ enough.

According to the study by http://www.Reabur.com, a further 34% of those who claimed to be ‘unhappy’ in their job stated that it was because they felt ‘bored’. In contrast, 12% said they were ‘unhappy’ because their position was ‘too difficult’.

When asked by http://www.Reabur.com ‘Is your current job your dream role?’, 9% answered ‘yes’. A further two fifths, 41%, of the respondents said ‘no’, whilst 16% stated that they didn’t have a dream job. The remaining respondents cited that they thought their current role was ‘almost’ their dream job.

More than a third, 34%, of the respondents who claimed to not have their ‘dream job’ admitted that the reason for this was that they were simply ‘too lazy’ to search for the position; whilst 54% said they were ‘too comfortable’ in their current role to search for their ‘dream job’.

Georgina Read, Co-Managing Director of http://www.Reabur.com, said the following on the findings:

“It is concerning to see that so many of the respondents are unhappy in their job and even worse that some hate their current work as this is likely to impact on how well they perform in their role and potentially force the employer to make difficult decisions. Finding a new job can be time consuming and a little daunting, but if the result leads to a happier career and employee, then I would strongly recommend exploring the alternative options and getting advice from a professional in career development.”

She continued,

“It really is important to be happy and motivated when at work; not only is life too short to be unhappy, but it is likely to reflect in your personal life as well. If you are finding that you are demotivated at work, it is worth asking your manger for a challenge. It is likely that they will be impressed with your initiative and often willing to give you additional responsibilities. You never know, it could lead to further opportunities down the line, and increase your chances of promotion or change of direction to a more satisfying job.”

LINK: http://www.Reabur.com

ENDS

For further information on www.Reabur.com, or to arrange an interview with Kirsty Burgess, please contact Charlotte Horsfall of 10 Yetis Public Relations Agency on [email protected]

Editor’s Notes

Reabur are a team of chartered Human Resource professionals and accredited mediators, the core values of the business is taking on the ‘people’ challenges within a business.

Reabur provide the Human Resources function for both small and large businesses. The consultancy specialise in:

• Advise what companies can do to enhance the business through the employees, thus providing a platform to increase profits.

• Provide options on how to tackle performance, sickness and conduct within the workplace, therefore improving productivity.

• Educate businesses with regards to employment law.

• Resolve workplace conflict through tried and tested methods of mediation.

New research by one of the UK’s leading online independent travel agencies has revealed that Britons are a friendly bunch when it comes to holidays abroad, with two thirds claiming to have made friends with fellow holidaymakers on their last overseas holiday.

It seems that holidays abroad are the ideal scenario in which to meet new friends, with two thirds of Britons claiming they did exactly that on their last overseas trip; according to the research by the UK’s fastest growing online independent travel agencies.

www.sunshine.co.uk carried out the study as part of ongoing research into the holiday habits of British holidaymakers. 2,016 UK adults were polled in the study, each of whom had been abroad on holiday in the past 12 months. Respondents were asked questions surrounding their last trip abroad and what they got up to on their holiday.

When asked, ‘Did you socialise and/or make friends with fellow holidaymakers on your last trip abroad?’ 67% of those who took part in the study said ‘yes’. These respondents were then asked whether or not they had kept in touch with any of the people they met on their last holiday, to which a third, 35%, said ‘yes’.

Of those who hadn’t kept in touch, 28% said they would have liked to, but they didn’t exchange contact details with the people they had met. 2% of those who had kept in touch with the people they met on holiday said they were planning on going abroad together at the same time in the future.

Sunshine.co.uk asked those respondents who had made friends whilst on holiday where they lived back home in the UK, in order to find out where was home to the ‘friendliest’ holidaymakers. According to the results, the friendliest holidaymakers, based on those who are most likely to make friends with fellow tourists on holiday, were from the following areas:

1.       Yorkshire

2.       Devon

3.       Essex

4.       Glamorgan

5.       Cornwall

6.       Sussex

7.       Nottinghamshire

8.       Herefordshire

9.       Avon

10.   Aberdeenshire

When asked, whether they thought meeting friends had made their holiday more enjoyable, 91% of those who had said they thought that was the case.

Chris Brown, co-founder of sunshine.co.uk, commented on the findings;

“Some people like to go on holiday and keep themselves to themselves, whilst others enjoy mingling and meeting new people. I think it’s great when you meet people on holiday that you get along with and to see that some were even planning to go away again with those very people they had met was quite a revelation!”

“Providing the people you meet don’t end up wanting to spend every minute of every day with you and your family, meeting new people with similar interests can add a new dimension to a holiday and can give you much more to talk about and a lot more to do!”

LINK http://www.sunshine.co.uk

ENDS

For more information, contact Shannon Haigh of 10 Yetis PR Agency on 01452 348211 or email [email protected]

Editors Notes

sunshine.co.uk is the UK’s leading online independent travel agent and was founded by Chris Brown and Chris Clarkson, the same people behind Holiday Watchdog which was bought by TripAdvisor in February 2008 for an undisclosed amount of money.

Chris Brown of sunshine.co.uk was a ‘Secret Millionaire’ in the series on Channel 4 that began in October 2010.

Sunshine.co.uk offers low cost holidays and budget flights to destinations all over the world as well as great deals and discounted hotels.

TravelMole recently voted sunshine.co.uk as the best Travel Agency in the 2010 web awards.

Site statistics released from the UK’s online takeaway marketplace has shown a clear correlation between the volume of onsite takeaway orders and the success of X Factor acts, finding that since the live shows started, Saturday night orders have increased at the exact time the acts that ended up singing for survival initially performed.

The UK’s online takeaway marketplace, http://www.hungryhouse.co.uk has analysed site statistics, finding a clear correlation between ITV’s talent show The X Factor’s bottom-placed acts and the highest volume of orders placed during the show.

According to site statistics from Dragons’ Den success story http://www.hungryhouse.co.uk,  since the current series of the X Factor live shows started, the highest volume of orders have been made each Saturday during the performances by the acts that ended up singing for survival on Sunday’s shows. The site founders and Dragon tamers Tony Charles and Shane Lake admitting they believe it is when customers are most bored of the show and therefore happy to take a moment to place an order for food.

The people behind http://www.hungryhouse.co.uk now believe they have found a near-foolproof way of predicting the acts that will be in the bottom two.

Statistics show that during the first live show of The X Factor, the site received an 11% increase in orders – compared to normal Saturday evening ordering habits – during Nicolo Festa’s performance, a 7% increase during Katie Waissel’s act and a 6% increase during boy band F.Y.D’s performance. All acts were subsequently in the bottom three that weekend, singing for survival on Sunday.

The second week of The X Factor saw Diva Fever, Storm Lee and girl band Belle Amie in the bottom three.  Correlating with these results, http://www.hungryhouse.co.uk experienced increased orders during these acts throughout the course of the Saturday evening show – with a 16% increase during eventual evictee Storm Lee’s performance.

John Adeleye was voted off the show in week three when up against Treyc Cohen in the ‘sing off’ on Sunday’s results show. These results again were mirrored in activity on the takeaway site with a 14% increase in orders during John Adeleye’s performance.

During week four’s live show, http://www.hungryhouse.co.uk experienced a 9% increase in orders during Katie Waissel’s performance. Although she was not voted off the programme, she was amongst the bottom two acts along with Simon Cowell’s act Belle Amie.

Much like week four, the site consistently experiences the highest amount of orders during Katie Waissel’s performances more so than any other act each week, with week five seeing the biggest increase of 21%.

Last week saw the exit of Aiden Grimshaw, however unlike previous weeks the takeaway website didn’t experience an increase in orders during his performance. Much like previous weeks the highest volume of orders were received during Katie Waissel’s performance.

In contrast, the lowest amount of orders placed during the course of The X Factor live shows has so far consistently been during Matt Cardle’s performances, shortly followed by Brazilian underdog Wagner.

Graeme Horne, marketing manager of http://www.hungryhouse.co.uk, had the following to say,

“Much like Paul the Octopus during the World Cup, perhaps hungryhouse.co.uk can predict the winner of The X Factor! The orders really do seem to be correlating to the eventual bottom-placed acts – with our only anomaly being Aiden last week; and in honesty, his departure was somewhat of a shock for all of us. When a viewer becomes bored of a performance, or simply isn’t interested in their act, they are seemingly picking up their laptop or using their computers to order their dinner.”

He continued,

“These figures also emphasise the simplicity of the site. hungryhouse.co.uk allows the customer to continue their relaxed evening watching their favourite show, whilst allowing them to dip in and out of ordering their evening meal too. As far as the increase in orders is concerned, long may Katie stay in! With regards to an eventual winner, at this rate, Matt Cardle is looking strong.”

***ENDS***

LINK: http://www.hungryhouse.co.uk

For more information please contact Charlotte Horsfall of 10 Yetis Public Relations on 01452 348211 or [email protected]

EDITORS NOTES

-              hungryhouse.co.uk launched in 2006

-              hungryhouse.co.uk was a runner up in the Yahoo Finds of the Year 2007

-              hungryhouse.co.uk shook hands on a £100k deal with Duncan Bannatyne and James Caan in 2007

-              The site received a WebUser Gold Award in 2009, with its ‘Ease of Use’ and ‘Features’ highly commended

-              hungryhouse.co.uk was recognised with the BT Essence of the Entrepreneur 2010 award

-              hungryhouse.co.uk was included in the prestigious Smarta 100, 2010

-              The site has approximately 2,500 restaurants for users to choose from

A new poll by the UK’s fastest growing HR consultancy asked adults if they think they are underpaid by their employer and what they think they are financially worth to the company they work for. The data was analysed and has revealed that 93% believe they are under paid, 61% of which wrongly overestimate their worth.

The UK’s fastest growing HR consultancy, http://www.Reabur.com asked 1,293 adults across the UK what salary they believe they are ‘worth’ according to their own opinion, as well the amount that they actually earn, their job title, qualifications and years of experience.

The data supplied by the participants was analysed to discover if they over or under estimate their monetary worth to their employer.

Using supplied job titles, sectors and regional average wages, the study by http://www.Reabur.com discovered that 61% of the respondents overestimate their financial worth.

18% of respondents wrongly think they are under paid by £5,000 each year and a further 29% believe they should be paid an extra £3,000.

According to the results from http://www.Reabur.com 93% believe they are under paid by their employer and only 4% cited that they are happy with their salary.

Only 8% of those asked under estimate their financial worth to their company when compared to the market and sector that they work within.

When asked ‘do you enjoy your job?’ 54% answered ‘no’, yet 73% of the respondents admitted to liking the company that they work for and two thirds, 67%, claim to not want to leave their employment.

Kirsty Burgess, co-founder of http://www.Reabur.com, commented on the findings;

“This research did surprise me! Not so much that people believe that they under paid – because I think we would all like a little extra money each month – more so by the fact that respondents believe they are worth an extra £5,000 each year- which shows that they are out of touch with the market rate for their role .”

She continued,

“Salaries can be a very difficult subject to approach, they are very emotive and companies have to be especially careful when employees working in the same team are earning different amounts to their colleagues, they have to ensure the differences are justified and will stand up to equality legislation. It is always good to undertake benchmarking exercises to ensure you are paying market rates, and your HR department or HR consultant should provide that service.”

LINK: http://www.Reabur.com

For further information on Reabur.com or to arrange an interview with Georgina Read, please contact Charlotte Horsfall of 10 Yetis Public Relations Agency on 01452348211 or [email protected]

Editor’s Notes

Reabur are a team of chartered Human Resource professionals and accredited mediators, the core values if the business is taking on the ‘people’ challenges within a business.

Reabur provide the Human Resources function for both small and large businesses. The consultancy specialise in:

• Advise what companies can do to enhance the business through the employees, thus providing a platform to increase profits.

• Provide options on how to tackle performance, sickness and conduct within the workplace, therefore improving productivity.

• Educate businesses with regards to employment law.

• Resolve workplace conflict through tried and tested methods of mediation.

A leading online independent travel agency has revealed that this weekend is the ‘winter blues weekend’ based on the time of year when most people in the UK book a holiday for the following year. Research of more than 1,400 people was also carried out to discover more about how people feel about their holidays.

The UK’s fastest growing online independent travel agent has released site statistics that show the last weekend in October was the time of the year in 2008 and 2009 when they received the most bookings for holidays the following year. As such, the site has branded this weekend the ‘winter blues weekend’, as it is when they expect most to plan their escape from the UK and the gloomy weather once again.

www.sunshine.co.uk has looked into past booking and search statistics on the site to determine when the most people visit the site to book a holiday for the following year. 1,489 British holidaymakers were also polled, to find out more about their holiday habits.

62% claimed booking a holiday ‘made them feel better’ and 11% said they hated ‘going a year without a trip around’. A third, 34%, admitted to looking up holidays whilst they were at work.

78% of the respondents claimed to book holidays in the winter months. When asked by http://www.sunshine.co.uk why they did so, 59% claimed it gave them ‘something to look forward to’.

Respondents were also asked ‘does the weather in the UK made you feel low?’ and a high number, 67%, said that it did. One in ten, 9%, even went as far as saying the weather in the UK made them ‘want to live abroad one day’.

When asked, ‘Do you return from a holiday feeling refreshed?’ 97% of people said that they did, but the study also found that the average time it takes people to feel as though they need another holiday is after just four weeks of being home.

Respondents were also asked to determine, out of Birthdays, Christmas and holidays, what they most looked forward to in a year. 82% of people picked ‘holidays’.

Chris Brown, co-founder of http://www.sunshine.co.uk, commented on the findings;

“We thought it would be fun to look in more detail at the day when most visitors to our site are thinking about and booking their holiday for the following year. The last weekend of October is on track to be a popular time for bookings yet again and, I can only assume the recent plunge in temperatures has a lot to do with that.

“October is a time when the heat, if any, of summer has disappeared and Christmas is just a little too far away to be excited about, so people get left with nothing much to enjoy or look forward to. Booking a holiday certainly seems a remedy for most!”

LINK http://www.sunshine.co.uk

ENDS

For more information, or to arrange interviews with Chris Brown, please contact Shannon Haigh of 10 Yetis PR Agency on 01452 348211 or email [email protected]

Editors Notes

sunshine.co.uk is the UK’s leading online independent travel agent and was founded by Chris Brown and Chris Clarkson, the same people behind Holiday Watchdog which was bought by TripAdvisor in February 2008 for an undisclosed amount of money.

Chris Brown of sunshine.co.uk was a ‘Secret Millionaire’ in the series on Channel 4 that began in October 2010.

Sunshine.co.uk offers low cost holidays and budget flights to destinations all over the world as well as great deals and discounted hotels.

TravelMole recently voted sunshine.co.uk as the best Travel Agency in the 2010 web awards.

A study by the UK’s fastest growing baby product review site of more than 1,000 young women has revealed that a third, 32%, of the respondents would not breast feed for fear of ruining the look of their breasts.

New research from www.BabyChild.org.uk, the UK’s fastest growing baby product review website, has revealed a reluctance amongst young women to breast feed after birth out of vanity.  Just under half, 49%, of young women aged 18-25 claimed that they did not plan on breastfeeding; the overriding majority, 32%, labelling the desire not to ‘ruin the look of their breasts’ as the main reason why.

The research was commissioned by http://www.BabyChild.org.uk, following the recent news that model Gisele had publicly voiced her pro-breastfeeding stance. 1,228 childless women aged 18-25 were subsequently polled; asked questions surrounding their hypothetical intentions of breastfeeding.

When asked the question, “Do you plan on breastfeeding your child?” 49% of the young women who took part in the study answered, “no.” Only 35% responded with a definite “yes” answer; whilst 16% said that they were “unsure.”

These respondents were then asked to stipulate the reasons behind their claims. Of those who stated that they did not plan on breastfeeding their child, 32% admitted that it was because they didn’t want to ‘ruin the look of their breasts.’ A further one in five, 19%, claimed that they felt, ‘uncomfortable’ about the thought of breastfeeding; whilst 9% stated that they didn’t plan on it as their mother had bad experiences.

The 19% of young women who claimed to feel, “uncomfortable” about the thought of breastfeeding were asked in the study to stipulate why they felt this way. A quarter of these women felt that their breasts were ‘sexual,’ and therefore deemed breastfeeding ‘inappropriate;’ whilst a third, 32%, explained that they found the act of breastfeeding ‘odd.’

Of those who claimed that they didn’t want to ‘ruin the look of their breasts,’ just over half, 52%, were afraid of their partner finding them less attractive should this happen. A further 1 in 4, 24%, were fearful that they would lose their body confidence. Over three quarters, 77%, of the young women who did not want to breastfeed also stated that they did not think it would affect their baby’s health.

Of the women who did intend on breastfeeding, the main reason for 51% was the supposition that it would be ‘healthier for the child.’ Over a quarter, 28%, wanted to do so ‘in order to bond with the child.’ Furthermore, one in ten of those who wanted to breastfeed stated that it was ‘irresponsible’ of mothers not to plan on trying.

Jill Tovey, co-founder of http://www.BabyChild.org.uk, commented on the findings:

“Breastfeeding is a real hot topic at the moment; one of the main reasons why we decided to commission this research into the opinions of young women. It was surprising to see that so many young women were unwilling to entertain the thought of breastfeeding their child in the future, particularly due to reasons of vanity. The fear of ruining a youthful physique is evidently at the forefront of their minds, and the risk of breastfeeding changing the look and feel of your breasts forever is clearly enough to put some young women off altogether.

“However, the study also revealed a slightly more concerning topic; namely the fact that a percentage of the young women who took part in the study felt that breasts were sexual, therefore deeming breastfeeding an ‘inappropriate act’. This is a somewhat worrying school of thought, particularly given the fact that many women seem to be turned off breastfeeding because of this inaccuracy; and breastfeeding is one of the most natural things in the world. However, the competition of breast versus bottle will forever be debated, and probably never solved. Perhaps an improved education of the benefits and drawbacks of breastfeeding will help young women to come to a more informed decision when the time comes, rather than basing their choice on vanity or fear.”

ENDS

LINK: http://www.Babychild.org.uk

For more information please contact Emma Kent of 10 Yetis Public Relations Agency on [email protected] or 01452348211.

Editors Notes

This study was conducted on 09/08/2010- results were collected on 16/08/2010.

Babychild.org.uk looks for real reviews from real parents

The shop features over 1,000 products, which have been rated and reviewed by real parents. This number is constantly growing everyday.

After conducting a poll of just over 2,000 people, the UK’s leading mobile phone comparison website has found that, on average, consumers look at more mobile phones and deals than they do cars or houses, prior to making a purchase.

A poll commissioned by the UK’s leading mobile phone comparison site has discovered that consumers view more mobile phones and deals than houses and cars before making a purchase.

The study, by www.rightmobilephone.co.uk, of 2,036 people aged 21-35 found that the respondents would look at an average of 5 houses before renting or buying one, whilst when it came to a vehicle, respondents would look at an average of 3 cars before making a purchase.

When it came to mobile phones however, respondents claimed to look at an average of 7 handsets and 9 tariffs before parting with their cash. The aim of the poll by www.rightmobilephone.co.uk was to look into buying habits of Brits and their research before spending habits.

The respondents were asked to give reasons as to why they looked at a certain number of different products before making a purchase and, when it came to mobile phones, 67% felt there was ‘too much choice’ which is what prompted them to looking into their options before committing to a sale.

In terms of properties, with 5 being the number people view on average before renting or buying, 83% felt they only viewed houses they thought they would move into, which limited the number they looked at.

The same could be said for cars, with 71% claiming they knew what vehicle they wanted before the started looking, hence limiting the number they actually looked at.

Neil McHugh, co-founder of rightmobilephone.co.uk, said;

“I’d agree that there is a huge amount of choice out there when it comes to mobile phones and tariffs, but the purpose of our website is to help people pick the right phone for them in a short space of time. With that said, I was still surprised to see that people actually look at more handsets and tariffs than they do houses and cars before buying.”

He continued, “Usually, the more expensive the item, the more time people take over making a decision to buy, but there are obviously a lot of people who are a bit bewildered by the sheer number of handsets and tariffs available, which is causing them to ponder more over their final decision. Hopefully, sites such as rightmobilephone.co.uk can help reduce the amount of time spent searching for a mobile by consumers.”

LINK http://www.rightmobilephone.co.uk

ENDS

For more information, or to arrange interviews with Neil McHugh, please contact Shannon Haigh of 10 Yetis PR Agency on 01452 348211 or email [email protected]
Editors notes

Rightmobilephone.co.uk was launched in November 2007 to help consumers save time and money by providing a trusted comparison platform for customers to purchase from.

The site has become the UK’s most comprehensive and user friendly mobile phone comparison engine, with 600,000+ mobile phone offers combined with user friendly consumer reviews, ratings and video.

Users can review and compare over 800 handsets with images, specifications and video with unique users reviews, opinions and ratings provided by handset owners and compare over 2000 + pay as you go offers and tariffs from all major networks.

A new poll by the UK’s fastest growing online independent travel agent has found that over half of Brits are potentially missing out on bargains abroad, after 54% of respondents claimed they were ‘too embarrassed’ to haggle.

New nationwide research by the UK’s fastest growing online independent travel agent of 1,673 people has found that 54% of respondents are ‘too embarrassed’ to haggle the price down when buying goods on holiday, a skill that can save tourists a lot of money abroad.

The poll by www.sunshine.co.uk found that only a quarter of respondents, 26%, have haggled on holiday, with 86% of these saying they ‘really enjoyed’ bargaining with merchants abroad. 7% of the total respondents weren’t aware you could try to get the price down when buying products on holiday.

Of those who have haggled before, the most common products tourists try to get at a bargain price are electrical goods, with 34% saying they had managed to get a discount when buying electronic items such as handheld games consoles, cameras and MP3 players.

Next on the list of items targeted by holiday hagglers was clothing and accessories, with 21% admitted to having got the price down on a garment or fashion item whilst on holiday such as sunglasses and dresses.

Of those that said they were ‘too embarrassed’ to haggle, 24% said it was because it made them feel ‘desperate’ whilst 11% claimed they felt ‘cheap’. 8% said they were ‘scared’ and 3% didn’t want to ‘offend’ the seller.

5% of the respondents who said they do haggle said they had previously done so in a place where they weren’t supposed to.

Chris Brown, co-founder of www.sunshine.co.uk, commented on the findings;

“It’s such as shame that more people aren’t embracing the art of haggling whilst on holiday, as there is so much money to be saved. Tourists shouldn’t be embarrassed to try and get the price of products down, as the merchants are so used to it and most even enjoy bartering with their customers.

“Beach sellers that come around offering items such as sunglasses and novelty products are the best people to haggle with, as we’ve often heard from holidaymakers who have dramatically cut the cost of products they bought. With the Euro now much weaker than it was, tourists should take advantage of the bargains available by learning the art of haggling.”

LINK http://www.sunshine.co.uk

ENDS

For more information, or to arrange interviews with Chris Brown, please contact Shannon Haigh of 10 Yetis PR Agency on 01452 348211 or email [email protected]

Editors Notes

http://www.sunshine.co.uk is the UK’s leading online independent travel agent and was founded by Chris Brown and Chris Clarkson, the same people behind Holiday Watchdog which was bought by TripAdvisor in February 2008 for an undisclosed amount of money. Sunshine.co.uk offers low cost holidays and budget flights to destinations all over the world as well as great deals and discounted hotels.

Men are three times more likely to injure themselves on holiday than women, a poll by the UK’s fastest growing online independent travel agent has found, whilst the most likely way to get hurt on holiday is slipping by the poolside.

The latest research by online travel agent www.sunshine.co.uk of 1,956 holidaymakers has found that men are three times more likely to get hurt on holiday than women. The study also revealed the top five most likely ways to get hurt whilst on holiday.
11% of women that responded to the poll claimed to have suffered an injury whilst on holiday, compared to more than a third, 34%, of men. Of the 45% of total respondents who said they had hurt themselves whilst on holiday, 18% did so by slipping by the side of the pool.
Even though just under half had experienced an accident on holiday, 19% admitted to having previously gone on holiday without taking out a travel insurance policy. Of these, 32% did so to ‘save money’ and 41% claimed they thought it was ‘unnecessary’. 8% of these admitted to having forgotten.
Aside from being injured whilst on holiday, just more than a third, 34%, said they had fallen ill whilst on a trip abroad. The most common illness amongst the holidaymakers asked who had been unwell on a vacation was food poisoning, with 24% claiming to have suffered from it.
The top five most common ways of being injured on holiday, according to the poll by sunshine.co.uk are:

1. Slipping by the poolside – 18%
2. Drunken fall – 15%
3. Road accidents – 11%
4. Water sport injuries – 9%
5. Skiing injuries – 4%
The top five most common illnesses experienced on holiday by the respondents are:

1. Food poisoning – 24%
2. Sunstroke – 13%
3. Traveller’s diarrhoea – 12%
4. Jet lag – 9%
5. Altitude sickness – 7%
Chris Brown, co-founder of http://www.sunshine.co.uk, commented on the findings;
“Unfortunately, illness and injury on holiday can be all too common. The most obvious way to ensure you are protected from the problems found within our poll is to ensure that you take out an adequate travel insurance policy before jetting off abroad. We weren’t expecting to see such a high number of respondents admit to going on holiday without insurance in the past and hope this is something people will reconsider after seeing our research results.”
He continued, “We have produced a quick guide to staying protected whilst on holiday, as a trip can be easily ruined if the right precautions aren’t taken. We’d like to think all travellers would be as determined as we are to ensure they have a good holiday and as so many of these illnesses and injuries can be easily avoided, all it takes is a bit of common sense.”
Sunshine.co.uk have produced the following guide for travellers, to help protect holidaymakers from avoidable injury and illness.

Hydrate – always drink plenty of bottled water to prevent dehydration. If you take ice in your drinks, ensure that they ice cubes are made from mineral water, as tap water abroad should be avoided.
Only eat freshly prepared and thoroughly cooked food – Keep food poisoning at bay by avoiding salads that could have been washed in contaminated water. Try to stay away from fish and shellfish and steer clear of food that has been kept warm for long periods of time.
Leave with the essentials – Take any medication you think you might need on holiday, such as travel sickness pills, paracetamol and Imodium.
Insurance – Don’t leave home without it. Make sure you have the right travel insurance policy and a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) which entitles you to free or discounted medical treatment in EEA countries and Switzerland.
Don’t hire a car unless you’re confident – Road accidents abroad account for a high number of insurance claims, so be 100% confident that you can drive on foreign roads before hiring a vehicle.
Apply plenty of sun cream – Sunburn can ruin a holiday, so make sure you pack a high factor cream and apply it regularly, especially after you’ve been in the pool or sea. Take further precautions by drinking water and wearing sunglasses and a hat.
You can’t be too careful – Use your common sense, don’t run by the poolside and don’t drink excessive amounts of alcohol.

LINK http://www.sunshine.co.uk

ENDS

For more information, or to arrange interviews with Chris Brown, please contact Shannon Haigh of 10 Yetis PR Agency on 01452 348211 or email [email protected]

Editors Notes

sunshine.co.uk is the UK’s leading online independent travel agent and was founded by Chris Brown and Chris Clarkson, the same people behind Holiday Watchdog which was bought by TripAdvisor in February 2008 for an undisclosed amount of money. Sunshine.co.uk offers low cost holidays and budget flights to destinations all over the world as well as great deals and discounted hotels.

With a rising number of children and teenagers now owning a mobile phone in Britain, the UK’s leading mobile phone comparison website has commissioned a study into a new ‘random text’ trend, which could be putting youngsters at risk.

In a new poll of 1,382 teens aged between 13 and 16, www.rightmobilephone.co.uk has found that there is an increasing number of young people engaging in what is potentially a dangerous text messaging trend, involving sending a message to a random number and awaiting a reply.

19% of the respondents who took part in the poll admitting having previously done this, despite the risk of speaking with strangers and 22% claimed to have played ‘text roulette’, a slightly different trend that involves typing an obscene text message before scrolling through the contact list and sending it to whoever it lands on.

Further findings of the study by rightmobilephone.co.uk included almost two thirds, 64%, of the young respondents admitting to adding or accepting somebody they didn’t know as a friend on Facebook.

Of those who admitted to sending random texts to unknown numbers, 11% said it was ‘loneliness’ that prompted them to do so. 31% said it was ‘just for fun’ whilst 9% were ‘dared’ to do so. 42% said ‘boredom’ was the reason they sent random texts to strangers. More than half, 54%, said they had received a reply from the unknown number they had texted.

In terms of Facebook and those who admitted adding or accepting people they didn’t know, 72% said they just wanted to ‘look more popular’ by having more friends.

Of the teenagers that admitted to playing ‘Text Roulette’, 1 in 3 claimed it had landed them in trouble with the recipient.

Neil McHugh, co-founder of rightmobilephone.co.uk, said;

“We’d hope young people realise the dangers of texting strange numbers and adding people they don’t know on Facebook, although judging by the findings, this is not the case. As more young people now own mobile phones, I would encourage parents to keep a closer eye on how their children are using them.”

“We were surprised by the number of teenagers that have actually taken part in these risky ‘games’ like Text Roulette and what was even more worrying is that the majority of the teenagers had a reply from texts they had sent to random numbers.”

LINK http://www.rightmobilephone.co.uk

ENDS

For more information, or to arrange interviews with Neil McHugh, please contact Shannon Haigh of 10 Yetis PR Agency on 01452 348211 or email [email protected]

Editors notes

Rightmobilephone.co.uk was launched in November 2007 to help consumers save time and money by providing a trusted comparison platform for customers to purchase from.

The site has become the UK’s most comprehensive and user friendly mobile phone comparison engine, with 600,000+ mobile phone offers combined with user friendly consumer reviews, ratings and video.

Users can review and compare over 800 handsets with images, specifications and video with unique users reviews, opinions and ratings provided by handset owners and compare over 2000 + pay as you go offers and tariffs from all major networks.